We recently had the chance to connect with Nicole Acevedo and have shared our conversation below.
Nicole, really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: What’s more important to you—intelligence, energy, or integrity?
I’d have to say that integrity is the most important to me out of the three. Right now, I feel like we’re operating in a world that constantly shows us how easily some people are willing to throw their morals out the window to “get ahead”, and for me, holding onto that sense of self and morality is more important than ever. Whether it be in small day-to-day life or professional endeavors, I really do pride myself on sticking to my guns and what I believe to be right and honest.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Of course! For those of you who don’t know me (which is probably all of you), my name is Nicole Acevedo, and I’m a young adult author and poet who started growing on social media after publishing/marketing the first draft of my debut contemporary YA novel, EVERYWHERE, EVERYTHING, on Wattpad and TikTok. While the first draft began as a fanfiction inspired by the Sturniolo Triplets, it has since grown into an original story that dives into grief, childhood trauma, and the search for home and identity. These themes are prevalent in all of my works as I very much pull from real-life experiences when creating, which ultimately allows me to connect on a deeper level with my readers and audience. My poetry has appeared in a variety of literary journals since 2024, including The Sheepshead Review and Poetry Society of New Hampshire’s Touchstone Journal. I have a piece forthcoming in The Bangalore Review. Recently, I was nominated for the 2026 Pushcart Prize by Touchstone Journal for my poem “EXHIBITION,” which explores my experiences growing up as the child of an addict and the scars we inherit. When I’m not writing, you can either find me drinking an iced americano at my favorite local coffee shop, (re)reading a young adult fiction novel, or binging my favorite comfort creators on YouTube!
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
Most people would probably say their mother or father, or maybe even an elementary school teacher, but for me, it’s someone who technically doesn’t exist outside of the TV screen: Brooke Davis.
For anyone who doesn’t know who the icon Brooke Davis is, she was played by Sophia Bush in the popular CW show from the early aughts–One Tree Hill. While I wasn’t old enough to watch the show as it aired weekly, I did find it during high school and immediately fell in love with Brooke’s character. She was everything I was at that age: messy, reactive, and headstrong above all else. She was also misunderstood, and was a young girl who was practically raising herself. At the time, I was living with my recently divorced grandmother, struggling with depression and anxiety, and was entirely unsure as to who I was outside of attention from boys.
But as One Tree Hill surpassed the characters’ lives in high school, and Brooke’s character arc went from shallow, promiscuous high school mean girl to a deeply loyal, compassionate and successful young woman, I found myself changing with her. In 2017, I graduated from high school, moved to Spain by myself to work as an au pair for a few months, solo-traveled across various countries, and gave myself the space to reflect on the parts of myself I wanted to shed and the ones I wanted to keep.
All those years watching, and re-watching, Brooke come to terms with how her neglect, childhood trauma, and the choices she made in the wake of those experiences affected her, taught me how to have grace for myself.
Though I’m twenty-six now, and One Tree Hill has long been off air, the impact Brooke Davis’ character and the show’s themes have had on my identity remains ever-present.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
I know right now it feels like everything is heavy and dark and like you’ll never get away from this version of your life, but you are the exception. You become more than you could ever dream.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. Is the public version of you the real you?
I like to think so. One of the most important things to me is authenticity. I find people much more interesting when they’re being themselves, even if I don’t always agree with what they say or do. The public version of me is just as outspoken and headstrong as I am behind closed doors. I don’t know how to be anything else.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What will you regret not doing?
Not putting out as much art as I possibly can while I’m still here. Sometimes, I find myself getting caught up in the idea that to be considered a “real writer” or creative, my work has to be “good” or “perfect.” But that’s not what art is about. Art is subjective and meant to make you feel. I don’t want to die knowing I left untold stories inside myself because I was too focused on accolades or praise. I want my work to be out in the world, even if only one person sees it. I want that to be enough.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/peachyniks/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolesacevedo/
- Twitter: https://x.com/peachyniks
- Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@peachyniks
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