Claire Mowat was born and educated in Toronto and is a graduate of Ontario College of Art. Originally she was a graphic designer, but switched to writing during the 1960s when she lived in Newfoundland. This led to her first book, The Outport People. Her second book Pomp and Circumstances, resulted from being backstage at Rideau Hall in Ottawa during the 1980s, where she discovered the fascinating, curious world of protocol. Her third book, The Girl From Away, is a novel for younger readers. Mowat divides her time between a small town in Ontario and a farm in Nova Scotia, and lives with her husband Farley, who also writes.