Award-winning Author

Strong women.
Fierce choices.
Unbreakable bonds.

Catherine Matthews is an award-winning Pacific Northwest author who believes we are all more powerful than our fears. She writes emotional and engaging stories about the inherent strength of women, both individually and as a sisterhood. Her novels, including the award-winning Releasing the Reins and Roadside Sisters, are a testament to the idea that there are a million ways to be a woman and every single one of them is right.

For over three decades, Catherine walked a very different path. With a B.S. in Biology from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and a doctorate in Educational Leadership from Washington State University, she had a fulfilling career as a high school teacher, principal, and district administrator. But after a lifetime of focusing on data and deadlines, she shifted her focus to storytelling. The journey began with her blog, Life Through My Lens, where she started writing about her youth, family, and the emotional world she had long kept quiet. This passion for personal storytelling blossomed into writing novels about characters navigating their inner demons, generational trauma, and family secrets as they tackle life’s toughest challenges.

When she’s not crafting her next story, you can find her on the road with her husband and two dogs, Wally (a Staffordshire Terrier rescue) and Delta (a Boxer). A true early bird, she is up at 4 a.m. to join an online writing group of her favorite authors from around the world. As a former science teacher, she’s known for her love of humor, dogs (she once named a Boxer Buttercup just so she could say, “What’s up, Buttercup?”), and the occasional road trip. Catherine’s life is a mix of laughter and tears, and she hopes her books reflect the joy, humor, and pain of living an authentic life.