Cathy Eaton spent summers with her grandfather Cyrus S. Eaton in Deep Cove, Nova Scotia. In 2010, she began interviewing people in Pugwash, Nova Scotia connected to Thinkers Lodge and researching its significance in the global fight against nuclear proliferation. A national historic site, it is the birthplace of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, which were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize jointly with Joseph Rotblat in 1995.

Cathy received her BA from Smith College and her MA from Bread Loaf School of English, Middlebury College. For over 34 years, she taught fiction writing, literature, and composition. She was the recipient of the Chancellor's Award for teaching excellence in 2014. Her young adult book, Curse of the Pirate's Treasure, was published in 2003, and her collection of short stories, Snags and Spills in 2013. With her husband Michael Murphy, she lives in Bedford, New Hampshire, and they have two sons, Colin and Devon Murphy. When not taking..