[1] She was born in Rathmines, a suburb of Lake Macquarie, Australia and attended five public schools before completing a Marketing Degree at the University of Newcastle.
Finding Grace was short listed for the 2002 New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards (Ethel Turner Prize), the 2002 Queensland Premier's Literary Awards, the 2002 CBCA Book of the Year (Older Readers), the 2002 Sanderson Young Adult Audio Book of the Year, and the Best Designed Young Adult Book APA Design Awards 2002.
It was a CBCA 'Notable Book', and shortlisted for the Children's Peace Literature Award in 2005, and is also available in Swedish and Norwegian.
Brugman has released a series of pony books: For Sale or Swap, Beginner's Luck, Hot Potato, Hide & Seek, and a fifth installment, Greener Pastures.
Brugman writes full-time and lives in the Hunter Region with her partner, children and various quadrupeds and poultry.