She grew up with a learning disability and dropped out of South Gwinnett High School when she was 16 years old; she read her first book at the age of 23.
[1][2][3] She began her writing career as a freelance writer for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and also worked as a house painter, property manager, sales representative, commercial embroiderer, courier and dog walker.
When she decided to experiment with writing crime fiction, she studied criminology to establish background knowledge, and worked with a private investigator firm in Atlanta on surveillance operations.
[2] Williams's Madison McGuire series of novels was published in the early 1990s; the lead character was modelled after Emma Peel in the television show The Avengers.
Publishers Weekly called The Stranger You Seek "an explosive, unpredictable, and psychologically complex thriller that turns crime fiction clichés inside out.