Born in 1949 in Putnam, Connecticut, and raised in a Quaker family, Powning moved to Canada in the early 1970s.
Powning’s work often reflects her connection to the natural world, drawing on her experiences living in rural New Brunswick.
[2][3] Powning’s published works include The Sister’s Tale (2021), a novel about three women confronting their pasts; A Measure of Light (2015), a historical novel set in 17th-century New England; and The Sea Captain’s Wife (2010), which explores the life of a woman navigating love and duty in the 19th century.
She has also written Edge Seasons (2005), a memoir of personal transformation, and Shadow Child (1999), a meditation on grief and healing.
[1][4][5] In addition to fiction, Powning has contributed to non-fiction with Home: Chronicle of a North Country Life (1996), originally published as Seeds of Another Summer, which blends photography and essays.