Her work has been published in magazines, including Highlights for Children, Clubhouse and Clubhouse Jr., Storyteller, Guideposts, Guideposts for Kids, Living Faith for Kids, Capital Parent, The Word Among Us, and Focus on the Family.

In 2009 Pignat won her first Governor General's Award for her second young adult novel, Greener Grass: The Famine Years.

In novel five, Unspeakable, the main character is a survivor of the sinking of the Empress of Ireland.

Pignat's second Governor General's Award came in 2015 for her sixth novel The Gospel Truth.

In novel seven, Pignat has five grade 12 students caught by surprise during a school lockdown.