At age 16, Morrissey left her birthplace of The Beaches, a small outport on the west coast of Newfoundland.
She lived in various places in Canada before returning to St. John's, where she studied at Memorial University and obtained a Bachelor of Social Work and a diploma in adult education.
Morrissey has written six national best sellers and prize-winning novels — Kit's Law, Downhill Chance, Sylvanus Now, What They Wanted, The Deception of Livvy Higgs, and The Fortunate Brother — as well as one Gemini-nominated screenplay.
In the 2007 edition of Canada Reads, an "all-star" competition pitting the five winning advocates from previous years against each other, Morrissey returned to champion Anosh Irani's novel The Song of Kahunsha.
Morrissey had a double mastectomy due to breast cancer, nominated for Gemini for Best Writing nominated Best Writing For "The Fortunate Brother": Winner of the Thomas Head Raddall Award Winner of Arthur Ellis Award for Best Crime Book of 2017