She had a brother, Royce, and two step-siblings from her father's second marriage (her mother died when she was young).
Ward began her career as a secretary to First National executives[2] and screenwriters (including Ben Markson)[3] before becoming a script girl.
She also wrote articles for publications like Cosmopolitan, sometimes using the pen name Brooks Nevins.
[5] She testified at a National Labor Relations Board hearing that she was hired as a stenographer at Warner Brothers for $25 a week and wasn't given a raise when she was promoted to screenwriter.
[6] She was married to fellow screenwriter Jack Natteford and co-wrote several films with him.