Born in Stamford, Connecticut, Katharine grew up in Southern California. She majored in theatre at the University of Arizona before transferring to Columbia University on a communication's scholarship.  In hot pursuit of the written word, she studied at such diverse institutions as Oxford, UCLA and the American Film Institute, abashed to learn she was predisposed to comedy.   
Starting as a beat reporter and humor columnist at the South Bay Daily Breeze in the 1970s, she went on to staff writing positions at the Riverside Press Enterprise and Idyllwild Town Crier.  She turned to freelancing in the 1980s, regularly contributing to the Los Angeles Times Calendar section and publications ranging from LA Magazine to Palm Springs Life.  Currently working on a novel about ancient and contemporary Persia, Katharine, who lives in Redondo Beach, is always on the lookout for the offbeat and whimsical.