Writing under the name Karen Commings or C.S. Watts, she has more than 500 bylines including articles, essays, poetry, magazine columns, and 8 books. Her writing has appeared in Canada, Japan, India, and Great Britain, and one of her books was translated into Spanish. She holds a BA in Art History from Penn State University and an MLS in Library Science from the University of Pittsburgh.

2001-2006: Contributor for CatWatch & DogWatch, the magazines of the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine.

1999-2000: Contributing editor for Cats, Pets.com Internet site

1992-2000: From One Cat Lover columnist & contributing editor for Cat Fancy magazine.

1996-1997: Menagerie columnist for Central Pennsylvania's Apprise (now Central PA).

1995-1997: Libraries of the Future columnist for Computers in Libraries magazine.