Born in southwestern Ontario, she spent her childhood in Blackwell, Ontario and is a distant relative of L. M. Montgomery, author of Anne of Green Gables.
Lawson moved to England after graduating from McGill University with a psychology degree in 1968. She also married in England, has two grown up sons and now lives in Kingston-Upon-Thames, Surrey. The Other Side of the Bridge by Mary Lawson - books from rBooks.co.uk Her two novels to date, both published by Knopf Canada were set in Northern Ontario. A French language edition of Crow Lake was translated by Cécile Arnaud, was published as Le choix des Morrison by Belfond in 2003.