She taught literature at Auckland University, was Fulbright Post-Doctoral Research Scholar at the University of California, Berkeley; directed NZ Writers’ Conferences; read and lectured in Europe, UK and USA and taught Creative Writing/Publishing at Auckland University since 1975.

Cath has performed from her popular Cowrie eco novels at the Frankfurt, Leipzig and Istanbul Bookfairs, has edited 5 collections of NZ literature and her own writing appears in anthologies published globally. She has won two NZ Arts Council Grants for her novels, is on the Editorial Board of the Asia Pacific Writer's Network and was Keynote Speaker for the inaugural Asia Pacific Writers Conference & the Climate Change Conference at USP, Fiji.
 
Her novels include Cowrie (1994), The Journey Home (1997), Manawa Toa: Heart Warrior (2000), Song of the Selkies (2001), Ao Toa: Earth Warrior (2004), Return of the Selkies (2007) & Pele's Tsunami (2010). She is co-editor of Car Maintenance, Explosives and Love (1997). Her books have been translated into German and Turkish.