Sheila Finch was born in London, England. She has lived in the United States since 1957, first in Bloomington, Indiana, where she did graduate work at Indiana University in medieval literature and linguistics, then in California. Her novel Tiger in the Sky , (Avon) won the 1999 San Diego Book Award for Best Young Adult Novel. Her novella "Reading the Bones" won a Nebula award in 1998.

Sheila teaches creative writing at El Camino College in Torrance, California, and when not writing or teaching, she likes to travel, do Tai Chi, hike in the local mountains, or go 4-wheeling in the desert. She has three daughters, seven grandchildren, a dog and two cats.