Sharon Maas was born in Georgetown, Guyana; her mixed ancestry - African, Amerindian, Dutch and British - contributes in no small measure to the complexity of themes in her work. She came from a prominently political family. Her mother was one of Guyana's earliest feminists, human rights activists and consumer advocates; her father was Press Secretary to the Marxist opposition leader Dr Cheddi Jagan who was Prime Minister twice over. Both parents received the country's highest honours for public service, the Golden Arrow.