She became a teacher after leaving university and taught English in comprehensive schools in Coventry for sixteen years and this is when she began to write. Her intention was to ‘write for teenagers, books that they would want to read, almost adult in style and content.’ She left teaching in 1989. After working part-time in Further Education and as an Open Studies Lecturer for Warwick University, she became a full-time writer in 1997.
Celia is a regular tutor for the Arvon Foundation, is a member of the Society of Authors, and has been Chair of the Children's Writers and Illustrators Group. She is a member of the Scattered Authors Society and a Fellow of the English Association.
Celia lives with her husband, Terence Rees in Leamington Spa. She has one daughter, Catrin, who is a lawyer in London.
