Kelley's writing is informed by a variety of diverse experiences, such as losing her home in a tornado and living in a one-room house with a family of six Indonesian villagers. She has worked at a home for impoverished women and children in India, on a domestic violence research project in Laos and with the Canadian government’s family violence prevention unit. She taught English in South Korea and has a Master’s degree in international development. She lives in Ottawa with her husband and three children and teaches yoga and meditation to teens, adults and children.