Kempton was recognized as Writer of the Year in 1986 by Warner Pacific College Writer Conference. In 1988 she received the Pacesetter Award from the Mt. Hermon Writers Conference.

Kempton is an author, writing coach, and former magazine and book editor. She has been a contributing editor to "Writer's Digest" magazine and an instructor with www.WritersOnlineWorkshops.com. In the past she has worked as a freelance book editor for a large number of major publishers. Kempton also speaks at and conducts workshops at writers conferences across the country each year, including the National Writer's Association Conference, the Pacific Northwest Writer's Conference, and the Maui Writer's Conference. She teaches writing at Bellevue Community College in Bellevue, WA, and leads writing workshops in the Seattle area and at her beach house on the Oregon coast.

Nonfiction Books

• Write Great Fiction: Dialogue (Writer's Digest Books, 2004)
• Love One Another (WaterBrook Press, 2000)
• Forgive One Another (Waterbrook Press, 2000)
• The Passionate Edge (Broadman & Holman, 1995)
• The Secret of the Swan (Augsburg Fortress, 1993)
• Huddle Up (Fleming H. Revell, 1991)
• When You Can't Get Along (NavPress, 1990)
• Encourage One Another (World, Inc., 1986)

Young-Adult Novels

• Jocelyn (Bethany House Publishers, 1988)
• Andrea (Bethany House Publishers, 1983)