Wilhelm was born in Toledo, Ohio.

Her work has been published in Quark , Orbit , Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Locus, Amazing Stories, Asimov's Science Fiction, Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Fantastic , Omni, Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine and Cosmopolitan, among many other places.

She and her second husband, Damon Knight, mentored many authors and helped to establish the Clarion Writers Workshop and the Milford Writer's Workshop.

Since the death of Damon Knight in 2002, Wilhelm has continued to host monthly workshops, as well as lecturing at other events.

As of 2007, Kate Wilhelm lives in Eugene, Oregon.

In 2009, she was the recipient of one of the first three Solstice Awards presented by the SFWA in recognition of her contributions to the field of science fiction.

Award winning stories

• Nebula Best Short story winner (1968) – "The Planners"
• Hugo Best Novel winner (1977) – Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang
• Nebula Best Novelette winner (1986) – "The Girl Who Fell into the Sky"
• Nebula Best Short story winner (1987) – "Forever Yours, Anna"

Barbara Holloway Novels

Barbara Holloway is an attorney in Eugene, Oregon. She is intelligent, courageous, and compassionate. Along with her semi-retired lawyer father, Frank Holloway, and a cast of supporting characters, Ms. Holloway uncovers the truth and fights for justice. These mysteries combine detective fiction with courtroom drama.

• Death Qualified: A Mystery of Chaos (1991)
• The Best Defense (1994)
• For the Defense also named Malice Prepense in hardbound editions (1996)
• Defense for the Devil (1999)
• No Defense (2000)
• Desperate Measures (2001)
• Clear and Convincing Proof (2003)
• The Unbidden Truth (2004)
• Sleight Of Hand (2006)
• A Wrongful Death (2007)
• Cold Case (2008)

Constance and Charlie novels and stories

• The Hamlet Trap (1987)
• The Dark Door (1988)
• Smart House (1989)
• Sweet, Sweet Poison (1990)
• Seven Kinds of Death (1992)
• A Flush of Shadows (1995)
• The Casebook of Constance and Charlie Volumes 1 and 2 (1999)

Other novels and collections

• More Bitter Than Death (1962)
• The Mile-Long Spaceship (1963)
• The Clone (1965) (with Theodore L. Thomas)
• The Nevermore Affair (1966)
• Andover and the Android (1966)
• The Killer Thing (1967)
• Let the Fire Fall (1969)
• The Year of the Cloud (1970) (with Theodore L. Thomas)
• Margaret and I (1971)
• City of Cain (1974)
• The Infinity Box (1975)
• Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang (1976)
• The Clewiston Test (1976)
• Fault Lines (1977)
• Juniper Time (1979)
• The Winter Beach (1981)
• A Sense of Shadow (1981)
• Listen, Listen (1981)
• Oh, Susannah! (1982)
• Welcome, Chaos (1983)
• Huysman's Pets (1985)
• Crazy Time (1988)
• Children of the Wind (1989)
• Cambio Bay (1990)
• Naming the Flowers (1992)
• And the Angels Sing (1992)
• Justice for Some (1993)
• The Good Children (1998)
• The Deepest Water (2000)
• Skeletons: A Novel of Suspense (2002)
• The Price of Silence (2005)