Linda S. Cunningham grew up in Lake Charles, Louisiana, where she experienced firsthand accounts of the 1957 hurricane that killed nearly five hundred people in Cameron, Louisiana. She and her family watched the devastation from their picture window. Her father, who served as Director of Civil Defense for Calcasieu Parish, told her the survival stories and gave her access to the coroner's pictures that lend authenticity to the novel.

She has a B.A. in English and Creative Writing from the University of Houston. She also has a B.S. and M.Ed. in Health and Physical Education from McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana. She has won awards for screenwriting. She currently resides in Kingwood, Texas.