Born and raised in Victoria, British Columbia, Moss began writing gruesome 'Stephen King-inspired' stories for her classmates when she was only ten. She began modelling at age 14, but did not remain in the profession for long. Moss became a resident of Australia in 1996, and holds dual Canadian/Australian citizenship.
In 1997, Moss earned a Diploma from the Australian College of Journalism, and her writing has appeared in many Australian magazines, including ELLE, Australian Style, the Australian Women's Weekly, Woman's Day, New Idea, NW, the Daily Telegraph, and the Sun Herald. Her writing has included a year-long true-crime column called Noir in Australian Style magazine, which chronicled her 'hands-on' research into forensic psychology, criminal investigation, ballistics, pistol shooting and surveillance.
Her novels include a series of six crime novels featuring private investigator Makedde Vanderwall and a paranormal mystery trilogy featuring Pandora English.
She has enjoyed a career as a top fashion model and has hosted the crime documentary series Tara Moss Investigates on the National Geographic Channel in the United Kingdom. She has also hosted National Geographic Presents in Australia and New Zealand, acted as an MTV Canada guest host, and participated as a panelist on popular Australian programmes such as The Panel, Beauty and the Beast, and Canada's Viewpoint. Moss is a popular public speaker, having conducted hundreds of talks and accepted 'MC' roles at writers' festivals, schools, universities and corporate events.
In addition to her crime and fantasy-horror novels, Moss has also written feminist non-fiction, including Speaking Out (2016), a guide to women speaking in the public sphere, and The Fictional Woman (2016), a blend of memoir and social commentary that examined the social role and expectations of women.