Born on Kangaroo Island, Beverley spent her early years on the island, completing her education in Adelaide. Later, she returned to the island to marry Hartley Willson and settle on the farm at Willson River. She has three adult children, one of whom lives on the island and farms with his father, the fifth generation of the family to do so.
Beverley worked in the Penneshaw School/Community Library, but gave that up to concentrate on writing, on her long-standing involvement in community arts and Kangaroo Island history, on letting out tourist accommodation, and on gardening. She finds that a down-to-earth farm existence, combined with the always-on-holiday atmosphere of a tourist destination, is an interesting and stimulating environment for writing. She also finds interesting the people who choose to live permanently on an island. As well as the creative writing listed here, she also contributed to a book of stories about Kangaroo Island's history, Colours of Kangaroo Island (1996).
