Kephart was first published in Iowa Woman magazine and has said she was writing poems from the time she was quite young, and that she very influenced by music, the sound of words.

Kephart is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and was a participant at the Bread Loaf Writing Conference, Middlebury, Vermont, with Jayne Anne Phillips; 1996 Prague Writing Conference, Czech Republic with William Gass and Jayne Anne Phillips; and 1995 Spoleto Writing Conference, Spoleto, Italy with Rosellen Brown and Reginald Gibbons, 1994.

Kephart is a prolific writer and reviewer and has penned reviews and essays for various publications, including:

UNDERCOVER, her first book for young adults, was named a 2007 best book of the year by Amazon.com, Kirkus, and School Library Journal.