I’m an army brat; born on March 3, 1963 in Edmonton, Alberta to father, Kevin Michael McCarthy, and mother, Karin Ingeborg McCarthy; the third oldest in a family of four children. Our tribe re-located to a number of Canadian cities, until finally settling in the City of Kanata, Ontario in the early 1970s. My ancestral lineage is half Newfoundland Irish from my father’s side (my grandfather Judge John Joseph McCarthy emigrated from County Cork to St. John's, Newfoundland); and German from my mother’s side. I jokingly remind people I was born with the potent heritage of a meticulous drunk - the perfect misguided balance for a writer! My writing career has seen its fair share of ups and downs. In the late 1980s, I co-wrote a tongue-in-cheek book that represented my first foray into novels. Regrettably that project never fully took off, so I returned to crafting short stories. In 1998, I began penning erotic poems, eventually surpassing six hundred, of which three hundred were subsequently selected for my collections. After years of writing poetry, I migrated to vampire stories for Man’s Story2 Magazine that ultimately led to my first vampire erotica novel, The Crimson Man that naturally grew into a trilogy.
Everyone can enjoy fiction, even erotic horror. I truly believe in the wisdom of the Greek philosopher Aristotle and his theory of Catharsis: for your own health release those pent up emotions! My reading list toggles between fiction, autobiographical, non-fiction, poetry and scientific. Favourite authors include Paul William Roberts, Arundhati Roy, Robert Shaw, Jack London, Rohinton Mistry, Caleb Carr, Thomas Harris, Charles Panati and Oscar Wilde. For poetical inspiration, I read Walt Whitman and Pablo Neruda. There are countless other poets whose work I adore but simply too numerous to mention. Suffice is to say, who we choose to read as writers, to my mind has an effect on us. But why now vampire fiction with a dash of twisted erotica, you ask? Personally I feel the art chooses the artist. I love writing fiction because it allows me to transport myself and readers to another world. Fiction is about fun and giving the imagination permission to have a mind of its own. You need only to be in possession of an open mind to enjoy my Crimson series of novels, that and a good bottle of red wine.
In January 2008, I gave my first erotica-themed seminar on the subject of “Dirty Talk in Five Easy Steps” at Sexapalooza in Ottawa. Talk about a smashing success! I made Maclean’s Magazine as a result. See the Press page for details. In September 2007, I received the cover story in City Journal, Ottawa's Urban Newspaper (www.cityjournal.ca) and later in October 2007, I was featured in Image, Sandy Hill's community newspaper. In June 2007, my second novel was featured on Author's Audio (www.authorsaudio.com). In February 2007 and 2005, I was one of multiple winners of the Ottawa Citizen's Romance Short Story contest and in March 2006, Centertown News featured me. My last short story reading at The Puritan magazine launch party and in January 2005, I read at Chapters for Bywords Warms the Night. Of my three poetry collections, Vulgar Verse, Friction and Mounting the Bedpost, the third was featured on The Namaste radio show. My work has appeared in City Journal, The Puritan (Canada www.puritan-magazine.com); Man's Story2 (USA www.mansstory2.com); Androids2 (USA); Vampires2 (USA): Templar (US); Full Moon Tales (U.K.); The Ottawa Citizen (Canada); Bywords (Canada www.bywords.ca); Quills Magazine (USA); Underground Focus (U.K.); Open Wide Magazine (U.K.); Aesthetica: A Review of Contemporary Artists (U.K.); Jann Arden's official web-site (Canada); Lullaby Hearse (USA); Image Weavers (USA); Dripping (U.K.); The Muse Apprentice Guild (U.K.); Riot Angel (U.K.); the Sound and Silence Literary Magazine (USA); Voyages (India) and the Taj Mahal Review (India).
Then and Now …
I live and write in Ottawa, Ontario. My education began at Stephen Leacock Public School, followed by Earl of March Secondary School, both located in the City of Kanata. While employed as a Legislative Assistant on Parliament Hill from 1984 to 1991, I studied political science via correspondence at the universities of Waterloo and Ottawa but moved on prior to completing a degree. I have attended several workshops on subjects ranging from editing, writing erotica, to self-promotion but I have no writing pedigree, just a desire to express myself. And according to my mother, my writing skills showed themselves at a young age when I typed fanciful stories to please the adults at the kitchen table. But while working in the Parliament Hill trenches, I sharpened my pen by way of crafting correspondence. I learned the art of obfuscation and misdirection, two essential components needed for fantastical stories. Writing in an environment that felt like a caldron, your skills either disintegrated into party line dogma or improved immeasurably. I wrote creatively as a form of comic relief.
The fun stuff…
Who is my favourite hero of fiction? Buck from Jack London's Call of the Wild.
What is my motto? Never allow the absence of perfection to prevent you from moving forward.
What one movie falls in my top ten list? Last Tango in Paris.
Who is my present day hero? My spiritual, freethinking, fiercely independent mom.
Of the Seven Deadly Sins, which is my favourite? Lust.
What book has permanently remained in my reading pile? Leaves of Grass.
What are my preferred sports? Skating on the Ottawa canal and cycling.
What do I consider my greatest achievement? Self-publishing.
What are my nicknames? Bella Patrizia, Sita, Lip and Red.
The world needs less of what? Greed.
What turns me on? Imagination and chocolate.
Congratulations on getting through my long-winded biography....cheers, Patricia.
