The lyrical, World Fantasy winner Patricia A. McKillip was born 75 years ago
Known for her lush imagery and compelling characters, Patricia A. McKillip wrote over 25 novels including the award-winning THE FORGOTTEN BEASTS OF ELD (1974; World Fantasy), Harpist in the Wind (1979; LOCUS), Something Rich and Strange (1994; Mythopoeic), Ombria in Shadow (2002; World Fantasy and Mythopoeic), Solstice Wood (2006; Mythopoeic), and Kingfisher (2016; Mythopoeic). Her collection DREAMS OF DISTANT SHORES (2016) was honored with an Endeavor Award. In 2008, she received the prestigious World Fantasy Award for Lifetime Achievement.
Among McKillip’s other prominent novels were The Riddle-Master of Hed (1976), The Changeling Sea (1988), The Book of Atrix Wolfe (1995 and coming out in a new edition in February 2024 from Tachyon), Winter Rose (1996), Song for the Basilisk (1988), Alphabet of Thorn (2004), Od Magic (2005), The Bell at Sealey Head (2008), and The Bards of Bone Plain (2010). Her numerous short stories have been collected in several volumes including The Throme of the Erril of Sherill (1984), Harrowing the Dragon (2005), WONDERS OF THE INVISIBLE WORLD (2012), and DREAMS OF DISTANT SHORES. The story “The Unicorn Triangle” was published alongside “My Son Heydari and the Karkadann” by Peter S. Beagle in the limited edition chapbook THE KARKADANN TRIANGLE (2018).
The beloved Pat is missed by all who knew her.