KILPATRICK, Nancy 1946-

(Amarantha Knight)

PERSONAL: Born May 6, 1946, in Philadelphia, PA; daughter of George Christopoulos and Viola Hopkins; married Len Kirschner, October 30, 1964 (marriage ended, 1975); married Michael Kilpatrick, June 22, 1984 (marriage ended). Education: Attended Temple University, 1964. Religion: "No particular." Hobbies and other interests: Jungian psychology, music, dance, masks.

ADDRESSES: Home and office—1077 Bathurst St., Toronto, Ontario M5R 3G8, Canada; fax: 416-535-4270. Agent—Ricia Mainhardt, 612 Argyle St., Ste. L5, Brooklyn, NY 11230. E-mail—[email protected]; [email protected].

CAREER: George Brown College, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, writing teacher, 1985-95; freelance writer for newspapers and magazines. C. G. Jung Foundation, member. Guest on television and radio programs in Canada and the United States; gives readings from her works.

MEMBER: Horror Writers Association (member of board of trustees), Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Crime Writers of Canada, Editors Association of Canada, Speculative Fiction Writers of Canada, Transylvanian Society of Dracula (Canadian chapter), Thee Vampire Guild (England), Burnaby Writers' Society, Gothic Society, Toronto HYDRA, Count Dracula Fan Club.

AWARDS, HONORS: Arthur Ellis Award for Best Canadian Mystery, 1992, for the story "Mantrap"; winner of Standing Stone short-story contest, horror category; five grants from Ontario Arts Council; finalist, Bram Stoker Award and Aurora Award, 1993, for "Farm Wife," and 1995, for Near Death.

WRITINGS:

NOVELS

(With Don Bassingwaithe) As One Dead (adapted from the game Vampire: The Masquerade), White Wolf (Atlanta, GA), 1993.

Near Death (horror), Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1994.

Child of the Night, Raven (London, England), 1996, Pumpkin Books (Eureka, CA), 1999.

Dracul: An Eternal Love Story, Lucard Publishing (San Diego, CA), 1998.

Reborn, 1999.

Bloodlover, Baskerville Books (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), 2000.

The Vampire Stories of Nancy Kilpatrick, Mosaic Press (Oakville, Ontario, Canada), 2000.

(With Michael Kilpatrick) Eternal City, Five Star (Waterville, ME), 2003.

"DARKER PASSIONS" SERIES; UNDER PSEUDONYM AMARANTHA KNIGHT

Dracula (adapted from Bram Stoker's novel), Masquerade Books (New York, NY), 1993.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (adapted from Robert Louis Stevenson's story), Masquerade Books (New York, NY), 1995.

Frankenstein (adapted from Mary Shelley's novel), Masquerade Books (New York, NY), 1995.

The Fall of the House of Usher (adapted from Edgar Allan Poe's short story), Masquerade Books (New York, NY), 1995.

The Portrait of Dorian Gray (adapted from Oscar Wilde's novel), Masquerade Books (New York, NY), 1996.

The Amarantha Knight Reader (excerpts from "Darker Passions" novels), Masquerade Books (New York, NY), 1996.

Also author of Carmille.

EDITOR, UNDER PSEUDONYM AMARANTHA KNIGHT, AND CONTRIBUTOR, AS NANCY KILPATRICK

Love Bites, Masquerade Books (New York, NY), 1994.

Flesh Fantastic, Masquerade Books (New York, NY), 1995.

Seductive Spectres, Masquerade Books (New York, NY), 1996.

Sex Macabre, Masquerade Books (New York, NY), 1996.

OTHER

Sex and the Single Vampire (short stories; part of The Vampire Trilogies), Tal Publications (Leesburg, VA), 1994.

(Editor, with Thomas S. Roche) In the Shadow of the Gargoyle, Ace Books (New York, NY), 1998.

The Vampire Stories of Nancy Kilpatrick, Mosaic Press (Oakville, Ontario, Canada), 2000.

Cold Comfort (short stories), Dark Tales (Grandview, MO), 2001.

(Editor, with Thomas S. Roche) Graven Images, Ace Books (New York, NY), 2001.

Goth Bible: A Compendium for the Darkly Inclined, St. Martin's (New York, NY), 2004.

Work represented in anthologies, including Bizarre Sex and Other Crimes of Passion—The Book, edited by Stan Tal, Masquerade Books (New York, NY), 1994; One Hundred Vicious Little Vampires, edited by Weinberg and Dziemianowicz, Barnes & Noble (New York, NY), 1995; and A Horror a Day, edited by Weinberg, Greenberg, and Dziemianowicz, Barnes & Noble (New York, NY), 1996. Contributor to VampErotica, Brainstorm Comics. Contributor to magazines and newspapers, including Midnight Zoo, Metropolis, Toronto Life, International Vampire, Crimson, and Horror.

SIDELIGHTS: Nancy Kilpatrick is known for her various writings—under both her own name and under the pseudonym Amarantha Knight—in the horror fiction genre. Her most prominent publications under her own name are probably the novels Near Death and Child of the Night, both of which relate the various escapades of three vampires: the sensual Andre, the spiritual David, and the intellectual Karl. Near Death, the first volume featuring this unlikely trinity, relates their exploits in contemporary times. Like the vampires of many other tales, Kilpatrick's trio crave blood and possess extraordinary physical strength. In addition, they show the usual, fatal vulnerability to sunlight. But they also conduct sexual relations with living beings, and they may even enter into monogamous relationships with their sexual partners after having transformed them into like-minded bloodsuckers. The action in Near Death is triggered by the trio's apprehension of a drug-addicted woman who unknowingly accepted the task of exterminating one of them. While Andre, David, and Karl search for their unknown enemy, the woman accepts one of the heroes as her lover and, thus, joins them in vampirism. She even manages to overcome her drug addiction. Child of the Night, the second volume of what was projected to be a trilogy, details the adventures of Andre, David, and Karl prior to the events of Near Death. Tom Winstead, writing in the St. James Guide to Horror, Ghost, and Gothic Writers, ranked Near Death and Child of the Night as Kilpatrick's "best novels." Reborn was planned to conclude the trilogy.

Vampires are also the central figures in As One Dead, Kilpatrick's collaboration with Don Bassingthwaite. In the novel, which is derived from the role-playing game Vampire: The Masquerade, a half-breed vampire tries to undermine the class distinctions between two vampire sects in Toronto, Canada.

In addition to writing novels, Kilpatrick has produced dozens of short stories in various collections and periodicals. Among her many tales are "Metal Fatigue," about a hopeless worker who fantasizes about sex with aliens; and "Heartbeat," which concerns ethnicity's influence on perspective. Kilpatrick has also published various works under the pseudonym Amarantha Knight. Notable among these works are the "Darker Passions" series of volumes providing erotic perspectives on classic horror tales such as Dracula and The Fall of the House of Usher.

Kilpatrick once told CA: "I began as a literary writer, but found that my interests veered toward the dark side of life. I still loved plot and storytelling, even when minimalism became the norm in the literary world. The genres of horror, dark fantasy, and mystery have given me the room I've needed to tell a dark story and to work with the negative side of archetypes. I am keenly interested in the process of transformation, and that seems to be a major theme in my work."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

St. James Guide to Horror, Ghost, and Gothic Writers, St. James Press (Detroit, MI), 1998.

PERIODICALS

Booklist, October 15, 2001, Kristine Huntley, review of Cold Comfort, p. 387.

Books in Canada, February, 1995.

Eye, September 1, 1994.

Fantasy and Science Fiction, October-November, 1994.

International Vampire, October, 1994.

Kliatt, March, 2001, review of Graven Images, p. 26.

Kliatt Young Adult Paperback Book Guide, March, 1999, review of In the Shadow of the Gargoyle, p. 23.

Locus, May, 2001, review of Bloodlover, p. 31.

Ottawa Citizen, August, 1995.

Publishers Weekly, January 25, 1999, review of Near Death, Child of the Night and Reborn, p. 77; September 10, 2001, review of Cold Comfort, p. 66; January 6, 2003, review of Eternal City, p. 45.

Romantic Times, October, 1994.

Science Fiction Chronicle, August, 1999, review of In the Shadow of the Gargoyle, p. 45.

Toronto Star, September 12, 1992; October 30, 1994; December 3, 1994; December 17, 1994.

Voice of Youth Advocates, April, 2001, review of Graven Images, p. 52.

Writer's Block, spring, 1995.*