Patricia Gaffney Papers

Collection

Identifier: MS-0184

Staff Only

Collection Overview

Abstract

The Patricia Gaffney Papers consist of manuscript materials, proofs, research notes, outlines, synopses, proposals and one audioscript, dating from 1990-2004.

Dates

Creation: 1990-2004, undated

Extent

4.82 Cubic Feet (13 archives boxes.)

Creator

Gaffney, Patricia (Person)

Scope and Contents

The Patricia Gaffney Papers consists of manuscripts dating from 1990-2004. The collection contains several manuscripts, edited manuscripts, proofs, research notes, outlines, synopses, proposals and one audioscript. The researcher will be able to view the process of writing a manuscript from the proposal to the editor's proof of a manuscript.

The materials are organized chronologically by publication date of the book, however the items within the collection may be undated.

Biographical / Historical

Patricia Gaffney was born in Tampa, Florida, but grew up in Bethesda, Maryland. She earned a bachelor's degree in English and philosophy from Marymount College in New York and also studied literature at Royal Holloway College of the University of London; at George Washington University and at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

After college, Gaffney taught high school English for one year, after which she took a job as a freelance court reporter and pursued that career in North Carolina, Pittsburgh and Washington D.C. for 5 years.

In 1984, Gaffney was diagnosed with breast cancer, which prompted her to decide what she wanted to do with the rest of her life. She decided to do what she had always wanted to do: write books and live in the country. In 1986, she and her husband left Washington D.C. and moved to rural southern Pennsylvania where they live today.

Gaffney published 12 historical romance novels. Her first book, Sweet Treason, was published in 1989 and won the Romance Writers of America Golden Heart as well as other first-book awards. Six of her novels have been nominated for Romance Writers of America RITA awards and Wild at Heart (1997) was among ten finalists for the reader-nominated Favorite Book of the Year Award.

After a dozen books, Gaffney shifted from romance to women's fiction. In 1999, The Saving Graces, the story of four women friends, one of whom battles a cancer recurrence, was published. She has also written several suspense novellas for collections edited by J.D. Robb.

Conditions Governing Access

No known access restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright and other restrictions may apply to the materials in this collection. Researchers using this collection assume full responsibility for conforming to the laws of libel, privacy, and copyright, and are responsible for securing permissions necessary for publication or reproduction.

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The materials in this collection were transferred to the Browne Popular Culture Library by Patricia Gaffney in September 1999 with additional materials donated in 2005.