Margaret McCarthy’s poetry has appeared in numerous literary magazines, journals and anthologies including: The Pagan Muse:Poems of Ritual and Inspiration (Kensington Publishing), Working Papers in Irish Studies, Gargoyle Magazine, Shaking Like A Mountain: On line Literature about Contemporary Music, Poetry New Zealand, and California State Poetry Society Quarterly, to name a few. McCarthy has also reviewed for Groundswell Magazine, New Directions for Women and The Chiron Review.
Finishing Line Press selected NOTEBOOKS FROM MYSTERY SCHOOL as a finalist for its New Women’s Voices Award.
She also writes heightened language plays based on her poems. The Sacrificial King: A Play for John Lennon was given a New York City production by World 3 Theatre Company and staged readings at The English Speaking Union of New York and at Duke University, N.C. It was performed by young theater artists at John Hancock Theatre, Boston, as part of The Boston Globe sponsored Massachusetts High School Drama Guild festival and took festival awards.
Deirdre Retrograde, based on her own cycle of poems about the heroine of Irish myth, resulted from McCarthy’s ongoing involvement with the literature of women in mythology. The play was read at La Mama Theatre, NYC and was recently staged as part of Talent On Tap’s Reading Series.
Her poetic monologues are frequently performed at Irish American Writers and Artists (IAW&A) monthly salons, and in recent programs at Poetic Theatre, NYC, The English Speaking Union of New York and The Hudson Valley Writers Association.
The Archives of Irish America, Bobst Library, New York University, New York, contains her manuscripts and six hours of interviews on her work.
She is a member of The Dramatists Guild of America, The Author’s Guild and PEN USA.
She has been a guest artist in residence at The Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, The Ragdale Foundation and The Hambidge Center for the Creative Arts & Sciences, all of which have awarded her writing fellowships.
A graduate of NYC’s School of Visual Arts, McCarthy works as a professional photographer in New York City; her photographs have been widely exhibited. She publishes an electronic broadside,
A VISION AND A VERSE, combining her imagery and poetry.