Robin Clarkson Hardy (July 12, 1952 – October 28, 1995) was a Canadian journalist and author."Robin Hardy Papers 1964-2001".

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress ...

, Manuscripts and Archives Division. Born in Halifax,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

and raised in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

and

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Hardy studied creative writing at the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexander Cameron Rutherfor ...

and took a law degree at

Dalhousie University Dalhousie University (commonly known as Dal) is a large public research university in Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the fou ...

before settling in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, where he was a staff writer and editor of ''

The Body Politic ''The Body Politic'' was a Canadian monthly magazine, which was published from 1971 to 1987.

'', a noted early Canadian

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

magazine. He also produced radio documentaries for

CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined below ...

, contributed to publications including ''

NOW Now most commonly refers to the present time. Now, NOW, or The Now may also refer to: Organizations * Natal Organisation of Women, a South African women's organization * National Organization for Women, an American feminist organization * Now ...

'', ''

Canadian Forum The ''Canadian Forum'' was a literary, cultural and political publication and Canada's longest running continually published political magazine (1920–2000). History and profile ''Canadian Forum'' was founded on 14 May 1920 at the University of T ...

'' and ''

Fuse Fuse or FUSE may refer to: Devices * Fuse (electrical), a device used in electrical systems to protect against excessive current ** Fuse (automotive), a class of fuses for vehicles * Fuse (hydraulic), a device used in hydraulic systems to protect ...

'', and was an activist for and the first paid staff member of the Coalition for Lesbian and Gay Rights in Ontario. He moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in 1984, where he was an editor for Cloverdale Press and a founding member of

Publishing Triangle The Publishing Triangle, founded in 1988 by Robin Hardy, is an American association of gay men and lesbians in the publishing industry. They sponsor an annual National Lesbian and Gay Book Month, and have sponsored the annual Triangle Awards prog ...

."Robin Hardy, Writer, 43"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', November 3, 1995. He also wrote numerous young adult, science fiction, mystery and horror novels, primarily under

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

s; ''Call of the Wendigo'' (1994) was the only novel he published under his own name. He was also a freelance contributor to publications including '' The Advocate'', ''

Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the creat ...

'' and ''

Penthouse Penthouse most often refers to: *Penthouse apartment, a special apartment on the top floor of a building *Penthouse (magazine), ''Penthouse'' (magazine), a British-founded men's magazine *Mechanical penthouse, a floor, typically located directly u ...

'' in this era. He also wrote poetry throughout his life, although this was never published as a book, and submitted a short story, "Ghosts", to the annual CBC Literary Competition. He relocated to

Tucson , "(at the) base of the black ill , nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town" , image_map = , mapsize = 260px , map_caption = Interactive map ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

in 1993. On October 28, 1995, Hardy died in a

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

accident in Arizona's

Tonto National Forest The Tonto National Forest, encompassing , is the largest of the six national forests in Arizona and is the ninth largest national forest in the United States. The forest has diverse scenery, with elevations ranging from 1,400 feet (427 m) in ...

. His unfinished non-fiction manuscript ''The Landscape of Death: Gay Men, AIDS and the Crisis of Desire'' was completed by David Groff, and was published in 1999 under the title ''Crisis of Desire: AIDS and the Fate of Gay Brotherhood''. The book was a shortlisted nominee in the Gay Studies category at the

12th Lambda Literary Awards The 12th Lambda Literary Awards were held in 2000 to honour works of LGBT literature published in 1999. Nominees and winners External links 12th Lambda Literary Awards {{Lambda Literary Awards Lambda Literary Awards Lambda Lambda (}, ''lá ...

. Many of his papers and manuscripts are held by the archives of the

. Along with

Scott Symons Hugh Brennan Scott Symons (July 13, 1933 – February 23, 2009), known professionally as Scott Symons, was a Canadian writer.Norman Elder Norman Sam Elder (July 17, 1939 – October 15, 2003) was a Canadian explorer, exotic animal owner, writer, artist, Olympic equestrian and one of Toronto's eccentrics. He was the owner of the Norman Elder Museum at 140 Bedford Road in th ...

, he was the subject of a chapter in Ian Young's 2013 book ''Encounters with Authors: Essays on Scott Symons, Robin Hardy, Norman Elder''."‘Encounters with Authors: Essays on Scott Symons, Robin Hardy, Norman Elder’ by Ian Young"

Lambda Literary Foundation The Lambda Literary Foundation (also known as Lambda Literary) is an American LGBTQ literary organization whose mission is to nurture and advocate for LGBTQ writers, elevating the impact of their words to create community, preserve their legaci ...

, August 26, 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hardy, Robin 1952 births 1995 deaths Canadian male novelists Canadian mystery writers Canadian horror writers Canadian science fiction writers 20th-century Canadian novelists 20th-century Canadian poets 20th-century Canadian male writers Canadian male poets Canadian writers of young adult literature Writers from Halifax, Nova Scotia Journalists from Manitoba Journalists from Nova Scotia Journalists from Toronto Writers from Ottawa Writers from Toronto Writers from Winnipeg Canadian LGBT journalists Canadian LGBT rights activists Canadian LGBT novelists Canadian LGBT poets Canadian gay writers Canadian male short story writers Canadian book editors Canadian magazine journalists Canadian magazine editors Canadian radio producers Writers from New York City Canadian emigrants to the United States Accidental deaths in Arizona Canadian male non-fiction writers 20th-century Canadian short story writers 20th-century LGBT people