[2] Carr was born on the 28th[3][4] of July 1940 in Houston, Texas, where she was also raised.
She studied physics at Carnegie Institute of Technology, Wayne State University, and Case Western Reserve University, which she left before achieving her doctorate to raise a family and write.
[3] On 20 December 2006, Carr died of cancer, leaving a husband, two daughters, two granddaughters, and three sisters.
[5] Carr's first published story, "Alienation" appeared in the science fiction magazine Analog in 1976,[3] and she continued writing through the remainder of her life.
[3] Regarded by some as a feminist writer, she considered herself more as a "peoplist," dealing with such themes as bigotry and pollution in her fiction.