One of triplets, Patterson was born in Manchester, but her family returned to London soon after her birth. Patterson grew up in Tasmania and attended the Universities of Tasmania and Western Australia, and has run writing workshops. A recipient of an Arts Tasmania grant in 1988, her work has also appeared in the National Times.
Patterson's short stories have been published in literary magazines and a number have also been anthologised. She has also edited and written some of the stories in Yesterday's Youth (1985), a collection of stories about the town of Clarence in Tasmania.