William H. Johnson was born and raised in Fairfax, Virginia, the grandson of an Apostolic Pentecostal preacher and the son of an educator.
His dream of becoming an author began in the eleventh grade after he wrote his first short story entitled Brenda, a tale about a mother who lost everything in life only to regain it all upon ascending to heaven.
He received his bachelor’s degree from James Madison University where he developed a profound passion for the theatre. Since relocating to Southern California in 1997, William has directed numerous plays from David Ives one acts All in the Timing to Samuel Beckett’s masterpiece, Waiting for Godot. In 2004 he began training and developing The Magic Meathands improv comedy ensemble, a performing company whose mission of com-mune-edy outreach has been blogged about on idealist.org and featured on CNN Headline News: Local Edition.
In 2009 he began writing essays on race in America and political commentary that have been published in three different regional newspapers. William’s first novel, THE DARK PROVINCE: SON OF DUPRIN, was released in March 2010.
William currently lives in Southern California with his wife and two children where he teaches and directs improvisational theater.