Michael R. Johnston
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Michael R. Johnston

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Born in the Bay Area and raised in Napa, California, Michael R. Johnston discovered Science Fiction and Fantasy at a young age and never looked back. As a young teen, he wrote fanfic and original fiction for friends. After graduating from high school, he took “a year” off college. In the following decade, he worked as a sandwich maker, a process server, a data entry clerk, and an IT Manager. Then he decided to go back to school, earning his degree in English. In 2006, he became a high school English teacher. In 2012, he finally broke through his fear and took up writing again. In 2019, his debut novel The Widening Gyre was heralded by Publishers Weekly as a “promising debut.” The second part of the trilogy, The Blood-Dimmed Tide, was released in 2020; Don Sakers of Analog called the two books “fine thrillers with many resonances for today’s world.” What Rough Beast, the trilogy’s finale, was released in 2022. He’s got plenty more where those came from. In 2025, Johnston came out as gay. He currently lives in Sacramento, California, with his cat Oliver. When he’s not writing or teaching, he spends time with his friends and his daughter, plays video games, and daydreams of other times and places.
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