Chelsey Johnson is an American author and former professor, known for her 2018 debut novel Stray City.[1]

Chelsey Johnson
BornMinnesota, U.S.
Occupation
  • Author
  • former professor
NationalityAmerican
EducationIowa Writers' Workshop (MFA)
Website
www.chelseyjohnson.com

Stray City takes place in Portland, Oregon in the 1990s and is told in partial epistolary style.[2] It tells the story of a young lesbian who has a fling with a man, gets pregnant, and decides to keep the baby while dealing with the fallout from her community.[3] Johnson lived in Portland from 2002 to 2009; the book was released with its own online mixtape.[2]

Johnson was an associate professor of fiction and coordinated the creative writing program at Northern Arizona University.[4][5] Prior to coming to NAU, she taught at the College of William & Mary and at Oberlin College.[6]

Johnson was born in Northern Minnesota. She received an MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop. She has written for Ploughshares, The Rumpus, Elle, One Story, and NPR's Selected Shorts, and was an editor of Out.[7][8][9]

Johnson was awarded a Stegner Fellowship from Stanford University in 2003.[10] She has also received fellowships to the MacDowell Colony and the Virginia Center for Creative Arts.[11] She currently lives in Flagstaff, Arizona with her partner.[12][13]

References edit

  1. ^ French, Agatha (2018-03-23). "Carrie Brownstein interviewed Chelsey Johnson about 'Stray City,' her novel set in Portland". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
  2. ^ a b "Stray City Is a Love Story about Friendship, Portland, and Chelsey Johnson's Queer Community". Autostraddle. 2019-02-12. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
  3. ^ Jernigan, Jessica. "STRAY CITY". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
  4. ^ "NAU Directory". NAU Directory. Retrieved 2021-09-03.
  5. ^ McCarthy, Maureen. "Review: 'Stray City,' by Chelsey Johnson". Star Tribune. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  6. ^ "Chelsey Johnson". HarperCollins. Retrieved 2021-09-03.
  7. ^ Johnson, Chelsey (2018-03-20). "Chelsey Johnson Had to Write Her Queer Life Before Living It". Out Magazine. Retrieved 2021-09-03.
  8. ^ "Introducing 2018 Debutante: Chelsey Johnson". One Story Blog. 2019-01-02. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
  9. ^ Krueger, Katherine (2021-04-30). "Lost and Found: One Year in Quarantine". ELLE. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
  10. ^ "Former Stegner Fellows". Creative Writing Program. Retrieved 2021-09-03.
  11. ^ "Chelsey Johnson - Artist". MacDowell. Retrieved 2021-09-03.
  12. ^ Conrad, SVEA (2020-03-02). "A reverse coming out story: Chelsey Johnson discusses debut novel 'Stray City'". Arizona Daily Sun. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
  13. ^ "ABOUT". CHELSEY JOHNSON. Retrieved 2021-09-02.

External links edit