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- Textual record
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Dates of creation area
Date(s)
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1979 - 2016 (Creation)
- Creator
- Johnston, Julie
Physical description area
Physical description
1.6 m of textual records
ca. 75 photographs
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Archival description area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Julie Johnston, née Dulmage, is an internationally known author of children’s novels, plays, and short stories. Born in 1941, Johnston was raised in Smith Falls, Ontario. She then moved to Toronto to attend the University of Toronto where she received her degree in Occupational Therapy in 1963. She married her high school sweetheart, Dr. Basil Johnston, in the same year. After a few years of working in hospitals in Perth and Kingston, followed by adventures in Europe, they eventually settled in Peterborough, Ontario in 1970. At this time, Johnston stepped away from her career as an occupational therapist to raise their four daughters, Leslie, Lauren, Melissa, and Andrea.
Her love of writing began at a young age, writing school plays and short stories that lead to neighbourhood productions for her daughters and their friends. Johnston eventually began taking classes at Trent University in 1975 and graduated with a degree in English in 1984.
Encouraged to pursue a writing career, Johnston began submitting short stories to writing competitions in Canada. In 1979 her first submission was a play titled “Frost” that won first prize in the Ottawa Little Theatre’s annual Canadian Playwriting Competition, sparking her pursuit of a career in writing. The next two decades were full of positive experiences and many challenges. Johnston was signed to Stoddart Publishing and published her first novel “Hero of Lesser Causes," which won a Governor General’s award for Children’s Literature in 1992. Her next novel, "Adam, Eve and Pinch-Me," was published in 1994 and also won the Governor General’s Children’s Literature award. Stoddart Publishing eventually dissolved, and Johnston published five more books with Key Porter Publishing. These books were titled, "The Only Outcast," "Love You Like a Sister," "In Spite of Killer Bees," "Susanna’s Quill," and "Accidental Lives."
In addition to two Governor General’s awards, Johnston has many other accolades that she earned during her career. She was awarded an Honourary Degree of Letters from Trent University in 1996. She also won Mr. Christie’s Book Award and the Violet Downey Book Award for "Hero of Lesser Causes" in 1993. Johnston also served on review committees and gave numerous workshops and speeches, including the Margaret Laurence Lecture at Trent University in 1997.
Custodial history
Records were in the possession of Julie Johnston before being donated to the Trent University Archives.
Scope and content
Fonds consists of records from Julie Johnston documenting her education, writing processes, and achievements. This fonds contains some personal correspondence with friends, organizations, professors, publishers, and editors. The records include her undergraduate essays from Trent University, her early handwritten plays and short stories, book chapters, workshop materials and speeches. Fonds includes manuscripts and galley proofs of her published novels “Hero of Lesser Causes”, “Adam and Eve and Pinch-Me", “The Only Outcast”, “Love You Like a Sister”, “In Spite of Killer Bees”, “Susanna’s Quill”, and “Accidental Lives”. She also included a copy of the manuscript for an unpublished novel “The Art of Casting in Bronze”. There are also many photographs, clippings, promotional materials, reviews, and awards celebrating Johnston’s career as an author.
Notes area
Physical condition
Excellent
Immediate source of acquisition
Donated to Trent University Archives by Julie Johnston in ----
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Restrictions on access
Records in Series 7: Notebooks, 22-013/005(16) and 22-013/005(17), are restricted for 100 years after the last date of creation and require permission from the University Archivist to view.