Julia Johnston grew up in the north of England. Fourth of six children, her talented and quirky parents immersed them all in music. All siblings played instruments. Julia excelled in acting, singing, instrument-playing, and gymnastics. Her mother was a French teacher and her father, a physics lecturer, so the family enjoyed long summer holidays spent camping in Europe, particularly France.
After studying Music, English and French, Julia attended Manchester University, acquiring a degree in French with Drama. She then gained a teaching qualification to teach French, English and Drama at secondary school. Later achieved Masters in Education of the Deaf and British Sign Language.
After teaching French in Manchester, Julia lived in the US for two years acting and writing. On returning to the UK, she worked in a primary school in west London, first in mainstream, then in a unit for pupils with hearing impairment. She was then employed as an Advisory Teacher for deaf children ages 0-19. Her time in London also saw her continuing with acting and gaining an acting agent.
She wrote a play for Edinburgh Festival, in which she acted; it gained 5* reviews. She moved to Cornwall in the south west of England in 2007, where she started writing novels.
She loves people (especially teenagers with challenging lives), teaching, speaking French, singing, playing piano and guitar, acting, photography, Art (especially modern), music (particularly house & garage, jazz, Bach, guitar), architecture, walking in nature, gardens, the ocean, psychology, natural therapies, nutrition, feminism, global politics.
