Toby Johnson (born 1945 in

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

) is an American

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living wage, living writing novels and other fiction, while othe ...

and writer in the field of gay spirituality.

Life

After leaving seminary in 1970, Johnson moved to

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

and lived in the Bay Area throughout the 1970s. While a student at the California Institute of Asian Studies (later renamed the

California Institute of Integral Studies California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) is a private university in San Francisco, California.Otterman, Sharon. "Merging Spirituality and Clinical Psychology at Columbia". ''New York Times'', Aug. 9, 2012Aanstoos, C. Serlin, I., & Greenin ...

), from which he received a graduate degree in Comparative Religion and a doctorate in Counseling Psychology, Johnson was on staff at the Mann Ranch Seminars, a Jungian-oriented summer retreat program. There he befriended religion scholar

Joseph Campbell Joseph John Campbell (March 26, 1904 – October 30, 1987) was an American writer. He was a professor of literature at Sarah Lawrence College who worked in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work covers many aspects of th ...

. Johnson authored three novels: ''Plague: A Novel About Healing'', ''Secret Matter'', and ''Getting Life in Perspective''. ''Plague'', produced by small gay-interest publisher Alyson Publications, was one of the first novels to treat AIDS through fiction. ''Secret Matter'', a speculative, romantic comedy about truth-telling and gay identity featuring a retelling of the Genesis myth with a gay-positive outcome, won a

Lambda Literary Award Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ literature.The awards were instituted ...

in 1990 and in 1999 was a nominee to the Gay Lesbian Science-Fiction Hall of Fame, the first year of the award. He collaborated with historian, anthropologist

Walter L. Williams Walter Lee Williams (born November 3, 1948) is an American former professor of anthropology, history, and gender studies at the University of Southern California. He is one of the pioneers in the field of queer studies, with many years in h ...

on the novel ''Two Spirits: A Story of Life With the Navajo''. And co-edited, with

Steve Berman Steve Berman is an American editor, novelist and short story writer. He writes in the field of queer speculative fiction. Biography Berman was born on August 28 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and raised in southern New Jersey. Berman realized ...

, publisher of

Lethe Press Lethe Press is an American book publishing company based in Maple Shade, New Jersey.White Crane Journal'', a periodical focusing on

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

men's spirituality. As of 2012, he worked as a literary editor with Lethe Press. His papers are held at the Happy Foundation, San Antonio, Texas.

Bibliography

*''Gay Perspective: Things Our Homosexuality Tells Us about the Nature of God and the Universe'' Peregrine Ventures, 2003, *''Gay Spirituality: The Role of Gay Identity in the Transformation of Human Consciousness'' Peregrine Ventures, 2000, 2010, *''Secret Matter''. Peregrine Ventures, 2005, . This is a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imagination, imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, Paral ...

novel, set in

. *''Getting Life in Perspective'' Peregrine Ventures 1991, 2010, *''Plague: A Novel about Healing''

Alyson Books Alyson Books, formerly known as Alyson Publications, was a book publishing house which specialized in LGBT fiction and non-fiction. Former publisher Don Weise described it as "the world's oldest and largest publisher of LGBT literature" and "th ...

, 1987, 9781555831257, Republished as "The Fourth Quill" by Peregrine Ventures, 2014 *''Two Spirits: A Story of Life With the Navajo'' (With Walter L. Williams, PhD) Peregrine Ventures, 2006, *''The Myth of the Great Secret: A Search for Spiritual Meaning in the Face of Emptiness''

William Morrow and Company William Morrow and Company is an American publishing company founded by William Morrow in 1926. The company was acquired by Scott Foresman in 1967, sold to Hearst Corporation in 1981, and sold to News Corporation (now News Corp) in 1999. The ...

, 1981, *''The Myth of the Great Secret (2nd Edition): An Appreciation of Joseph Campbell'' Celestial Arts, 1991, *''In Search of God in the Sexual Underworld''

, 1983, 9780688020460 *''Finding Your Own True Myth: What I Learned from Joseph Campbell: The Myth of the Great Secret III'' Peregrine Ventures, 2018, *''Finding God in the Sexual Underworld: The Journey Expanded'' Peregrine Ventures, 2020,

As editor

*''Charmed Lives: Gay Spirit in Storytelling'' (co-edited with

) (2006). The inaugural title in the White Crane Wisdom Series, this anthology of inspirational essays and short fiction for gay men earned Johnson a

nomination.

References

External links

Official Website Toby Johnson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Toby 21st-century American novelists American gay writers 1945 births Living people Lambda Literary Award winners American spiritual writers American LGBT novelists LGBT people from Texas American male novelists 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers American male non-fiction writers

Life

Bibliography

As editor

See also

References

External links