Milly Johnson

Milly Johnson is a British author known for her work in romantic fiction. In addition to her novels, she has worked as an after-dinner speaker, poet, professional joke writer, short story writer, and newspaper columnist.

Biography

Born in Barnsley, Johnson was educated at Agnes Road Primary School, Longcar Junior School, and Hall Balk School for Girls. She later studied drama and teacher training at St Luke's Campus, University of Exeter.
She lived for many years in Haworth, West Yorkshire, where she became acquainted with author Stan Barstow, who also resided in the area. During this time, Johnson held various administrative positions while supplementing her income by writing jokes and poems for the greetings card industry. She also worked as a ghost-writer for Purple Ronnie in its early stages. She later became a professional copywriter within the greetings card sector.
Johnson’s breakthrough into publishing came at the age of 41 with the submission of her manuscript The Yorkshire Pudding Club, which was inspired by her experience of being pregnant simultaneously with two friends. In 2005, she secured her first two-book deal with Simon & Schuster.
Her work has received multiple accolades, including a nomination for the Melissa Nathan Award for Romantic Comedy in 2012, and two wins of the RoNA Award for Comedy Romance in 2014 and 2016. She also appeared as a winner on a regional edition of Channel 4’s Come Dine With Me. In 2020, Johnson was honoured with the Romantic Novelists' Association's Outstanding Achievement Award.

Awards and honours

In recognition of her contributions to literature and her strong connection to the region, Johnson was appointed Vice President of the Yorkshire Society in 2018. Her work has earned her a number of accolades and nominations throughout her career, reflecting both her popularity with readers and her standing within the literary community.

Literary Projects and Charitable Works

In addition to her 22 novels, Johnson has published several shorter works, many of which were released exclusively as e-books. These include The Wedding Dress, a collection of short stories themed around weddings, and Here Come the Boys. In 2015, she released Ladies Who Launch, which serves both as a sequel to Here Come the Boys and as a prequel to Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Café. In May 2016, Johnson published the 16,000-word short story The Barn on Half Moon Hill to raise funds for the Care for Claire campaign, established in support of Claire Throssell, whose children were killed in a domestic abuse-related murder–suicide. In 2019, she released a poetry collection titled A Cat-Shaped Space, with all proceeds donated to Yorkshire Cat Rescue. In 2020, she contributed the novella The Little Dreams of Lara Cliffe to the relaunched Quick Reads initiative, which aims to encourage reading among adults.