Lacy M. Johnson

Lacy M. Johnson is a Houston-based artist, curator, professor, and activist currently teaching creative nonfiction in the low-residency MFA program at the University of Nevada, Reno and at Rice University.

Her academic background includes a Ph.D. from the University of Houston’s Creative Writing Program, where she was both an Erhardt Fellow and Inprint Fondren Fellow. Prior to her doctoral studies, she worked in diverse roles including Wal-Mart cashier, door-to-door steak sales, and children's museum puppeteer.

Johnson's creative and scholarly work centers on trauma narratives, feminist theory, and social justice through the lens of creative nonfiction and memoir. Her writing confronts systemic violence against women with unflinching honesty, blending literary artistry with activist urgency. Key publications include the critically acclaimed memoirs The Other Side (2014) and Trespasses: A Memoir (2012), with The Reckonings forthcoming from Scribner.

Her literary achievements have earned prestigious recognitions including National Book Critics Circle Award finalist status and multiple best-book designations for 2014. She has also secured significant arts funding through:

• Sustainable Arts Foundation
• Houston Arts Alliance
• Kansas Arts Commission
• Millay Colony for the Arts residency
• University of Houston’s Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts

As an educator, Johnson mentors emerging writers in MFA programs while maintaining an active literary career with publications in Guernica, Tin House, Los Angeles Times, and other major venues. Her work bridges academic scholarship, creative practice, and social advocacy through anthologized contributions to projects like The Racial Imaginary.