# Jessica Johns

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**Jessica Johns** is a [Cree](/source/Cree_people) writer from Canada, whose debut novel *[Bad Cree](/source/Bad_Cree)* was published in 2023.

## Early life and education

Johns is a member of the [Sucker Creek First Nation](/source/Sucker_Creek_First_Nation) in northern [Alberta](/source/Alberta).[1] She grew up on her traditional territory in [Treaty 8](/source/Treaty_8). She lived in [Adelaide](/source/Adelaide), Australia, from ages 14 to 16.[2] Johns majored in English at [Grant MacEwan University](/source/MacEwan_University) and has an [MFA](/source/Master_of_Fine_Arts) in Creative Writing from the [University of British Columbia](/source/University_of_British_Columbia).[3]

## Career

While she was an MFA student, a creative writing teacher told Johns' class to never write about [dreams](/source/Dream). Johns wrote *Bad Cree* in part as a response to this, advice which Johns disagreed with due to the importance of dreams in Cree culture.[4] It was expanded from her earlier short story of the same name, which won the [Journey Prize](/source/Journey_Prize) in 2020.[5]

*Bad Cree* was published in 2023 by [HarperCollins Canada](/source/HarperCollins_Canada).[6] The novel won the MacEwan Book of the Year award, the Georges Bugnet Award for Fiction, the ALA Alex Award, and was a shortlisted finalist for the 2023 [Amazon.ca First Novel Award](/source/Amazon.ca_First_Novel_Award).[7] *Bad Cree* was selected for the 2024 edition of *[Canada Reads](/source/Canada_Reads)*, where it was defended by [Dallas Soonias](/source/Dallas_Soonias).[8][9]

## Awards and honours

Awards for Johns's writing Year Title Award Result Ref. 2019 How Not to Spill bpNichol Chapbook Award 2020 "Bad Cree" Journey Prize Winner [5] 2023 Bad Cree Amazon.ca First Novel Award Shortlist [7] 2023 MacEwan Book of the Year Winner 2024 ALA Alex Award Winner [10] Audie Award for Thriller/Suspense Finalist [11] CBC Canada Reads Nominee [8][12] Georges Bugnet Award for Fiction Winner [13] 2024 Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize Shortlist

## Personal life

Johns lives in [Edmonton](/source/Edmonton) with her girlfriend and three cats.[3]

## Publications

- *How Not to Spill*. Rahila's Ghost Press. 2018. ISBN 9781775116776.
- Donaldson, Emily (ed.). "The Bull of Cromdale". *Best Canadian Essays 2019*. Biblioasis.
- Jones, Amy; Lau, Doretta; Mutonji, Téa (eds.) (2020). "Bad Cree". *The Journey Prize Stories 32: The Best of Canada's New Writers*. McClelland & Stewart. pp. 67–78. ISBN 9780771050992.
- Forget, André (ed.) (2022). "Good Bones". *After Realism: 24 Stories for the 21st Century*. Vehicule Press. ISBN 9781550655964.
- *[Bad Cree](/source/Bad_Cree)*. Doubleday. 2023. ISBN 9780385548694.

## References

1. Bell, Justin (2023-04-18). ["Bookmarks: A dream world from local Cree author Jessica Johns"](https://edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/local-arts/bookmarks-a-dream-world-from-local-cree-author-jessica-johns). *Edmonton Journal*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20230421165555/https://edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/local-arts/bookmarks-a-dream-world-from-local-cree-author-jessica-johns) April 21, 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2024-02-26.

1. Haynes, Nalini (2023-02-06). ["Jessica Johns on being Cree, Queer, and representation"](https://www.darkmatterzine.com/jessica-johns/). *Dark Matter Zine*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20240226162755/https://www.darkmatterzine.com/jessica-johns/) February 26, 2024 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2024-02-26.

1. Cyca, Michelle (2023-01-05). ["In her debut novel Bad Cree, Jessica Johns has dreamed up a horror story anchored by a Cree matriarchy"](https://quillandquire.com/authors/in-her-debut-novel-bad-cree-jessica-johns-has-dreamed-up-a-horror-story-anchored-by-a-cree-matriarchy/). *Quill and Quire*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20230612190142/https://quillandquire.com/authors/in-her-debut-novel-bad-cree-jessica-johns-has-dreamed-up-a-horror-story-anchored-by-a-cree-matriarchy/) June 12, 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2024-02-26.

1. Michelle Cyca, ["In her debut novel Bad Cree, Jessica Johns has dreamed up a horror story anchored by a Cree matriarchy"](https://quillandquire.com/authors/in-her-debut-novel-bad-cree-jessica-johns-has-dreamed-up-a-horror-story-anchored-by-a-cree-matriarchy/) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20230612190142/https://quillandquire.com/authors/in-her-debut-novel-bad-cree-jessica-johns-has-dreamed-up-a-horror-story-anchored-by-a-cree-matriarchy/) June 12, 2023 at the Wayback Machine. *[Quill & Quire](/source/Quill_%26_Quire)*, January 2023.

1. ["4 emerging Canadian writers receive $10K prizes from Writers' Trust of Canada"](https://web.archive.org/web/20230221211748/https://www.cbc.ca/books/4-emerging-canadian-writers-receive-10k-prizes-from-writers-trust-of-canada-1.5770790). *[CBC Books](/source/CBC_Books)*. Archived from [the original](https://www.cbc.ca/books/4-emerging-canadian-writers-receive-10k-prizes-from-writers-trust-of-canada-1.5770790) on 2023-02-21. Retrieved 2024-04-25.

1. Justin Bell, ["Bookmarks: A dream world from local Cree author Jessica Johns"](https://edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/local-arts/bookmarks-a-dream-world-from-local-cree-author-jessica-johns) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20230421165555/https://edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/local-arts/bookmarks-a-dream-world-from-local-cree-author-jessica-johns) April 21, 2023 at the Wayback Machine. *[Edmonton Journal](/source/Edmonton_Journal)*, April 18, 2023.

1. Drudi, Cassandra (2023-05-04). ["Billy-Ray Belcourt, Jessica Johns among 2023 Amazon Canada First Novel finalists"](https://quillandquire.com/omni/billy-ray-belcourt-jessica-johns-among-2023-amazon-canada-first-novel-finalists/). *[Quill and Quire](/source/Quill_and_Quire)*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20230520031855/https://quillandquire.com/omni/billy-ray-belcourt-jessica-johns-among-2023-amazon-canada-first-novel-finalists/) May 20, 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2024-04-25.

1. ["Meet the Canada Reads 2024 contenders"](https://www.cbc.ca/books/meet-the-canada-reads-2024-contenders-1.7073689). *[CBC](/source/Canadian_Broadcasting_Corporation)*. 2024-03-01. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20240118092323/https://www.cbc.ca/books/meet-the-canada-reads-2024-contenders-1.7073689) January 18, 2024 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2024-04-25.

1. ["Jessica Johns's novel Bad Cree is a story about grief, guilt and healing — read an excerpt now"](https://www.cbc.ca/books/jessica-johns-s-novel-bad-cree-is-a-story-about-grief-guilt-and-healing-read-an-excerpt-now-1.6707897). *[CBC](/source/Canadian_Broadcasting_Corporation)*. 2023-01-11. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20240219202224/https://www.cbc.ca/books/jessica-johns-s-novel-bad-cree-is-a-story-about-grief-guilt-and-healing-read-an-excerpt-now-1.6707897) February 19, 2024 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2024-04-25.

1. ["YALSA announces 2023 Alex Awards"](https://www.ala.org/news/press-releases/2024/01/young-adult-library-services-association-announces-2024-alex-awards). *News and Press Center*. ALA American Library Association. 22 January 2024. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20240205122728/https://www.ala.org/news/press-releases/2024/01/young-adult-library-services-association-announces-2024-alex-awards) February 5, 2024 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 22 January 2024.

1. ["2024 Audie Award Winners"](https://www.audiopub.org/2024audieawards-winners). *[Audio Publishers Association](/source/Audio_Publishers_Association)*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20240308015617/https://www.audiopub.org/2024audieawards-winners/) March 8, 2024 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2024-04-25.

1. ["Dallas Soonias is bringing his A-game to Canada Reads for Jessica John's Bad Cree"](https://www.cbc.ca/books/canadareads/dallas-soonias-is-bringing-his-a-game-to-canada-reads-for-jessica-john-s-bad-cree-1.7073241). *[CBC](/source/Canadian_Broadcasting_Corporation)*. 2024-02-26. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20240321012437/https://www.cbc.ca/books/canadareads/dallas-soonias-is-bringing-his-a-game-to-canada-reads-for-jessica-john-s-bad-cree-1.7073241) March 21, 2024 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2024-04-25.

1. ["2024 Alberta Literary Awards shortlists"](https://quillandquire.com/omni/2024-alberta-literary-awards-shortlists/). *[Quill and Quire](/source/Quill_and_Quire)*. 2024-04-25. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20240425152620/https://quillandquire.com/omni/2024-alberta-literary-awards-shortlists/) April 25, 2024 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2024-04-25.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Jessica Johns](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jessica_Johns) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jessica_Johns?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.