Dave Williamson was born in Winnipeg, and studied at the University of Manitoba. He was the advertising manager of The Bay (Saskatoon), before joining Red River Community College in Winnipeg as an instructor in advertising, communications and creative writing. He founded the Creative Communications program at Red River in 1969. He was Dean of Applied Arts and Business from 1983 until his retirement in 2006. From 1986-89, he was president of the Manitoba Writers' Guild, and chair of the Writers' Union of Canada in 1992-93. He has published novels, short stories and a memoir and is a freelance book reviewer and columnist. His play Anniversary, written with Carol Shields, was first produced in Toronto in 1986.