Diane Johnson has a BA Honours Psychology from the University of Victoria. While at UVic in the early 1970s, Diane lived in a six-bedroom character house in Oak Bay, on the outskirts of Victoria, British Columbia, with four other students. The experience of living in this shared home and idyllic municipality, combined with a growing awareness of Eastern spirituality and the emerging environmental movement, provided inspiration for the original version of The Bad Manor Girls Save Picturia.

Diane, also known as Amethyst, currently lives in a small town near a large lake in beautiful British Columbia, where she enjoys Scrabble, Sudoku, pickleball, and being outdoors, especially when she is by the water.