William Maxwell was born on August 16, 1908 in Lincoln, Illinois, USA. He was married to Emily Gilman Noyes. He died on July 31, 2000 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.
His wife, Emily (born August 25 1921; died July 23 2000) was an artist. The couple had two daughters: Kate and Brookie.
He was an editor, novelist, short story writer, essayist, children's author, and memoirist. He served as fiction editor for The New Yorker from 1936 to 1975.