Todd Walton was born in San Francisco on October 17, 1949. He was a thespian, musician, and athlete at Woodside High School. He attended the University of California at Santa Cruz from 1967–69 and was a laborer and musician from 1969-1971. Todd lived in Santa Cruz from 1971–74, where he made his living as a musician and gardener. Todd published his first short story in 1972 in the Santa Cruz weekly Sundaz. He sold his first short story, "Willow", in 1975 to Cosmopolitan magazine.