William Dempsey Valgardson (born 7 May 1939) is an Icelandic-Canadian fiction writer and poet. He was a long-time professor of writing at the University of Victoria in British Columbia and a professor of English at Cottey College in Nevada, Missouri. Valgardson was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, of Icelandic descent, and raised in Gimli, Manitoba. He completed his BA at United College, BEd at the University of Manitoba, and his MFA at the University of Iowa.