William James is the pseudo name of Bruce Foster, who is an author and educator whose work focuses on the advancement of girls' education and empowerment. He is the founding director of PowerSisterhood, a non-governmental organization dedicated to the belief that investing in girls and women in the developing world will yield the highest dividends of any possible investment. In support of this belief, the organization inspires and coordinates the efforts of talented and highly motivated young women and men in senior high schools and universities worldwide to raise awareness of and funding for programs focused on girls' education, particularly in developing countries. As an English teacher at schools in the United States, Switzerland, and Indonesia, Bruce has inspired hundreds of students to discover the power and beauty of the written word through literature, creative writing, and public speaking. He has been the faculty advisor on several literary magazines and was twice awarded Teacher of the Year. In a previous career, Bruce was a speechwriter for AT&T, Bell Laboratories, and NYNEX executives. Bruce earned degrees in English, Creative Writing, and Education from Rutgers University and Columbia University in New York. He has published poetry, short stories, and political essays, in addition to public speaking engagements.

His debut novel, Macan Merah (Red Tiger), chronicles the plight of a young Indonesia girl as she struggles to become a modern, self-determined woman. About the novel, Diane Donovan of the Midwest Book Review writes, "An unforgettable story of doubt and disillusionment, rebellion and finally acceptance, Macan Merah is an enchanting, gifted tale that asks the most compelling questions of our time." Bruce is married to Dr. Ivet Suriapranata, a leading cancer scientist at the Mochtar Riady Institute for Nanotechnology in Jakarta. He is an accomplished musician, badminton enthusiast, and loving father of two children.