Gwen E. Kirby is a native of San Diego, a graduate of Carleton College, holds a master’s degree in foreign affairs from Johns Hopkins University, and a doctorate from the University of Cincinnati. Her stories have been published in One Story, Tin House, Guernica, Mississippi Review, Ninth Letter, SmokeLong Quarterly, and other publications.

She currently works as deputy director for programs and finance of the Sewanee Writers’ Conference at the University of the South, where she also teaches creative writing.