Bess Vanrenen has an MA degree in English from the University of Colorado Boulder and an MFA degree in Creative Writing from Antioch University Los Angeles. Her short stories have been published in Flash Fiction Magazine, The Madison Review, Tampa Review, KYSO Flash, and elsewhere. She was first runner-up for the AULA MFA Dorland Arts Prize, and her short story “Missed Connection” won a Stories on Stage contest and was performed live. A writer, editor, and (mostly armchair) traveler, she lives in Denver with her family.