Rebecca McKanna was born and raised in Iowa. Her debut novel, Don’t Forget the Girl, will be published by Sourcebooks Landmark in June 2023. The book’s TV/film rights have been optioned by HeyDay Films.

Her short stories have been anthologized in The Best American Mystery Stories 2019 and recognized as distinguished in The Best American Short Stories 2019. She has been published in Colorado Review, Michigan Quarterly Review, The Rumpus, McSweeney's Internet Tendency, Third Coast, Joyland, and as one of Narrative's Stories of the Week, among other publications. She is an assistant professor of English at the University of Indianapolis and is represented by Rebecca Gradinger at Fletcher & Company.