Rebecca Renner

Rebecca Renner (born Gainesville, Florida) is an American author, journalist, and non-fiction writer.

Rebecca Renner
Born	Gainesville, Florida
Education	Stetson University
Occupation(s)	Author Journalist
Website	rebecca-renner.com

Early life and education

Renner grew up in Central Florida, where she first spotted a wild adult alligator near her home at the age of seven, an experience that sparked a lifelong fascination with reptiles, especially alligators.^[1] She graduated from Stetson University with an MFA in fiction writing.^[2]

Career

In 2017, while teaching high school in her hometown, she overheard a student mention Operation Alligator Thief. That moment led her to one of the central stories in her book Gator Country.^[1] In 2019, Renner returned to Stetson as an adjunct instructor in creative writing.^[3]

Her work has appeared in National Geographic,^[4] The New York Times,^[5] Outside Magazine,^[6] Electric Lit,^[7] and Orlando Weekly.^[8] She spoke at a Key West Literary Seminar.^[9]

Gator Country is about wildlife conservation. It’s a narrative nonfiction account of a wildlife officer who goes undercover to root out a poaching ring in the Florida Everglades.^[10] The book also provides historical information about early conservation efforts, legislation regulating gator hunting, and descriptions of markets for alligator.^[11] Gator Country was the 2024 Great Read from Florida with Library of Congress Center for the Book^[12] and Editor's Choice/Staff Pick from The New York Times Book Review.^[13]

Works

• Renner, Rebecca (2023-11-14). Gator Country. ISBN 978-1-250-84257-2.^{[1][4][10][11][14][15][16]}