I’m Erin Van Rheenen. I write, teach, and travel.

My life has been an effort to see the beauty in being upended. Life upends us all, again and again. I seek to claim my upendedness as a good thing. And to write about it.

That means exploring everything from moving abroad to surviving hospital stays to personal and professional transformations—not just my own, but others’, too. I’ve never met a subculture, underappreciated artist, or quirky backstory that didn’t move me to find out more.

I’m lucky to be able to write about what I love. I’ve contributed to many guidebooks and have been interviewed on CNN, local TV, and radio programs like Rick Steves Travel, as an expert on Costa Rica and moving abroad. My work has been anthologized and published in newspapers, magazines, and websites, including Bellevue Literary Review, The Sun, NPR, and Best Women’s Travel Writing.