[3] Born and raised in Victoria, British Columbia,[3] Celona studied creative writing at the University of Victoria before attending the Iowa Writers' Workshop.
Celona was the winner of the Bronwen Wallace Award in 2008 for their short story "Othello".
Celona's short story "Counterblast" won a 2018 O. Henry Award, and was selected as a juror favorite by author Ottessa Moshfegh.
[4] Celona's most recent novel, How a Woman Becomes a Lake, was published in March 2020.
[5] Celona currently teaches in the MFA program at the University of Oregon.