Fanny Buitrago was born in Barranquilla, Colombia between 1943 and 1945, and grew up in
Cali. Her father Luis Buitrago was from
Tunja, and her mother was from Barranquilla. Buitrago has a sister Letty, who has worked as her editor and literary agent, and a brother Luis. According to Letty, Fanny "began to read and write at a very early age, under the influence of two indefatigable readers: her father, Luis Buitrago, and her maternal grandfather, Tomás González". As a child she would invent stories for her siblings in exchange for money or chores; around the age of 8 or 9, she started writing stories by hand. ==Literary career==