Bella Li (born 1983) is a Chinese-born Australian poet.

Early life and career

Li was born in China in 1983. When she was three she and parents migrated to Australia. Li has an Arts/Law degree from the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb no ...

. In 2020 she received a PhD from the same university for her thesis, "The Forest, the Desert and the Road: Chronotopes of American Spaces in Twentieth-century Long-form Poetry; and a Creative Work, 'Hotel America'". Her poetry has appeared in ''

Meanjin ''Meanjin'' (), formerly ''Meanjin Papers'' and ''Meanjin Quarterly'', is an Australian literary magazine. The name is derived from the Turrbal word for the spike of land where the city of Brisbane is located. It was founded in 1940 in Brisbane ...

'', Cordite and other literary journals. In 2017 Li was awarded a literary grant by the

Australia Council The Australia Council for the Arts, commonly known as the Australia Council, is the country's official arts council, serving as an arts funding and advisory body for the Government of Australia. The council was announced in 1967 as the Austr ...

. She served as a judge for the 2020 '' Overland'' Judith Wright Poetry Prize.

Awards and recognition

* Shortlisted, University of Melbourne's Australian Centre Literary Awards, Wesley Michel Wright Prize, 2014 for ''Maps, Cargo'' * Highly commended,

Anne Elder Award The Anne Elder Trust Fund Award for poetry was administered by the Victorian branch of the Fellowship of Australian Writers from its establishment in 1976 until 2017. From 2018 the award has been administered by Australian Poetry. It is awarded ann ...

, 2017 for ''Argosy'' * Shortlisted, Red Room Poetry fellowship, 2017 * Commended, University of Melbourne's Australian Centre Literary Awards, Wesley Michel Wright Prize, 2017 for ''Argosy'' * Winner, Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Poetry Prize, 2018 for ''Argosy'' * Winner, NSW Premier's Literary Awards Kenneth Slessor Prize for Poetry, 2018 for ''Argosy'' * Shortlisted, Queensland Literary Awards

Judith Wright Calanthe Award The Arts Queensland Judith Wright Calanthe Award is awarded annually as part of the Queensland Premier's Literary Awards for a book of collected poems or for a single poem of substantial length published in book form. Winners 2020 * Winner: Pi ...

, 2018 for ''Lost Lake'' * Shortlisted, NSW Premier's Literary Awards Kenneth Slessor Prize for Poetry, 2022 for ''Theory of Colour''

Works

* ''Maps, Cargo,'' Vagabond Press, 2013 * ''Argosy'', Vagabond Press, 2017, * ''Lost Lake'', Vagabond Press, 2018, * ''Theory of Colour'', Vagabond Press, 2021,

References

External links

2013 photograph of Bella Li
by Nicholas Walton-Healey is held in the State Library of Victoria * {{DEFAULTSORT:Li, Bella 1983 births Living people Australian women poets University of Melbourne alumni