Marsha De La O

Marsha de la O was born and raised in Southern California. She earned her MFA from Vermont College and is the author of two collections of poetry: Black Hope (1997), winner of the New Issues Poetry Prize, and Antidote for Night (2015), winner of the Isabella Gardner Prize from BOA Editions. De la O is associated with the landscapes and cityscapes of Southern California, and her poetry is known for its nuanced observation and description of the region.

A former bilingual schoolteacher in Los Angeles and the rural community of Santa Paula, de la O now lives in Ventura, California. She is the recipient of the 2014 Marcus Memorial Poetry Prize, the dA Poetry Prize, and the Ventura Poetry Prize. With her husband, poet Phil Taggart, she publishes the poetry journal Askew.