Bella Li

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. 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, Cordite and other literary journals. In 2017 Li was awarded a literary grant by the Australia Council. 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, 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, 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, ISBN 978-1-922181-96-1
 * Lost Lake, Vagabond Press, 2018, ISBN 978-1-925735-18-5
 * Theory of Colour, Vagabond Press, 2021, ISBN 978-1-925735-23-9