AVA CHEN
Ava Chen is a poet and editor from Massachusetts. The founding Editor-in-Chief of the international literary magazine Sophon Lit and a Teaching Assistant for Polyphony Lit, her writing has been recognized by YoungArts, Bennington College, The Adroit Prizes, Columbia College Chicago, and more. Ava's poetry has also appeared in or is forthcoming with The Adroit Journal, Sixth Finch, The Rumpus, Gigantic Sequins, Chestnut Review, Salt Hill, The Penn Review, The Offing, diode, Frontier Poetry, Half Mystic, and elsewhere. Her debut chapbook "Habitual Prayer" was chosen by Danez Smith as the winner of Palette Poetry's 2023 Chapbook Prize. In her free time, she enjoys walking her golden retriever and looking really closely at plants. She loves lemons and hopes you have a wonderful day.
select publications
chapbooksHabitual Prayer · Palette PoetryOf a Warm Bright Point · Ghost City Press
poems"Etymological Ruin" & "Warp" · The Adroit Journal (fc)"Bloat" · Frontier Poetry (fc)"Faux Aubade" · Half Mystic"Ozone June" · Gigantic Sequins (print)"The State of the World" · Salt Hill (print)"In All Honesty" · Sixth Finch"Aftercrash in the Garden" · Chestnut Review"Pre-Apocalyptic" & "Self Portrait as Uncanny Valley · Poetry as Currency"Parable" · The Offing"Floor Plan of Newly Abandoned Bedroom" · Sine Theta (print)"Falling Out" & "I Have Loved You" · The Rumpus"Double Slit" · wildness"False Elegy" · The Penn Review"The Doppler Effect" · Diode"Postmortem, Concert" · Beaver Mag"Self Portrait as Fraying Seams" · manywor(l)ds"Night Parable" · The Dawn Review
prose"Parallels: The Stars, or Lack Thereof" · Polyphony Lit
“...again and again in this brief but stunning collection I found myself tripping over language so fresh and wise, at times ancient and at times from from electric dreamy future, making new all the places we poets have looked to find out work: into death, into the garden, towards love, and into the mirror. 'Habitual Prayer' has made me a fan of this poet’s magic, how they transfigure language into these precise, lush spells and invocations that unsettle me so. The greedy prayer I cast out to my gods: please, please, more of this, more from this poet.”
—Danez Smith on Habitual Prayer
honors
Palette Poetry Chapbook Prize, judged by Danez Smith · WinnerNational YoungArts Competition · Winner in PoetryPen&Quill Summer Contest · First PlaceScholastic Art & Writing Awards · National Silver Medal in Critical EssayIce Lolly Review Campaign Contest · 2nd Place in Poetry, 2x Poetry FinalistYoung Poet Network's Peace and Quiet Challenge · 2nd PrizeClaudia Ann Seaman Awards · Creative Nonfiction Runner-UpTwo Sylvias Chapbook Prize · FinalistAdroit Prize for Poetry · Finalist (2026), Semifinalist (2025), Commended (2024, 2023)Bennington Young Writers Awards · 3rd Place in PoetryColumbia College Chicago Young Authors Writing Competition · 3rd Place in Poetry, Finalist in Creative NonfictionGigantic Sequins Poetry Contest · Finalistruth weiss foundation's Youth Poet Award · FinalistSmith College High School Poetry Prize · FinalistSine Theta Annual Writing Contest · Poetry ShortlistPoetry as Currency · Best of the Net NominationSine Theta Magazine · Pushcart Prize NominationYoungArts Creative Microgrant · WinnerBoston Writers of Color · Literary Support Award
experience
currentMoon Press · Managing Manuscript EditorYoung Poets Workshops · Poetry MentorNYC Midnight · International Writing JurorAlliance for Young Artists & Writers · National JurorSophon Lit · Founder & Editor-in-ChiefPolyphony Lit · Teaching Assistant
past"Floating Forms: Deconstructing the Line": Original Workshop w/ YPW Summer Workshop Seriesthe borderline · Poetry EditorActive Voice Mag · Literary EditorCulinary Origami · Prose & Poetry Reader
education
Creative Nonfiction Workshop with Zoe Heller · 2026Fiction Workshop with Lynn Strong · 2025Poetry Workshop with Katie Farris · 2025Iowa Young Writers Workshop under Nitya Rayapati · 2024The Adroit Journal Summer Mentorship Program Poetry Mentee under Claudia Cortese · 2024The Kenyon Review Young Writers' Residential Workshop under Chukwuma Ndulue · 2023