Mary Otis is the author of the novel, Burst, forthcoming from Zibby Books in 2023 as well as the short story collection, Yes, Yes, Cherries (Tin House Books). Her stories and essays have been published in Best New American Voices, Electric Literature, McSweeney’s,Tin House,Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Review of Books, and in many literary journals and anthologies. She has recently published poetry in Zyzzyva along with poems forthcoming in the Bennington Review. The New York Times has said of her work, “Sadness and humor sidle up to each other, evocative of the delicate balance of melancholy and wit found in Lorrie Moore’s stories.” Her story "Pilgrim Girl" received an Honorable Mention for the Pushcart Prize, and her story "Unstruck" was a Distinguished Story of the Year in Best American Short Stories. Mary attended Bennington College and has taught fiction at UCLA and the UC Riverside Low-Residency MFA Program where she was a founding professor in the creative writing program. Originally from the Boston area, Mary lives in Los Angeles.
