Poet | Novelist | Lecturer
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Mari Ellis Dunning’s debut poetry collection, Salacia, was shortlisted for Wales Book of the Year 2019. Her second collection, Pearl and Bone, was chosen as Wales Arts Review’s Number 1 Poetry Choice of 2022. Her debut novel, Witsh, a gothic novel exploring the witch trials of 16th century Wales, is available from Honno. Mari teaches at Aberystwyth University, where she delivers courses on feminist writing. Mari lives on the west coast of Wales with her husband, their two sons, and their very adorable poochon. She is the founder of Pay for Poets, a free resource to help writers earn a living through their work.
Recent work
Witsh
1597. Whispers of witchcraft and hangings begin to cross the border from England, catching like wildfire in the small village of Llynidwen. After several miscarriages, a bereft Doli seeks the help of a local soothsayer putting herself and the women around her in danger.
“Deeply engrossing and utterly unsettling” — Katherine Stansfield
Pearl & Bone
Beautiful, emotional and richly imagistic, Mari Ellis Dunning presents mothers in many forms: those experienced, chosen, unwitting, and presumed, asking us to consider the true nuances of motherhood – delicate as pearl, durable as bone.
Wales Arts Review Best Poetry of 2022
“Dunning is a writer who dares to point her pen’s sharp tip towards tales that are culturally established, anchored in tradition, and sacred to some.”
— Mab Jones, Poetry Wales
Author photo: Rosebuds Photography
Make up artist: Sidni Leigh MUA
Mari Ellis Dunning 