Marissa Anne Ayala

Writer, Researcher, Artist Austin, TX

Marissa Anne Ayala is a writer, researcher, and multi-disciplinary artist based in Austin, TX. Informed by her Puerto Rican heritage, her work explores the dynamic relationship between self and place, delving into the intersections of cultural identity, societal influence, and the act of breaking away. She is deeply invested in understanding how individuals define themselves in relation to the places they inhabit, whether physical, cultural, or psychological.

Marissa is the recipient of the 2026 In Cahoots writing residency in CA, 2025 Puffin Foundation Environmental Advocacy Artist Grant, as well as a 2025 writing residency at Chulitna Lodge in Alaska, where she conducted eco-conscious fieldwork for a hybrid narrative work in progress. She also participated in the grant-funded field research for the chapbook series Errant Elements, conducting art-based and cultural research in Marfa, Texas. This work led to a sound art performance and the publication of her chapbook.

Invited by the Smithsonian Institution’s Archives of American Art, Marissa conducted primary research on the writings and works of key artists in color theory, deepening her understanding of the subject and its psychological impact. She held a year-long teaching artist residency at Pen + Brush Gallery, where she led creative writing workshops that used visual art a explore themes such as gender equality and the power of literature to shape social change.

Her work has been featured in TELEPHONE, Errant Elements, Poets & Writers magazine, Pen + Brush Literary Magazine, fugue, Poets of Queens Anthology, and more. She founded the East Austin Writing Project, a literary arts organization that provides equitable access to arts programming for the Austin, TX community.

She earned her BA at Naropa University’s Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics and her MFA in fiction at The New School.