Photo by Gesi Schilling
About
P. Scott Cunningham is a poet and essayist originally from Boca Raton, FL. He is the author of two poetry collections: Self-Portrait as the “I” in Florida (Autumn House, 2026), selected by Major Jackson as the winner of the 2025 Donald Justice Poetry Prize; and Ya Te Veo (University of Arkansas, 2018), selected by Billy Collins for the Miller Williams Poetry Series and a finalist for the National Poetry Series. He is also the author of a forthcoming essay collection, Everything Is the Sea: A Portrait of Miami (UPF, 2027); and the co-editor, with Kristen Arnett, of All This Beauty: An Anthology of Contemporary Florida Writers (UPF, 2027).
His work has appeared in The Nation, Harvard Review, American Poetry Review, POETRY, Gulf Coast, A Public Space, The Rumpus, Michigan Quarterly Review, Monocle, RHINO, The Guardian, 68to05, American Way, and others. His translations of Alejandra Pizarnik, César Vallejo, and Frank Báez have appeared in Omniglots, H.O.W. Journal, Waxwing, and The Miami Rail.
A graduate of Wesleyan University, he is the founder and former executive director of O, Miami, a non-profit organization that celebrates Miami, FL through the lens of poetry. Named one of "20 Under 40 Emerging South Florida Leaders" by The Miami Herald and one of 51 “brilliant urbanites who are helping to build the cities of America's future" by Fast Company, he has been a featured speaker at The Aspen Institute, The Funder’s Network, Breakout, Creative Many, TedX, Creative Mornings Miami, Miami Book Fair, and the Decatur Book Festival, among others. A short film he ideated and produced, The Sun Like a Big Dark Animal, based on the life and poetry of Alejandra Pizarnik and created by Cristina Felisgrau and Ronnie Rivera, debuted at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. He serves on the board of directors for O, Miami and Bookleggers Library.
He lives in Illinois with his wife, the writer Christina Frigo, and their three children.