Michèle Betty is the founder and director of Dryad Press, an independent Cape Town publisher dedicated to contemporary South African poetry. She holds a BA LLB from Wits University and a Master of Arts in Creative Writing, with distinction, from the University of Cape Town. Before founding Dryad Press in 2016, she worked in finance and law in Johannesburg, and later served as poetry editor and then editor of New Contrast.
Since founding Dryad Press, Michèle has edited and curated all of the press’s poetry collections, working closely with poets to develop manuscripts from submission to publication. Under her direction, Dryad Press has established a reputation for publishing award-winning poetry and championing new South African voices.
Betty is also an acclaimed poet. Her debut collection, Metaphysical Balm (2017), was shortlisted for the Ingrid Jonker Prize, while Dark Horse (2022) won the 2023 South African Literary Award for Poetry and was shortlisted for both the Glenna Luschei Prize for African Poetry and the National Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences Awards. She is the recipient of the Patricia Schonstein Poetry in McGregor Acclaim for her contribution to promoting and publishing South African poetry. Her work has been widely anthologised in South Africa and internationally.
