Pu Songling
Ma was born in 1942 in Qingzhou, Shandong. Her grandfather Ma Defu () and father Ma Chuzhen () were doctors. She belonged to the Hui ethnic group. Her mother was educated. Ma read books in Yidu County Library () when she studied at primary school. She was accepted into Shandong University and graduated in 1965. In 1966, Mao Zedong launched the Cultural revolution and she was persecuted. In 1980, Ma started to study the literature of Pu Songling.