The Plascencia family eventually settled near Los Angeles in the city of El Monte when he was eight years old.
in English from Whittier College and an MFA in fiction from Syracuse University.
In 2001 he was awarded a Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans, its first fellow in fiction.
In its January 2010 issue, Poets & Writers named Plascencia one of the "Fifty Most Inspiring Living Authors in the World."
In August 2015, Plascencia began teaching creative writing at Harvey Mudd College.