Episode 166: Kelli Russell Agodon on Play in Poetry

“I use play as kind of a backdoor to talk about tougher subjects,” says poet Kelli Russell Agodon, “but also as a front door for the reader to be able to listen.” Her most recent book, Accidental Devotions, blends humor, vulnerability, aging, the chaos of relationships, and the art of humaning. In this episode, of Emerging form we talk with Kelli about* Writing in service to “The Quiet Rebels”* Finding the form for a poem or book at the end of the project* Where to put the most vulnerable content in a book* Learning to trust the reader* The importance of vulnerability* Value of human connection through the arts* The role of obsession in art* Creating touchstones for the reader* The role of play in poetry* How do we know if what we write is successful?Plus, Kelli reads “Alexa, Why Am I Falling Apart” and we converse about the role of human-made art in an increasingly technological world.Kelli Russell Agodon’s most recent book is Accidental Devotions (Copper Canyon Press, 2026). She is the author of five poetry collections. Her work has received numerous honors, including the Dorothy Rosenberg Poetry Prize, a Poetry Society of America Prize, the Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Award in Poetry, and three Washington State Book Award finalist selections. She is the cofounder of Two Sylvias Press, teaches in Pacific Lutheran University’s Rainier Writing Workshop MFA program, and cohosts the poetry series Poems You Need with Melissa Studdard. She lives in a sleepy seaside town in Washington State.Postcards from a Poet newsletter: https://kelliagodon.substack.com/subscribeKelli’s websiteKelli’s YouTube channel This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit emergingform.substack.com/subscribe