Olivia Dodd

Olivia Dodd is an American poet, actress, writer, playwright, and performance artist. She gained popularity on social media platforms due to the poetry she writes for strangers on a typewriter.

Early life and education

Dodd first began writing poetry at a very early age. She attended the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama.

Career

Regents Park, London

Dodd is primarily known for writing poetry using a typewriter in public spaces and giving away the poetry to strangers. Her presence has grown on social media, including over 272,000 followers on Instagram (as of May 2026). A London-based poet, she often settles in London's Regents Park.

In an interview with Good Days Album, she discussed her motivation behind writing poetry for strangers, saying, "I think my inspiration has grown from my love of words and hearing other people's stories. Wanting to connect with people as well, we're in this huge city, in London it becomes hard to just have a conversation with somebody."

In addition to poetry, Dodd is an actor. In speaking with Good Days Album, she said,

There are a lot of crossovers with my style of poetry and acting, because it's this kind of performance art. Sitting in a space and allowing somebody to come up to you and speak openly, then write for them on the spot and read the poem to them, requires a performative element, and acting training has allowed me to be more comfortable in those settings.

In 2024, Dodd participated in a TEDx event at the University of Warwick in Coventry, England, where she gave a speech titled "The Art of Typewriter Poetry: Creating Connections Between Strangers".

Artistic style and typewriter poetry

Dodd writes poetry for strangers, based on a short prompt they provide. She then composes a poem on the spot and often reads it aloud to the recipient. Dodd frames her typewriter poetry as an act of attentive listening and creative response, which in turn allows them to discuss individual experiences in a public setting. Her poems often center around specific imagery, and focus on relationships, longing, loss and small everyday moments.

A typewritten poem from Dodd Dodd as seen in London's Regents Park.

Media coverage from global news outlets, including ABC News and People Magazine, has covered both the performative and documentary value of Dodd's work: the poems function as keepsakes for the recipients, and recordings of the live interactions provide material that can be shared online.

The Poetess

Dodd appeared at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2025. Dodd performed a play titled The Poetess, which centers a poet who inherits her grandmother's typewriter.

In a review for Scottish Field, Megan Amato wrote,

Olivia's story resonated with me in a way that I hadn't expected – as someone who covers up grief with self-reliance instead of facing it; of being that friend who always listens but never shares; and of being able to face others but not ourselves. The Poetess felt like therapy, having given name to something heavy that has long sat with me and feeling lighter for recognising it.

References

This article "Olivia Dodd" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Olivia Dodd. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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