Agus R. Sarjono is primarily a poet, although he also writes short stories, novels, essays, and plays. He received the Mastera Literary Award from Malaysia (2012) and the Sunthorn Phu Award from Thailand (2013). A former editor of the literary magazine Horison (1997 — 2013), he served as the head of the DKJ (Jakarta Arts Council) Literary committee from 1998 to 2002, chairman of DKJ (2003 2006), General Director of Jurnal Sajak, and a lecturer in the Theater Department at ISBI Bandung. He has been a guest writer and scholar at several institutions, including IIAS Leiden University (2001), University of Bonn (2010 & 2012), Heinrich Böll Haus (2002–2003), Art & Culture Community, Finland (2006), and Künstlerhaus Schloss Wiepersdorf, Brandenburg (2014).

He has participated in numerous international festivals from Germany to Dubai (UAE), from India to Vietnam. His works have been translated into German, English, French, Dutch, Finnish, Portuguese, Serbian, Kurdish, Arabic, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Thai. His plays include Atas Nama Cinta (In the Name of Love, 2001 & 2006), Mat Teater (2014), McTheatre (English edition, 2015), Disaster (German edition, 2015), Rumah Tangga Bahagia (The Happy Household, 2023) and the monologue collection Curhat Nasional (National Monologue, 2021). His latest poetry books include Gestatten, mein Name ist Trübsinn (Berlin, Germany, 2015), Kueja Bibir dan Alis Matamu (Selangor, Malaysia, 2015), and Paradise Lost (Kinabalu, Sabah 2025).

Lately, nostalgia from his teenage years as a band member has kept him engrossed in creating songs, most of which he has adapted from his poetry.