Between 1987 and 1990 she was President of the Swedish PEN, and since 1988 she is a member of the academy "Samfundet De nio". Between 1992 and 1996 Agneta Pleijel was Professor at the Institute of Drama in Stockholm.

Agneta Pleijel made her debut as a playwright in 1969 and achieved great success early on, especially with the drama Kollontaj about the Soviet ambassador and author Alexandra Kollontai. One of Pleijel's important recurrent themes is visible already in this play: women's creativity in relation to men, power, society and history.

Pleijel’s first collection of poems Änglar, Dvärgar/ Angels, Dwarfs was published in 1981 but the big breakthrough came with the novel Vindspejare/He Who Observeth the Wind (1987) for which she received several literary awards. It’s a story from Sweden and Java inspired by her own family history. In 1997 En vinter i Stockholm/A Winter in Stockholm was published, a short and burning contemporary novel about a love that is subjected to extreme strain. In the following novel Lord Nevermore, she portrayed the relationship between the sexes in an epic, almost symphonic form. The novel is a love triangle between two intellectual men and a woman. The story spans the dramatic 1900's and moves over several continents.

Agneta Pleijel's latest novel project is a historical trilogy, a family story in which she was inspired by the members of her own family. The first part, Drottningens kirurg / The Queen’s Surgeon, is the story of a doctor who was active during the second half of the 1700s. In the second part, Kungens komediant /The King's Comedian, we meet actor Lars Hjortsberg who made his stage debut as a 6 year old at King Gustav III's opera. The third and final part Syster och bror /Sister and Brother is about Lars Hjort's grandchildren, Albert and Helena. The trilogy relies on private documents, letters and oral family stories.

In addition to her extensive writing she also participates in public debate, particularly in issues concerning children and refugees. Agneta Pleijel lives in Stockholm. To date, Agneta Pleijel's books have been translated into 18 languages.