Eggs Within Eggs
by Will McClelland
Arizona State University
Will McClelland is a bookseller from Tempe, Arizona and a current undergraduate in the Creative Writing program at Arizona State University. He will be graduating in the Fall of 2026. Alongside his creative writing, he is also a book reviewer for Grimdark Magazine. “Eggs Within Eggs” in Quirk is his first publication.
Cry for the questing head
of the creeping devil cactus
who knows living means
leaving himself behind.
Cry for clocks, scarred hands who cry
for peace.
Cry for the snake
coiled on the carpet
on his first lonely night
in Eden.
Cry for the stag, headlights that cry
like sunrise.
Cry for the hatchling
furiously swimming upstream
as he’s swept from his birth waters.
Cry for wrung-out Ouroboros, boys who cry
for the love the world called a gag.
Cry for the question marks
that boys are taught to hammer flat
and store in a quiver
under their tongues.
Cry for the Nightjar
who wakes from overdose
not knowing if it is time
to sing or to sleep.
Cry for the sundial
who saw his son swept away
by the thin dark wedge
of his passing.
Cry for his son, men who do not cry
while they break the world
that broke them.
Cry with your son, let myself cry
like a robin egg cracking
on my flat palm: eggs within eggs
within eggs—some boys
spend generations breaking
until they’re born to a palm
brave enough to be gentle.
Interview with the Poet
1. What inspired you to start writing poetry? Are there any specific poets or writers that inspire you to write?
My friends have encouraged and inspired me to write more often than professional writers have. I’m extremely lucky to have a wonderful creative community around me at the bookstore. Sharing poetry with my friend James every other Sunday at Cornish Pasty is a huge reason I went back to school to get a Creative Writing degree after leaving school for several years.
Hosting events at the bookstore has also been inspiring; I’ve gotten to meet some of my writing heroes, such as Hanif Abdurraqib, whose creative non-fiction work–especially There is Always This Year–has been influential on my own work, especially since I’ve begun writing more lyric essays. Other writers whose poetry I admire are Sarah Kay and William Brewer. A huge shoutout to all the ASU creative writing faculty who have taught me, as well, including Natalie Diaz, Susan Nguyen, David Martinez, Sarah Viren, and Justin Petropoulos.
2. What is the biggest challenge in your creative process?
Line editing while I write. Engaging my critical, analytical mind too heavily during a first draft really puts the brakes on my writing. Connecting to my intuition helps me get to the deeper emotions below the surface of my thinking. One of my poetry professors encouraged us to be wild in our writing, and since then I try to let that guide my writing.
3. Is there a recurring or central theme to your work?
Grief, recently. There are always new griefs to write about, so I suspect that topic will stick around. My job at a bookstore has been a common entry point to poems and essays, too. Overall, I want to show people that in every moment there is opportunity for profundity, even in such mundane places as a doctor’s waiting room or idle hours at a register.
4. What do you think are important elements in effective, thought-provoking poems?
One element of writing I’m interested in and aspire to is perhaps inexplicable, which is when words deeply affect me before I have any idea what ideas they are expressing. These moments remind me of instrumental music, a favorite band of mine being Hermanos Gutierrez. Their music is emotionally evocative, more so than any music with lyrics, and some poems hit me the same way, such as "Coliseum” by Jericho Brown. Perhaps it is the sounds of the words, my intuitive connections with words and images, or the timing of the words, but I love those moments that go beyond meaning.
5. What role do you think poetry plays in our society today?
As to society on a large scale… I don’t know. However, poetry is a wonderful part of the small communities I participate in. Sharing and responding to poetry can teach us courage and humility. At the bookstore, I’ve seen poetry gather people together to share joy, rage, grief, hope, and everything in between. Oftentimes, the content of the poems isn’t what’s most important. It’s about people joining in community for a night.