German Authors and Genres

Michael Stavarič; © Lukas Beck

Reading as a “never-ending journey into your own psyche” – The Chamisso Prize Winner Michael Stavarič

In 2012 Michael Stavarič was awarded the Adelbert von Chamisso Prize as an “outstanding figure in contemporary literary life”.More ...
Abbas Khider; © Jakob Steden

The German-Iraqi Author Abbas Khider – Troubadour of Confidence

In 2000 Abbas Khider, already a grown man, came to Germany without knowledge of the language. Today he stands in the front rank of German novelists.More ...
Christa Wolf; © Susanne Schleyer/Suhrkamp Verlag

Becoming a Subject – A Tribute to Christa Wolf

On December 1, 2011, the author Christa Wolf died at the age of 82. As hardly another writer of her generation, she represented the ruptures, contradictions and hopes of Germany.More ...
Gerhard Köpf; photo: Allitera Verlag

Dazzling, But Completely Out – The Writer Gerhard Köpf

There are writers in Germany who can hardly live from their work. Among them are outstanding authors, including some who, were hailed as the future of German literature. One of these is Gerhard Köpf.More ...
Eugen Ruge; © Tobias Bohm

Eugen Ruge – A Skilled Dramatist and Matured Novelist

Eugen Ruge has been writing for over twenty years, primarily as a dramatist. In October 2011 his debut novel surprised many by winning the German Book Prize.More ...
Sibylle Lewitscharoff; © Susanne Schleyer/Suhrkamp Verlag

Sibylle Lewitscharoff – A True, Witty and Meaning-Giving Power of Language

She is one of the most alert and original voices in German literature. Her novels pursue crucial questions of humanity with humor and profundity.More ...
Judith Schalansky and Peggy Mädler; © Susanne Schleyer/Andreas Rost

End of the Wenderoman – The GDR as a Space for Stories

There are novels that are so full of the world that it is unimportant where they take place: Peggy Mädler and Judith Schalansky represent a sober form of literature about the GDR.More ...
Hochspannung; © textfactory / Hoh

The Boom of the Regional Crime Novel

The Germans have apparently tasted blood. Regionalist authors are racing with each other to write murders stories in which one thing is never lacking: local color!More ...
The writer and translator Kristof Magnusson; photo: Thomas Dashuber

“Iceland’s language lives from a strikingly simple beauty”: Kristof Magnusson in an interview

An interview with the writer and translator Kristof Magnusson about Iceland’s guest role at this year’s Frankfurt Book Fair.More ...
Laura Bischoff; photo: privat

Illustrators Sought?! Interview with Children’s Book Illustrator Laura Bischoff

Laura Bischoff is a newcomer among illustrators. She has turned her passion and her talent into a career.More ...
Cover of “Die Geschichte vom Fuchs, der den Verstand verlor“; © Bloomsbury

Reading about the Darker Side of Life. Difficult Themes in Books for Children and Young Adults

Are books capable of introducing young people to themes such as death and dying, dementia and disability in a sensitive manner?More ...
publications of roughbooks 2010; © roughbooks

“An ox chews phlox” – Young Authors Re-Discover Poetry

Poetry is alive and well in Germany! An active, well-networked scene is breaking new ground and setting standards.More ...
Big City Literature: A Journey through Germany in Eight Books | © Colourbox.com

Big City Literature: A Journey through Germany in Eight Books

Some people claim that Berlin is the only big city worth taking seriously in Germany. This judgement, however, is contradicted – to some extent – by German contemporary literature.More ...
Susanne Ledanff; © University of Canterbury

Germany’s Capital in Print: Susanne Ledanff on the Contemporary Berlin Novel

The fall of the Berlin Wall has also given the “Berlin novel” a new drive, means Susanne Ledanff. In an interview she says how the capital city is being reinvented in the literature of Germany.More ...
Terézia Mora; © Autorenarchiv Susanne Schleyer

Training Camp Translation: An Interview with Terézia Mora

Péter Esterházy’s first work “A Production Novel” is not light fare. For translating it into German, Terésia Mora received the 2011 Translator’s Prize of the North Rhine-Westphalian Foundation for Art.More ...
Mirjam Pressler; © Beltz und Gelberg/Karen Seggelke

“I do not give any thought to whether something might be a risk.” An Interview with Mirjam Pressler

In 2010, Mirjam Pressler received the German Children’s Literature Award for her complete works.More ...
Artur Becker; © Wikipedia/CC/ Dontworry

Polish Literature in German? A Portrait of Artur Becker

At every convenient opportunity, the author Artur Becker claims that he writes Polish literature – but that he does so in German. Can that really be true? In a portrait of the author, Goethe.de attempts to find an answer to this question.More ...
Part of the cover of “Blut im Wasser“; © Blumenbar Verlag

“The Sea Before Us”: German Authors and Foreign Countries

Thanks to numerous foundations and scholarship awards, writers in Germany have many opportunities to explore other countries. Novels that are actually set abroad, however, are less common.More ...
Anja Tuckermann; © privat

“Giving People a Voice” – An Interview with Anja Tuckermann

Anja Tuckermann is a freelance author living in Berlin who writes for adults, young people and children. In 2006 she was awarded the German Prize for Youth Literature.More ...
Cover of “Onkel J.: Heimatkunde” (i.e. Uncle J: Local History); © Suhrkamp Verlag

The Whole World in the Wetterau: The New German Regional Literature

A smelly uncle and a fly fishing innkeeper’s son: two protagonists in novels by Andreas Maier and Norbert Scheuer. They give a new importance to the provinces in contemporary German literature.More ...
Bertolt Brecht circa 1928 with his Steyr car; © Suhrkamp Verlag

Looking Over Brecht’s Shoulder. The Notebook Edition

Bertolt Brecht’s notebooks give an insight into the work of the poet, playwright and theatre director. The first volume of a print edition was published in late 2010.More ...
Thomas Bernhard; © Andrej Reiser/Suhrkamp Verlag

“The Curtain Rises Every Day” – Thomas Bernhard

He shocked with his powerful attacks of his native Austria and has won awards for his precisely composed language. 2011, Thomas Bernhard would have celebrated his 80th birthday.More ...
Peter Staengle; © privat

“Kleist Is Unique.” Peter Staengle on the Munich Kleist Edition

Heinrich von Kleist is one of the most important German-language poets. Timed to coincide with the 200th anniversary of his suicide, the publishing house Hanser has now brought out a new edition of his novellas, plays and letters.More ...
Kurt Tucholsky; © gemeinfrei

A Very German Classic. Friedhelm Greis on Kurt Tucholsky

On December 21, 1935, the novelist Kurt Tucholsky died in Sweden. Goethe.de spoke with Friedhelm Greis, who observes the reception of Tucholsky’s work in his “Sudelblog” (i.e., Scribble Blog).More ...
Andreas Steinhöfel; © Joachim Boepple

“Something always plops.” An Interview with Andreas Steinhöfel

Andreas Steinhöfel is one of the best known German authors of books for children and young people. His lovingly imagined characters have written themselves in the hearts of readers.More ...
Reinhard Jirgl; © Carl Hanser Verlag/ Annette Pohnert

“Sensual Enrichment of Language.” Interview with Reinhard Jirgl

On 23 October 2010, Berlin author Reinhard Jirgl (57) was presented in Darmstadt with the Georg Büchner Prize, worth 40,000 euros.More ...
Buchreihe „Kölner Ausgabe“; © Kiepenheuer und Witsch

“For Future Generations”: Editor Ralf Schnell on Böll’s Complete Works

In October 2010, the twenty-seven volume edition of Heinrich Böll’s complete works was brought to an end. An interview with Ralf Schnell, spokesman for the board of editors.More ...
Michael Stavaric; © Markus Kirchgessner

Michael Stavaric: An Author with a Future

Michael Stavaric writes in his second language (German) and sees himself as a universal author; he is indeed writing the European literature of today.More ...
Cover of “Abstehende Röhren”; © Zweitausendeins Verlag

Creative Small Business: The Writer and All-Round Artist Thomas Kapielski

Among contemporary German authors, one stands out who for years has been able to operate in various forms of expression and does not fit into any category: Thomas Kapielski.More ...
Peter Schössow; © Doris Katharina Künster

Drawing Poetry To Get It Out of Your Head. An Interview with Peter Schössow

Peter Schössow is one of the best German illustrators – especially of poetry. With Goethe.de, he spoke about getting goose bumps while reading and horses that are chauffeurs.More ...
Cover of „Die Angst des Tormanns beim Elfmeter“; © Süddeutsche Zeitung

The Sphere Has to Go into the Square: German-language Football Literature

Once the ball comes to rest, the stories start rolling. Literature belongs together with the art of football. But do German-language authors really shoot the sphere (the ball) into the square (the book)?More ...
Terézia Mora; © Autorenarchiv Susanne Schleyer

“Through writing, I arrived in life”. An Interview with Terézia Mora.

In 2010, writer Terézia Mora was awarded the Adelbert von Chamisso Prize. With Goethe.de, she speaks about language scepticism, writing as an elixir of life and translation as a calming influence.More ...
Hebel Year: poster for special exhibition, based on the lithograph “J.P. Hebel and Markgräfler”; © Sammlung Museum am Burghof

“You can read Johann Peter Hebel in the suburban train.” An Interview with Bernhard Viel

Johann Peter Hebel is the great unknown classic of German literature. May 10, 2010 will mark the 250th anniversary of his birth. An interview with Hebel biographer Bernhard Viel.More ...
Sarah Kirsch; © Markus Desaga

“You must be able to see the beautiful”. Sarah Kirsch at 75

On April 16, 2010, Sarah Kirsch will celebrate her 75th birthday. Born in 1935 in the Harz, she is probably the most distinctive German poet of the present.More ...
Robert Löhr; © Piper Verlag/ Peter von Felbert

“Alternative History”: An Interview with Writer Robert Löhr

Robert Löhr has devoted himself to historical material, which under his pen unfolds a remarkable life of its own.More ...
Cover of “Fälle für Freunde”; © Hanser Verlag

Stories Without Age Limits: An Interview with Helme Heine

The picture books of Helme Heine have fans young and old all over the world. The storyteller and illustrator talks about the elemental force of stories and the power of pictures.More ...
Cover of “Goethe und Schiller. Geschichte einer Freundschaft”; © Carl Hanser Verlag

“Friendship Has To Be a Life’s Work.” – Rüdiger Safranski on Goethe and Schiller

In his new book, Rüdiger Safranski describes how one of the most fruitful friendships in the history of German literature arose between the two poets.More ...
Judith Hermann; © Jürgen Bauer

“I’m A Slow Writer” – Interview with Judith Hermann

An interview with the author about lucky coincidences, the life of texts and time frittered away during writing.More ...
Further articles

Poetry Contest “In Gerhart Hauptmann’s Footsteps”

International call for submissions on the occasion of the 150th birthday and centennial of the awarding of the Nobel Prize to Gerhart Hauptmann

Writer-in-Residence-Programme

UNESCO City of literature Reykjavik and the Goethe-Institut Denmark award two scholarships to german authors every year. Apply now until 15.02.2012!

Bücher, über die man spricht

New books on the German market

Weblog: Current Writing

Everything you’ve always wanted to know about German literature in the USA

Rayuela: Argentinean-German Writers-in-Residence Project

Argentinean and native German speaking writers are getting a better insight into the society of their guestland.

Literary Tandems

Exchange of letters between German and Serbian authors

Story of a Friendship – My Favourite Book

The competition is now closed and the jury is in session. We will shortly publish the names of the winners on this page.

Text and the City

Expand your concept of beauty by reading our new collection of literary extracts inspired by the Ruhr Metropolis in Germany.

Dossier: Begegnungen

Deutsche Autor(inn)en sehen die Welt

Literature about the fall of the wall

Literature about the fall of the wall and the process of Germany's reunification.

Literature for children and youth

German language literature for children and youth

Comics in German

Infos on Comics in German, portraits of artists, suggested literature