Dorthe Nors is an internationally acclaimed Danish writer. In 2017, her novel Mirror, Shoulder, Signal was a Man Booker International finalist. The National Book Critics Circle selected A Line in the World as a finalist in the autobiography category in 2023.
Dorthe Nors was born born in Herning, Denmark. At eleven, she began writing her own stories, poems and plays.
She graduated from the University of Aarhus with a degree in literature and art history. Renowned for her literary contributions, she has authored novels such as Soul (2001), Stormesteren (2003), and Ann Lie (2005). In 2008, her collection of short stories, Kantslag (Karate Chop), marked a significant milestone in her career.
In 2009 and 2012, she appeared in American literary magazines with translations of stories from Karate Chop. Together with the New York-based magazine A Public Space, Graywolf Press acquired the entire collection in 2012.
Notably, Dorthe Nors became the first Dane ever to have short fiction published in The New Yorker, with her story The Heron in the September 9th, 2013 issue. Another story, The Freezer Chest, followed in 2015.
Karate Chop, published by Graywolf Press in 2014, received overwhelming acclaim in the United States and was subsequently bought by publishers in various countries, including the UK, Germany, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Norway, Romania, Turkey, The Netherlands, Spain, Hungary, Serbia, and China.
Her novellas, Minna Needs Rehearsal Space and Days, were published in the United States in 2016 under the title So Much for that Winter. The novella Minna Needs Rehearsal Space also found its way to publishers in the UK, Norway, Sweden, Serbia, and The Netherlands.
Dorthe Nors showcases her versatility by writing in both Danish and English, using English primarily for essays. Her essays have been featured on BBC Radio 4, in The Guardian, Vi läser, Electric Literature, A Public Space, and The Literary Hub, among others.
Recognized for her literary prowess, Dorthe Nors received the Danish Arts Agency’s Three Year Grant in 2011 and the Per Olov Enquist Literary Prize in 2014. In 2017, her novel Mirror, Shoulder, Signal achieved further acclaim as a Man Booker International finalist.
Mirror, Shoulder, Signal, published in Denmark in 2016, has garnered international attention with sales in over 15 countries. Through the journey of a woman who insists on learning how to drive, the novel explores themes of emancipation, nostalgia, and the complexities of being stuck.
Dorthe Nors lives in rural Jutland, Denmark.
Photo credit: www.dorthenors.dk
