Norwegian Authors in rebellion

Jan Ove Ekeberg. Photo: Wikipedia.org

Authors in rebellion against old authors’ association

Several authors believe it is too difficult to become a member of the Norwegian Authors Union (Den Norske Forfatterforening). Instead, many have signed up for the recently established Authors Association (Forfatterforbundet).

 

Several well-known Norwegian authors believe that the Norwegian Authors Union is a organization for the elite and that writers who ought to be made members are rejected by it, writes NRK.

With this as a backdrop, author and former news anchor in TV 2, Jan Ove Ekeberg, has gathered more than 300 co-writers in his Authors Association. Among those are famous crime writers like Hans Olav Lahlum, Trude Teige, Tom Kristensen and Hanne Kristin Rohde besides Tom Egeland.

– I view the Norwegian Authors Union as an elite association. There is no place for me there. It’s not good. I will apply when they star to resemble a proper union, says Kristensen to the National Broadcaster.

The Norwegian Authors Union has around 650 members. To become a member of the 125-year-old organization, one must have written at least one literary book for adults which is deemed to be of literary value. It is especially the discretionary requirement that several would be members react to.

The head of the Norwegian Authors Union, Heidi Marie Kriznik, does not agree to the notion that the organization is an elite association. She however understands the need for writers to be organized in a union.

– I believe that there has been a need for a union like the Authors Association for a long time. The visual artists have as an example had two associations for more than 25 years, says Kriznik.

 

© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today