First reactions. Telephone interview, October 2023

After the 2023 Nobel Prize in Literature was announced, new laureate Jon Fosse was inundated with messages congratulating him on the award. In this call with the Nobel Prize’s Manisha Lalloo he speaks about one particular reader who told him that his work was “the reason she was still alive.” He also shares what writing means to him and his advice for aspiring writers.

“When writing I feel that I enter another universe”

Manisha Lalloo: Hey, is that Jon Fosse?

Jon Fosse: Yes, it’s me, yes.

ML: Hey, it’s so nice to speak to you, my name is Manisha, we are so happy to be in touch with you, congratulations!

JF: Thank you very much!

ML: I’d love to ask you, how are you feeling today, how are you feeling about the prize?

JF: I’m really happy about it, of course, but I was, even if I’ve been a kind of candidate – or how to put it – I’ve been used to be high on the betting list and so I didn’t expect to win the tenth year I was into the speculations. So, I was honestly surprised when I learned. When I was told I would get it this year.

ML: So, it came to you as quite a shock. How did you find out about it?

JF: It was Mats Malm who phoned.

ML: I understand you were driving at the time, is that correct?

JF: Yes, I was driving, yes. You always get nervous of course before such a decision is to be taken, it could be you, it might be you, and to drive alone it’s relaxing for me. So, on country roads, on peaceful roads. I’m now in the western part of Norway, so I was driving along the fjord close to where I live by now.

ML: Oh, that sounds beautiful, what a beautiful place, a picturesque place to receive such wonderful news.

JF: Yes, it was, and of course I was, I felt really happy. My first reaction was to feel happy and then I started to be surprised and then I even started to – can this be real? Feeling of lack of reality, how to put it. Then Mats Malm told me that if I didn’t believe it, I could watch the television or watch the announcement on my Mac or something.

ML: How have you spent your first day as a laureate, how has it been for you?

JF: My Norwegian publisher has tried to organise a kind of system if it happens, so I went to meet the press and a lot turned up, I don’t know how they knew it, but somehow they knew it, so it took quite a while to do these interviews. When I came back home, I had hundreds of emails. People are very kind to me; they write beautiful stories about my writing to me. And are honestly happy for me getting the prize. So, I tried to answer each and every one about it, and it’s an enormous response I think, and it’s difficult to cope with. Of course, to answer that many emails or messages. It takes quite a lot of time.

ML: I can imagine, but are some of these messages from readers? It sounds like it must be quite wonderful to get messages from readers.

JF: Yes, from readers, and yes I had a very touching email, it was from a Greek woman who told me that my play ‘Death Variations’, that was the reason she was still alive, otherwise she would have parted. It was very touching to read.

ML: It must be really incredible to hear such words from people and feel like your work has touched people in that way, and it’s had such a powerful impact on people’s lives.

JF:  Yesi, it’s a play about suicide, and she, of course, she must have been very close to committing suicide.

ML: Obviously, your output is very varied, you’ve written plays and poetries and novels. For somebody who is just being introduced to your work, would you recommend a particular piece that they start with?

JF: Yes, I think that one of my favourite novels, I think is Morning and Night, it’s translated into Swedish and English, and many languages, and it’s rather short. So, I guess I would suggest that.

ML: Is there something that you particularly think about when you write, or is there something that writing especially means to you, that it’s very important in your life, or you find it to be a good way to express your feelings or what you’re thinking about?

JF: No, I don’t try and express anything, and I often say it’s like I don’t try and express myself, I try to get away from myself by writing. To escape from myself, like drinking or whatever you do to get away from yourself; It’s not a way to express myself. But, when writing I feel that I enter a new, another universe, another place. I change place, I change mood. It’s the same with whatever I write, and then, to manage to write well, that’s the greatest happiness in life to me, when something is writing itself and, I know that I am writing well. You forget about time, you are completely into what you are writing, so in this state of being completely into the writing and the writing is writing itself, that’s a great thing for me.

ML: That sounds wonderful, do you have a message that you would give to aspiring writers, people who look up to you or think…?

JF: Yes, that I have. You must stick to yourself, you must listen to yourself, to your inner voice and not to others. When I, my first books were published, and my first play was produced, the reviews, they were almost really, really, bad. I decided not to listen to it, but to listen to myself – to what I knew was good writing.

ML: Thank you so much, I really appreciate you taking the time to call us and speak with us.

JF: Yes of course.

ML: What are you planning to do for the rest of your day, or the rest of this week?

JF: Tomorrow I have to drive from Bergen to Oslo, and my intention is at least to answer all of the people who have written to me, there are so many.

ML: I think that’s going to keep you busy for a while now.

JF: Yes, it’s already many [unclear].

ML: Thank you so much for chatting to us.

JF: Thank you!

ML: And congratulations again!

JF: Thank you and bye bye!

ML: Bye.

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