When Jon Fosse receives the Nobel Prize this weekend, it will naturally appear that he is an author. But life could have taken completely different turns for the boy with the longest hair in Strandebarm. Trailer driver or rock guitarist As a little boy he wanted to be a trailer driver. Later he wanted to become a rock guitarist. He played in a band for many years, and the band was first called Coopex, since they practiced on the second floor of the building where the Coop shop was located. The band that Jon Fosse played in was called Coopex. Fosse is the guitarist in the pink t-shirt. Later, the band changed its name to Rocking Chair and toured in Mundheim, Hatlestrand, Ølve and Fusa. Photo: Britt Randi Hjartnes / Private Later they changed their name to Rocking Chair. Jon Olav, as he was then called, became a familiar sight in the village where he trotted around on his ladies’ bicycle with the wind in his hair and a guitar on his back. Fosse also painted pictures, ever since he was a boy. In 1989, after he had debuted as an author, he sent a picture to the Autumn Exhibition, but was rejected. One of the reasons why he became a writer was that in that way he could avoid having to deal with other people in his day-to-day life. Got rejected At the start, things didn’t just go well with Fosse’s lyrics. He sent two manuscripts – a poetry collection and a novel – to Fonna publishing house in 1981. The feedback states that they saw a germ of talent, but that the style was “terribly tedious”. They conclude: “Recording can be an effective style when it is used in moderation, it must be moderate”. The debut book “Raudt, svart” was finally published by Samlaget. When it became known that Fosse was awarded the Nobel Prize in 2023, Fonna publishing company posted this on its Instagram profile: “Ok. I was wrong. To close!” Fonna publishers might wish they had said yes to the future Nobel Prize winner, but seem to take it with humor. Photo: Fonna forlag Språket og musikken There are almost no difficult words or phrases in Jon Fosse’s books. In the last giant novel, “Septology”, the first person is even a little annoyed by two people who like to use unusual words. If you dislike recording, you can, on the other hand, have a problem as a Fosse reader (cf. previous point). The way of recording a sentence, with a slight variation, has led some to compare Fosse with a folk musician. Many have written music for Fosse’s lyrics – from Sandra Kolstad to Georg Friedrich Haas. Scene from the opera Melancholia at Den Norske Opera in 2008, where the music was written by Austrian Georg Friedrich Haas. The role of Hertervig (in quiff) was sung by Otto Katzameier. Photo: Erik Berg/Den Norske Opera Wrote the same script twice The first novel Fosse wrote on a computer was “Naustet”, which was published in 1989. He was so skeptical of the new aid that he rewrote the entire script on a typewriter. Later, the technological skepticism disappeared and Fosse became a big Mac enthusiast. Making raspeballs A lot of traditional Norwegian food appears in Jon Fosse’s books: Karbonadar med lauk. Fried pork and fried eggs. Lutefish. Rasp balls. The latter is apparently his favorite dish, then served with smoked meat, carrot and kohlrabi. And he can make the grated balls himself. Jon Fosse can make his favorite dish himself, raspeballar. Have to believe if he uses a grater or a kitchen machine to grate the potatoes? Photo: Eirik Gjesdal In an interview in A magazine, Fosse was asked what his worst fear is. The answer: “That the raspeballs I make will be too loose and go over to the lake”. What about raspe balls for Sunday dinner to celebrate the Nobel Prize? Children deserve a party Fosse has written nine children’s books. The first, “Infinitely late”, he wrote in 1989 after an idea from his eldest son, who was then eight years old. The book is about a boy who stole a banana from an old lady. Before, Fosse thought that children’s books should be literature for all ages. “Hundemanuskripta” (1995-97) is a series of three children’s books about dogs in typical human situations. Dogs also appear in many touching, funny and meaningful scenes in Jon Fosse’s books. Photo: Marion Hesholm / news Many years and several children later, he thinks that children’s books should be “a party”, not socially realistic or educational: – God and women have been good to me, I know something about children. (…) They deserve a party! That’s what the father of six says in the portrait book by Cecilie Seiness “Poet på Gods jord”. During the Nobel week, he has refused all interviews and events in Stockholm, except “Nobel in Rinkeby and Tensta”. There he will meet children at the school library in the suburbs of Stockholm. Fiat and mountains When Jon Fosse is going to travel, he likes to drive a car best, but city driving makes him stressed. He likes long distances and prefers Italian and French cars. Fosse has owned three Fiat Pandas. The car magazine “Motor” calls the Fiat Panda a “rugged” car that is suitable for the Italian mountain landscape. Also for Norwegian, at least if you ask Jon Fosse. Fiat Panda as the model looked when it was launched in 1980. Photo: Sven Storbeck Speech and direction Jon Fosse has trouble with two things. One is to think of numbers and number combinations. Date of birth, hotel room number and telephone number. It has happened that he has installed himself in the wrong hotel room. The other thing he struggles with is city sense. He had the shortest taxi ride ever in Oslo. He actually knew where he was going and had been there before, but he needed help as he had gone 125 meters to the right instead of to the left. Taxi was the solution. Jon Fosse himself says that he often gets lost, because he wanders too much in his own world, in his own thoughts. Photo: Colourbox / Daniel Rudolf Eroticism When he was interviewed by the newspaper Gula Tidend in 1983, the headline was: “Introduce eroticism and music into Norwegian lessons!” He claimed that Norwegian education was dominated by broken moralists who denied that great literature is full of music and eroticism. He has, according to point 3, included the music in his own books, but what about the erotica? In his second novel, “Stengd guitar”, there is a very explicit, almost brutal sex scene, with the use of folk references to the genitals. So much so that it made colleague Siss blush. Later, eroticism is often depicted in more indirect terms. In Melancholia, where the first person is the painter Lars Hertervig (1830-1902), the erotic depictions are part of Hertervig’s jealous misrepresentation. Excerpt from Melancholia (1999), where the first person is the painter Lars Hertervig (1830-1902). Hertervig studied painting for a while in Düsseldorf, but struggled with mental illness and had to return home to Stavanger after one year. Photo: Marion Hestholm / news In the latest giant work, “Septology”, one finds piquant scenes both involving teenage lovers and pedophile-prone rural originals. And when the young Asle is encouraged by the fearless Ales to lie down in the sandbox with her, it is not to build sand castles – so to speak. Faith and sobriety Questions about faith and morality run like a red thread through Fosse’s life. Fosse believed early on that he understood the religious moralism of the prayer house milieu in Strandebarm. He resigned from the state church as soon as he could. He had more sympathy for the Quakers, and attended some Quaker meetings in Bergen. Later, he took a more lenient view of the prayer house environment, where, among other things, his dear grandmother participated. He joined the state church again in 1993. In 2012 he took a new position. He had been admitted to hospital to manage to stop drinking. In retrospect, he has stayed sober, but it needs to be filled with something else, something spiritual. He converted to Catholicism. He reportedly prays daily. Pope Francis congratulated Fosse on the 2023 Nobel Prize in a personal letter. Photo: AP Pope Francis congratulated Fosse on the Nobel Prize in a personal letter. Fosse was surprised, happy and moved by the letter. Like that! Now you are ready for the Nobel weekend and Jon Fosse word for word. Read more about the Nobel Prize winner here:
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Sex, rock and a very short taxi ride – ten funny facts about Jon Fosse – news Culture and entertainment
