Helle Helle

Helle Helle (born 14 December 1965) is a Danish writer. Basing her stories on episodes in the lives of ordinary people, she gained fame in 2005 with her novel Rødby-Puttgarden.^[1] Her books have been translated into 23 languages and are read by a broad audience in Denmark and abroad. She is a recipient of the Lifetime Award from the Danish Arts Foundation.

Helle was born in Nakskov on the island of Lolland. She grew up in Rødby, a town that frequently appears in her books. After matriculating from Maribo Gymnasium in 1984, she spent a year selling perfume on the ferry from Rødby to Puttgarden which provided background for her novel from 2005. She then went on to study literature at the University of Copenhagen from 1985 to 1987. From 1989 to 1991, she attended the Danish Academy of Creative Writing in Copenhagen.

Since her debut in 1993 she has published two short story collections and a number of novels. She works experimentally with language and plays with narrative forms and perspectives, yet her novels deal with familiar situations and relationships, making them widely accessible. They are moving, precise, and often marked by understated humor.

In her four most recent novels – de (they), BOB, Hafni fortæller (Hafni Says), and Hey Hafni – she pushes the boundaries of the novel form while maintaining a strong connection to everyday human experience.

She is considered to be one of the most outstanding authors of contemporary Danish literature.

She has received numerous awards, including the Beatrice Prize, the Critics’ Prize (for the novel Rødby-Puttgarden), the P.O. Enquist Prize, the Golden Laurel (for the novel This Should Be Written in the Present Tense), the Grand Prize of the Danish Academy, the Holberg Medal, and the Montana Literature Prize (for the novel BOB). She has been nominated for the Nordic Council Literature Prize four times.

• Eksempel på liv (Example of Life), Lindhardt & Ringhof, 1993
• Rester (Remains), short stories, Samleren, 1996
• Hus og hjem (House and Home), novel, Samleren, 1999
• Biler og dyr (Cars and Animals), short stories, Samleren, 2001
• Forestillingen om et ukompliceret liv med en mand (The Idea of an Uncomplicated Life with a Man), novel, *Samleren, 2002
• Rødby-Puttgarden, novel, Samleren, 2005
• Ned til hundene (Down to the Dogs), novel, Samleren, 2008
• Dette burde skrives i nutid (This Should be Writtem in the Present Tense), novel, Rosinante, 2011
• Hvis det er (If you Want), novel, Rosinante, 2014
• de (they), novel, Rosinante, 2018
• BOB, novel, Gutkind, 2021
• Hafni fortæller (Hafni Says), Gutkind, 2023
• Hey Hafni, novel, Gutkind, 2025

• Inside a Writer's Proces. A video interview with Helle Helle Video by Louisiana Channel