I am trained as a graphic designer in 1981 and have worked in the graphic industry ever since. This background allows me to manage every aspect of book production myself at my publishing house, Forlaget Farfalla, founded in 2010.
PHOTO: ANNE KRING
I was born on 3 January 1960 and grew up on a horticultural nursery in Galten near Aarhus, together with loving parents, an older sister, and a younger brother. My childhood unfolded close to forests, fields, and marshland—an environment that early on nurtured a vivid imagination and a love of storytelling.
I loved the greenhouses, especially when they were filled with fragrant freesias, but everyday life also involved many duties picking and packing vegetables so they could reach the Gardeners’ Sales Association early in the morning. In the greenhouses, there was plenty of time to let my thoughts wander, and I invented stories to make the work more interesting. At school, my essays were often read aloud in other classes, and even then I was predicted a future as a journalist, writer, or illustrator—the latter because I also loved to draw.
Drawing became my first profession. From 1978 to 1983, I lived in Silkeborg and worked as a commercial artist at advertising agencies and a printing company. In 1983, I was employed in the advertising department of Salling Department Store in Aarhus and moved to Risskov, where I still live today—surrounded by forest, water, and beautiful nature. Many ideas for my crime novels have emerged during my runs in neighbouring Mollerup Forest.
In 2001, I became self-employed and founded the graphic design company IGM DESIGN GRAFISK. The freedom to plan my own work once again made room for writing, and it was here that my debut crime novel Dukkebarnet (The Doll Child) took shape. After a complicated publishing journey, it was published in 2008 by Forlaget DarkLights, which later also published Drab efter begæring (Death on Demand).
In January 2010, I founded my own publishing house, Forlaget Farfalla—Italian for “butterfly”—in order to have full oversight of the entire book production process, from the first idea and the final full stop to printing, publication, and marketing. On 1 July 2014, I closed my graphic design business to focus exclusively on writing, and today I make my living through Forlaget Farfalla. I also handle all graphic work myself, including covers, book layout, and marketing.
My crime novels are based on current themes and authentic events that have sparked my imagination and which I develop further in fiction. The series follows investigator Rolando Benito, and inspiration is drawn in part from media coverage of police work, forensic science, and criminal investigations—as well as from crime series, especially British and Nordic ones. I primarily read crime fiction myself and also have a deep love for Italy, where I have studied Italian for many years.
Ultimately, however, it is always the characters and their choices that drive the story. I write first and foremost to entertain my readers with suspenseful and engaging stories.
