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Amelie NothombBelgian writer
Date of Birth: 13.08.1967
Country:  Belgium |
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Biography of Amélie Nothomb
Amélie Nothomb was born in 1967 in the Japanese city of Kobe, to a Belgian diplomat family. She had the opportunity to travel the world during her childhood due to her father's work, living at different times in China, New York, Bangladesh, Burma, and Laos. Coming from a influential Belgian family of politicians, Nothomb is the grandniece of Charles-Ferdinand Nothomb, the Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs, and her great-grandfather was the writer and political figure Pierre Nothomb. She has a brother and a sister.
From Childhood to Becoming a Writer
Amélie's childhood, marked by constant moving, played a significant role in shaping her future as a writer. After studying at the Free University of Brussels, she moved to Tokyo. This experience was later depicted in her novel "Fear and Trembling." She confessed in interviews that upon arriving in Europe at the age of 17, she felt like a stranger and unprepared for the new European life, prompting her to return to the East at the first opportunity.
Literary Career
Nothomb's first novel, "Hygiene and the Assassin," was published in 1992. It tells the story of a reclusive and misanthropic writer whose secret is revealed by a young journalist. Her second novel, "The Sabotage Amoureux," was released in 1993 and takes place in China during the time of the "Gang of Four." In her novel "Les Catilinaires," published in 1995, Nothomb narrates the story of peculiar neighbor who visits an elderly couple every day at the same time. Despite his harmless visits, getting rid of the intrusive guest proves to be quite difficult.
Nothomb's novel "Fear and Trembling" earned her the prestigious Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française. Over the years, she has published more than 60 books, although not all of them have been released. Her works have been translated into numerous languages. Some of her notable novels include "Metaphysics of Tubes," "Cosmetics of the Enemy," "Dictionary of Proper Names," "Antichrista," "Sulphuric Acid," and "The Journal of Hirondelle." Her novel "Tokyo Fiancée," published in 2007, became popular and explores the theme of a young girl's first love and the difficult choices she faces.
Amélie Nothomb Today
Amélie Nothomb is often referred to as the Queen of Bestsellers and the Gothic Princess of Europe. In her personal life, she embraces the gothic style, always dressed in black, which adds an air of intrigue to her public persona. Each autumn, she releases a new novel, and each one tends to become a bestseller. Nothomb writes in French and prefers to create her manuscripts using a ballpoint pen instead of using a computer. She also favors handwritten letters received through traditional mail and takes great care to respond to each one. In interviews, Nothomb reveals that she writes approximately 3.7 novels per year, publishing only a quarter of them. She dedicates eight hours a day to writing and finds the act of writing to be a physical experience.
Currently, Amélie Nothomb resides in Paris, occasionally visiting Brussels.
