“I have no problem whatsoever with the blank page.”
Danish author Olga Ravn offers an honest reflection on the creative process, not from the standpoint of writer’s block, but from the other end of the journey: finishing. While the blank page holds no fear for Ravn, the act of concluding a book is far more daunting. “When a work is about to set and be completed, you must let go of some innocence,” she says. “And that’s the hard part.”
Ravn describes the early phases of writing as a kind of honeymoon: “It has the potential of turning into anything,” she explains, describing a fertile period in which news, dreams, and daily encounters all resonate with the book in progress.
“Some want to get to the core of something, that doesn’t interest me at all,” she says. “I’m much more into establishing the boundaries for what this book can do.”
Olga Ravn also discusses the challenges of finding the right voice and narrator for each book, a process she describes as intuitive yet demanding. Only once this is established can she begin to make use of her research and allow the writing to unfold. The editing phase, by contrast, requires a colder eye and a willingness to confront the limits of a work’s potential, something she admits is far less enjoyable.
”Sometimes it feels like you’ve built a house and realised too late that something’s wrong with the foundation. So I hate the proofreading phase. I don’t like finishing off things… So I have no problem whatsoever with the blank page.”
Olga Ravn (b. 1986, Copenhagen, Denmark) is the author of several acclaimed novels, including Celestine, The Employees, and My Work. Her writing blends fiction, philosophy, and poetry to explore themes of motherhood, labour, mysticism, and the boundaries of literary form. The Employees was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2021.
Olga Ravn was interviewed by Nanna Rebekka in December 2022.
Producer and editor: Nanna Rebekka
Camera: Simon Weyhe
Copyright: Louisiana Channel, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, 2025
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