Burkhard Spinnen (born December 28, 1956 in Mönchengladbach) is a German author.
Education and early life
Spinnen grew up in Mönchengladbach as the only child of Willy and Cornelia Spinnen. After completing his secondary education and his military service in 1976, he studied Mass communication, Sociology and German Studies at the University of Münster, completing his master's degree in 1984 and then his doctorate in the Faculty of Philosophy in 1989.
Following his studies, he worked at the Institute for German Studies as an Assistant until 1995 after which, from 1996 onward, he decided to become a freelance writer.
Career as a writer
Burkhard Spinnen is a member of PEN Centre Germany. From 1997 to 2000 he was guest professor at the Deutsches Literaturinstitut in Leipzig. From 2000 to 2006 he was a member of the Jury of the Klagenfurt-based Ingeborg-Bachmann-Prize, and from 2008 to 2014 the Jury Chairman. Since 2011 he has been a member of the prestigious North Rhine-Westphalian Academy of Sciences, Humanities and the Arts.
As well as writing novels, short stories, essays and criticism, Spinnen writes reviews and opinion pieces for the newspapers and radio. Spinnen has received numerous awards for his work.
Family life
Spinnen has lived in Münster since 1996 as a freelance writer. He is married with two sons. In 2016 he published a frank account of his mother’s gradual decline into dementia.
Awards
1991 Aspekte-Literaturpreis for Dicker Mann im Meer
1992 Kärntner Industrie Prize of the Ingeborg-Bachmann-Prize
1996 Märkisches Stipendium für Literatur
1996 Kranichsteiner Literaturpreis
1999 Literaturpreis der Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung
2001 Oldenburger Kinder- und Jugendbuchpreis for Belgische Riesen
2002 Mindener Stadtschreiber-Stipendium
2002 Caroline-Schlegel-Preis for his Essay Skandal
2003 Herbert-Quandt-Medien-Preis
2003 Commerce Book Prize of the Financial Times Deutschland
2004 Niederrheinischer Literaturpreis
2007 Deutscher Hörbuchpreis/ German Audio Book Prize
2008 Rheinischer Literaturpreis Siegburg
Works
Die Münstermacher. Eine satirische Szene, Münster (1986) Eine Reise durch das Buch. Ein Stück für das Schultheater, Münster (1988) Zeitalter der Aufklebung. Versuch zur Schriftkultur der Gegenwart, Münster (1990) Dicker Mann im Meer (Short stories) Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (1991) Schriftbilder. Studien zu einer Geschichte emblematischer Kurzprosa, Münster (1991) Kalte Ente, Geschichten, Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (1994) Langer Samstag, Roman, Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (1995) Trost und Reserve, Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (1996) Modelleisenbahn, München (1998) Belgische Riesen (Novel for children aged 9 upwards) Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (2000) Bewegliche Feiertage. Essays und Reden (Essays and speeches) Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (2000) Der schwarze Grat. Die Geschichte des Unternehmers Walter Lindenmaier aus Laupheim (Biography) Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (2003) Lego-Steine. Kindheit um 1968 (Autobiography) Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (2004) Der Reservetorwart (Short stories) Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (2004) Klarsichthüllen. Ein Dialog über Sprache in der modernen Wirtschaft (Non-fiction) Carl Hanser Verlag, München (2005) Kram und Würde (Critical essays) Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (2006) Mehrkampf (Novel) Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (2007) Gut aufgestellt. Kleiner Phrasenführer durch die Wirtschaftssprache (Guide to business terminology) Verlag Herder, Freiburg (2008). Müller hoch Drei (Novel for children aged 10 upwards) Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (2009) Auswärtslesen. Mit Literatur in die Schule (Non-fiction) Residenz Verlag, Salzburg (2010) Nevena (Novel) Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (2012) Am Ende des Tages (Essays on language) Verlag Herder, Freiburg (2014) Zacharias Katz (Novel), Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (2014) Die letzte Fassade. Wie meine Mutter dement wurde (Autobiographical) Verlag Herder, Freiburg (2016) Hauptgewinn. Die Erzählungen (Collected short stories) Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (2016) Das Buch. Eine Hommage (Essay on the future of the book) Schöffling & Co. Verlag, Frankfurt am Main (2016)