A Writer's Guide to Oslo

Deichman Bjørvika is the main branch of Oslo's public library system of 25 libraries. Writers can take a study room or sit in the open reading space, and the open workshops have tools visitors can use. The library holds free author talks and courses. On the top floor is the Future Library, an art project that stores manuscripts by invited authors.

The National Library counts its reading room among the most beautiful in Oslo. You can pre-order material from the collections to the special reading room. It is closed Sundays.

The University of Oslo's humanities and social sciences library fills six floors of Georg Sverdrups hus, with about 1,000 study spaces, and anyone can use it during opening hours. Pick a quiet zone or book a group room. UiO's Academic Writing Centre is on the ground floor. The library hosts book talks and language cafés, and its collections include rare books and papyri.

The Norwegian Institute of International Affairs keeps a research library on foreign policy and international relations. It holds most of the literature on post-war Norwegian foreign policy. The public can visit during weekday office hours, and anyone who registers with photo ID can borrow, collecting loans at the library.

Tronsmo is an independent bookshop strong on politics and culture, with comics in its basement. Look for the Tronsmo classics shelf and the LGBT+ section. Its book launches bring author conversations and signings. It is closed Sundays.

Cappelens Forslag sells used and antiquarian books, with new ones on the shelves as well, and it carries rare books and signed first editions. The shop publishes its own conversation lexicon under the same name. Reading evenings and launch parties take place here. It is closed Sundays.

Norlis Antikvariat sells antiquarian books on two floors across from the old National Gallery. Its shelves run from art and photography to polar exploration, and it sells maps and prints too. Catalogues come out several times a year.

Damms Antikvariat describes itself as Norway's oldest antiquarian bookshop. Its stock leans toward history and travel, with maps and engravings as well, and much of it sits in storage and can be seen on request. Enter through the building's stairwell and ring the bell. Some weekdays are by appointment.

Prismatic Pages is an English-language bookshop selling used and new books. The selection rotates and favors lesser-known titles across genres. The shop takes book orders weekly and is closed Mondays.

Fuglen opens early as a coffee bar furnished in mid-century pieces, and at night it becomes a cocktail bar. It is open daily.

PUST is a spacious, light neighbourhood café in Majorstuen, popular with laptop workers. If you are working alone, take a stool by the window; groups fit at the long tables. It is open daily.

Håndbakt bakes sourdough with organic ingredients at the Tøyen Factory and runs a coffee bar with brunch during the day. A student newspaper lists it among Oslo's cosiest cafés to study in, with single seating. It is open daily.

Oslo Raw makes its food by hand, from overnight oats to green juice. Seating is drop-in only, so come by and take a single seat. It is open daily.

Kafé Oslo is the restaurant of Litteraturhuset, the house of literature, which holds regular author talks and book launches. Anyone can sit and read in its LesBar corner, with or without a meal. It is open daily.

Henrik Ibsen and Knut Hamsun were regulars at Grand Café, along with the Kristiania bohemians. Lars Backer's ceiling decorations have been recreated, and three famous Krohg paintings hang in the room.

Theatercaféen is the café-restaurant of Hotel Continental, and 87 portraits of artists and cultural figures line its walls. Artists once hid away in the back room, the Chambre Séparée.

Engebret Café calls itself Oslo's historic restaurant. Ibsen and Sigrid Undset ate here, and so did Grieg and Munch. It is closed Sundays.

Artists once wrote and drew in Lorry's booths, and some of them paid for their meals with their work. Now 207 works by more than 70 artists hang on the walls. Lorry is open daily.

Litteraturhuset is Oslo's house of literature, a gathering place for people who love to read, with events for every age and a small selection in English. You can rent its rooms for a seminar or a course. Kafé Oslo is in the building. For listening, the house produces English-language podcasts, LitHouse among them.

Den norske Forfatterforening is the association of Norwegian writers of fiction for adults, and it defends writers' interests and freedom of expression. Members can use its writing spaces and residences, including an apartment in Berlin, and get guidance on tax and finances. The union awards the Vesaas Prize for the year's best fiction debut.

Norsk Forfattersentrum connects writers with audiences and makes sure they are paid for readings and lectures. Organizers book writers through its author catalogue. It publishes recommended fee rates.

NORLA promotes Norwegian literature abroad. Its grants support direct translations from Norwegian and translators' professional development, and foreign publishers can apply for support as well. Festivals and universities abroad that invite Norwegian authors can ask for travel support. Translators can look up titles and rights holders in its Books from Norway database.

Norsk PEN, the Norwegian centre of PEN International, has more than 1,000 members and defends freedom of expression in Norway and abroad. It coordinates Fribyordningen, Norway's Free City programme, which shelters persecuted writers and artists. Norsk PEN awards the Ossietzky Prize.

CAS is an independent research foundation at the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, supporting interdisciplinary fundamental research in fields from the humanities and law to medicine and the sciences. Tenured faculty at partner institutions can apply for a CAS Research Grant, which brings a team they choose to Oslo for a year with office space and administrative support. The Young CAS Grant is for researchers under 40 with a PhD and a post at a partner institution.

The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters is an independent national academy, and one of its two classes covers the humanities and social sciences. It runs lecture series and symposia. The academy awards the Abel and Kavli Prizes, and its HUMSAM Prize honors work in those two fields.

The National Library gives workspaces to academics who use its materials over long periods and to writers with commissions from publishers. A place lasts up to a year and can usually be renewed. For a stay under six months, researchers can use reserved places in the main reading room.

Universitetsforlaget publishes scholarly books and journals in law and psychology, among other fields. Its digital services include the Juridika legal library and Allvit digital course books.

Gyldendal Norsk Forlag took over the Norwegian rights to Ibsen and Bjørnson, among other authors, from Gyldendal in Copenhagen. It publishes fiction and nonfiction, with children's books and educational materials as well.

Cappelen Damm describes itself as Norway's largest publisher. Its list runs from fiction, young adult included, to documentary and nonfiction. Its educational books reach from early schooling to academic research.

Security Dialogue is an international peer-reviewed journal for interdisciplinary work that critically interrogates questions of security and the conditions for peace. Oxford University Press is its publisher. The journal is edited at PRIO, its institutional home, where editor-in-chief Bruno Oliveira Martins is based. Preparing an article for Security Dialogue

Sage publishes Cooperation and Conflict on behalf of the Nordic International Studies Association, and the journal prints theoretically informed, empirically rich International Relations research. Its co-editors-in-chief, Benjamin de Carvalho and Kristin Haugevik, are based at NUPI in Oslo with the journal's editors. Preparing an article for Cooperation and Conflict

Journal of Peace Research is an interdisciplinary, international journal of peace research that takes a global view of conflict and peacemaking, with a focus on the causes of violence and on conflict resolution. It is owned and edited by the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) and published by Oxford University Press. Preparing an article for Journal of Peace Research

Norway's state grants for working artists cover every artistic field, and Kulturdirektoratet hosts the scheme. A board decides on the advice of expert committees. Some of the six grant types run from one to ten years, and others pay specific costs of artistic work.

Fritt Ord is a private non-profit foundation in Oslo that promotes freedom of expression and public debate. It funds projects that are openly accessible to the Norwegian public, and it offers grants for master's students and for journalists. The foundation awards the Fritt Ord Prize.

NFFO, the Norwegian Non-fiction Writers and Translators Association, is based in Oslo and pays grants and remuneration to nonfiction authors and translators. It reports having funded more than 7,000 books and translations.

The City of Oslo's Culture Agency awards six stipends to artists and cultural workers with a registered home address in Oslo. The Diversestipend can go toward costs from production to travel. Writers starting out can also look at the establishment and talent stipends.

Stiftelsen Den norske Bokprisen awards the Brage Prize each year for quality and innovation in Norwegian literature. Nonfiction has its own category, and so does writing for children and young people.

The Editors For Students guide covers UiO thesis prizes and fieldwork funding, along with the Academic Writing Centre.

Hoi! RisoKlubb is a risograph space with intro courses and open riso evenings, and it holds zine nights and markets. Once you have taken the intro course, you can book the risograph for your own projects. Club members take the intro course free.

The University of Oslo's Graphic Centre prints UiO doctoral theses, usually at 17x24 cm with standard UiO covers. Candidates can add private copies to the same order and collect them at Blindern. The service is for UiO doctoral candidates.