Tekstbyrået / Nina Mauno Schjønsby & Halvor Haugen

The handwritten journal "Forloren Skildpadde" was published in 1837 by Camilla Collett and Emilie Diriks. The two friends, both in their twenties, served as the editors and the only writers for the publication. "Forloren Skildpadde" is a remarkable example of how self-publication could create a platform for expression in a time women and alike had few if any arenas to publicly be seen and heard. Through intense writing, Collett and Diriks’ letters contained not only advice and constructive critique but also courage and motivation — they thought each other how to write, and to get better. With "Forloren Skildpadde" they created a space where they could define what was worth giving attention and how on their own terms. This book search for a better understanding of what made it possible to accomplish "Forloren Skildpadde" — despite the narrow gender roles and lack of social plasticity at the time. It also frames how their publishing is part of a larger context and related to other independent publications at that time and up to this day. Ps. The dish forloren skilpadde served as inspiration for Collett and Diriks, it is a complicated dish any woman should know how to make in 1837. However, Collett and Diriks decided to make a literary counterpart of the dish.