Artist greetings from Adwin de Kluyver

Report on residency at Skogshyddan AIR – September 2025 – Adwin de Kluyver

More information about Adwin de Kluyver: www.adwindekluyver.nl

In September 2025, I spent a month at Skogshyddan AIR working on the completion of my young adult novel ‘Aouda and Passepartout’. It was a period in which the place and the circumstances not only formed a backdrop, but became an active co-writer: a silent editor who pushed me towards the right sentences, an early bird that woke me with light, a still warm sea that gave rhythm to my days.

Skogshyddan's location on the edge of Skogby, close to the sea, provides a natural tranquillity. The calm of the forest and the openness of the water make it an exceptional place to work, conducive to concentration and long, uninterrupted blocks of work.

I worked in ‘Utu’, a spacious residential flat with its own kitchen, bedroom and – most importantly – a living room with a wood-burning stove and a large writing desk. The latter proved crucial: a room dedicated exclusively to ‘writing’, where the laptop can remain open and a scene can unfold undisturbed across the desk. The practical facilities are effective and unadorned, from the induction hob and coffee machine to the shared washing and shower facilities in the house. This functional clarity means that nothing distracts your attention: everything you need is there, nothing requires extra care.

The house itself is steeped in history. Skogshyddan is a more than 100-year-old timber-framed/log building that has been renovated using traditional methods and with a love for its original character. Once, there were flats here for workers from the nearby sawmill; now, the same rooms offer silence, light and a tangible layer of time. Writing in such a space has a deepening effect: the wood “breathes” history, ideal for writing a historical youth novel.

My working days took on a simple rhythm. I started early in the morning by revising the scene I had left behind the night before. Then a short walk – into the woods, towards the sea. Around noon, I had lunch in the kitchen and read sources and notes. The afternoons were for the “architectural” work: refining the structure, rearranging chapters, creating suspense. Towards the end of the day, I worked out short scenes in full concentration, with the sounds of birds blowing in through the open window.

The sauna on the grounds was an unexpected source of inspiration. After intensive revision sessions, the heat provided an ideal opportunity for reflection: you switch off everything, your mind clears, and that's when a missing twist or a precise formulation falls into place. You take the peace that this brings with you back to your desk the next day.

What sets Skogshyddan apart is that peace and hospitality are organised here in a professional manner. Initiator and hostess Susanna Kankare runs the residence with a rare combination of warmth, relaxation and decisiveness. She understands what artists and writers need: space, clear agreements and service. That means you don't feel like a guest; Skogshyddan feels like home.

In this home, in September 2025, I tied up the last loose ends of the young adult novel, rewrote two crucial chapters and further developed the characters of Aouda and Passepartout. The environment helped me to improve the emotional core of the story. The long, quiet hours gave me space to refine the pace of the novel: adding more emotion where needed, speeding up when the plot demanded it.

In practical terms, it was also very workable to take short trips from Skogby to reset my mind and back – a quick trip to Tammisaari or Hanko – and then get back to work. This variety prevents the wear and tear that sometimes occurs during writing marathons lasting several weeks. Skogshyddan's explicit focus on a serene working environment is evident in everything: no overstimulation, but nature, light, structure and respect for the cadence of the creative process.

I leave grateful and with a completed, lived-in version of my manuscript. Skogshyddan AIR offered exactly what I was looking for: not just time and space, but a carefully curated context that makes writing possible at a level that is difficult to achieve at home. Here, in an old house that has been given new life, my novel “Aouda en Passepartout” has come into its own. I cannot imagine a better breeding ground for completing a book about freedom, friendship and the courage to change.

Bio

Adwin de Kluyver is a Dutch writer of literary non-fiction and children's literature. His work moves at the intersection of cultural history, reportage, essay writing and personal reflection. His publications include ‘Het gedroomde Noorden’ (The Dreamed North, 2019), ‘Niemandsland’ (No Man's Land, 2021) and ‘De eilanden van goed en kwaad’ (The Islands of Good and Evil, 2024), books that each start from geographical or mental border areas to explore larger social questions. His work has been nominated for the Jan Wolkers Prize for the best nature book of the year and translated into German. In 2016, he won the Zeeuwse Boekenprijs. In 2021 and 2024, he was selected by the Dutch Foundation for Literature as one of the “Ten to Watch” — literary voices with international potential.

In addition to his work for adults, De Kluyver also writes for young people. In 2026, Lemniscaat Publishers will release a book about how people deal with cold, snow and ice. He is currently working on ‘Aouda and Passepartout — Journey to Freedom in Eighty Days’, a feminist and anti-colonial retelling of Jules Verne's world travel novel.

De Kluyver is also active as a mentor and curator of literary exhibitions. His work is characterised by imagination, sensory precision and an open, inquiring tone.