Marek Nowakowski
Nowakowski made his debut as an author in 1957 as a student of law at the University of Warsaw when his story Kwadratowy appeared in Nowa Kultura. A year later he completed his degree and published his first book, a collection of stories Ten stary złodziej.
In the 1960s and 1970s, his literary work, articles, and screenplays were published in the most important magazines, including „Twórczości”, „Więzi”, and „Tygodnik Powszechny”. In 1969, Nowakowski joined the Polish Writers Union, already having accumulated a renowned series of stories Benek Kwiaciarz, Silna gorączka, and Zapis, as well as the novels Trampolina and Robaki, which were superbly received by critics.
In 1976, Nowakowski signed Memorial 101, a protest by intellectuals against planned changes in the constitution of the People’s Poland, and in 1977 he co-created the independent literary quarterly „Zapis”, published without censorship, for which he was persecuted by the authorities. At the turn of the 1970s and 1980s, he published the series of novels: Książę Nocy and Chłopak z gołębiem na głowie, while the Literary Institute in Paris published his Raport o stanie wojennym and Notatki z codzienności. He regularly cooperated with Polish journalists in exile, and further books were published by independent publishers such as NOWA or Krąg. In 1984, Nowakowski was accused of activity detrimental to the interests of the People’s Republic of Poland. It was only in 1990 that the case was dropped by the Supreme Military Court due to a lack of evidence.
At the turn of the 20 th and 21 st centuries, Nowakowski published numerous collections of stories and sketches as memoires, such as Powidoki,Nekropolis, and Dziennik podróży w przeszłość, while at the end of his life he wrote his literary autobiography Pióro. Marek Nowakowski died on May 16, 2014, in Warsaw.