Valérie Valère

Valérie Valère (born November 1, 1961 in Paris ; † December 18, 1982 ) was a French writer who excelled in particular through her melancholy novels, some of which were autobiographical.

Life

Valérie Valère grew up in difficult family circumstances. Even as a child she showed behavioral problems such as melancholy , noticeable silence and introversion due to the neglect on the part of her parents . Therefore, she began to take refuge in the world of books and write down her feelings at an early age. At the age of twelve, her anorexia was noticed and when she weighed only 31 kg, she was forcibly admitted to a mental hospital because her parents initially saw no need for it. Valère was discharged from the clinic after four months and a weight gain of 10 kg. However, their psychological problems and loathing for the adults remained. Furthermore, the girl, who was also lonely and isolated at school, was left alone with her problems, which is why she viewed the anorexia as a kind of cry for help. Because of the friendship with a young actor, Valérie attended a circus school from then on.

Two years later, her parents had long since divorced, Valère began to write Le Pavillon des enfants fous ( The house of crazy children ). In this novel, she processed her bad experiences in psychiatry. At the age of 16 she entered the philosophy class at Racine High School. She was suggested by a publisher to publish the book with slight changes, which she declined. A few days later the De Stock publishing house accepted the manuscript and brought it to the bookstore on November 9, 1978. The book sold very well in France with several hundred thousand copies. She made friends with her philosophy teacher, but the girl was not recognized by her mother.

Within two months she wrote her next novel Malika ou un jour comme tous les autres (Eng. Malika or Come with me in my dream ) and then began working on Obsession blanche (Eng. White madness ). Now of legal age, she was able to exercise her author's rights and moved into her own apartment. Although for a short time it seemed like writing and the success that came with it would make her thrive, she fell into depression again and attempted suicide by swallowing medication. After she almost died in a fire in her apartment on June 24, 1980, Valère moved back in with her mother. There she finished Obsession blanche and wrote Magnificia Love , but continued to take drugs to escape the world for a short time. After moving from Paris to a lonely house in the country, she wrote the novel Véra , which reflects her depressed state. She continued to refuse psychotherapy, although she became increasingly suicidal. On December 18, 1982, she died after abuse of sleeping pills at the age of 21.

Works

Publications

• 1978 The House of Crazy Children ( Le Pavillon des enfants fous )
• 1979 Malika or Come with me in my dream ( Malika ou un jour comme tous les autres )
• 1981 White Madness ( Obsession blanche )
• 1987 The rain in your eyes ( Laisse pleurer la pluie sur tes yeux ) (posthumous)
• 1992 Véra, Magnificia Love et pages diverses (posthumous)
• 1992 La Station des désespérés ou les couleurs de la mort (posthumous)
• 1998 Éléonore (posthumous)

About Valérie Valère

• 1987 Valérie Valère, un seul regard m'aurait suffi (biography of Isabelle Clerc )

Unfinished or previously unpublished works

• 1977 Aurel
• 1978 Passerelles des-reves
• 1979 Station D
• 1979 autobiography
• 1979 Pierre Torran

Quotes

• "Writing is a very great freedom, I have found the justification for life."
• "My death will (...) be forgotten again."
• "You poured your world in my face like a bucket of water, I'll never find my way, I'm lost."

Web links

• German site about Valérie Valère