John Ajvide Lindqvist

John Ajvide Lindqvist (Swedish pronunciation: [jɔn ˈâjvɪdɛ ˈlɪ̂ŋːkvɪst]; born 2 December 1968) is a Swedish writer of horror novels and short stories. He is the husband of author Mia Ajvide and the father of author Fritiof Ajvide.

Early life

Lindqvist was born and raised in the Stockholm suburb of Blackeberg. Before becoming a published writer, Lindqvist worked for 12 years as a stand-up comedian, and also for a time as a magician.

Career

Lindqvist's debut novel, Let the Right One In (Låt den rätte komma in), a romantic vampire horror story published in 2004, enjoyed great success in Sweden and abroad. Handling the Undead (Hanteringen av odöda) was published in 2005 and involved the rising of the dead as zombies, referred to as the "re-living", in the Stockholm area.

In 2006, he released his third book, Pappersväggar (Paper Walls, published in English as Let the Old Dreams Die), a collection of short stories. In 2007, his story "Tindalos" was published as a serial in the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter and as a free audiobook available through the newspaper's website, read by the author himself. His works are published in Sweden by Ordfront and have been translated into many languages, including English, Bulgarian, German, Italian, Spanish, Chinese, Hindi, Norwegian, Danish, French, Polish, Czech, Dutch and Russian.

Lindqvist was also a writer for the television series Reuter & Skoog (1999) and wrote the screenplays for Sveriges Television's drama series Kommissionen (2005) and the film Let the Right One In, based on his novel.