Laila Stien is a Norwegian novelist, poet, author of children's literature and translator from Hemnes

Hemnes

Hemnes is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Korgen.- Municipality history :...

. She grew up in Rana

Rana, Norway

Rana is the second largest municipality in Nordland county – and the third largest in North Norway – by population. By area, Rana is largest in Norway south of Finnmark , taking in large areas of mountains and forested valleys. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region...

, and has later lived in Finnmark

Finnmark

or Finnmárku is a county in the extreme northeast of Norway. By land it borders Troms county to the west, Finland to the south and Russia to the east, and by water, the Norwegian Sea to the northwest, and the Barents Sea to the north and northeast.The county was formerly known as Finmarkens...

.

Stien made her literary debut in 1979 with the short stories collection Nyveien. Before her first book she was represented with texts in the anthologies Nordfra (1975) and Nordnorge foreteller (1977). Her literary works often contain elements from Northern Norway and Sami culture

Sami people

The Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...

. She received the Norwegian Critics Prize for Best children's book in 1993, and the Aschehoug Prize

Aschehoug Prize

The Aschehoug Prize is published annually by the Norwegian publishing house Aschehoug. The Aschehoug Prize is awarded Norwegian authors on the basis of the merit of a recent publication. It is awarded on merit, irrespective of the publisher, base on a binding recommendation from the Norwegian...

 in 2000.

Stien has translated books from Sami language

Sami languages

Sami or Saami is a general name for a group of Uralic languages spoken by the Sami people in parts of northern Finland, Norway, Sweden and extreme northwestern Russia, in Northern Europe. Sami is frequently and erroneously believed to be a single language. Several names are used for the Sami...

 into Norwegian

Norwegian language

Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...

, and has edited anthologies on modern Sami literature.

Her son Ailo Gaup is world champion in Freestyle Motocross

Freestyle Motocross

Freestyle Motocross is a variation on the sport of motocross in which motorcycle riders attempt to impress judges with jumps and stunts.The two main types of freestyle events are:...

.

Selected works

• Nyveien (short stories; 1979)
• Fabler. Frost (poetry; 1981)
• Fuglan veit (short stories; 1984)
• Sånt som skjer (short stories; 1988)
• Hold stø båt (poetry, texts; 1990)
• I det fri (short stories; 1994)
• Vekselsang (novel; 1997)
• Gjennom glass (short stories; 1999)
• Svømmetak (short stories; 2001)
• Veranda med sol (short stories; 2003)

Children's books

• I farta (1986)
• Ole P og den merkverdige sola (1990)
• Å plukke en smørblomst (1993)
• Klar, ferdig, kjør! (1998)
• Ei jente på scooteren (1999)

Awards

• Rana
  Rana, Norway
  Rana is the second largest municipality in Nordland county – and the third largest in North Norway – by population. By area, Rana is largest in Norway south of Finnmark , taking in large areas of mountains and forested valleys. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region...
  
   municipality Cultural Prize 1986
• Språklig samling's Literary Prize 1992
• Norwegian Critics Prize for the year's best children's or youth's literature 1993, for Å plukke en smørblomst
• Havmann Prize 1999, for Gjennom glass
• Aschehoug Prize
  Aschehoug Prize
  The Aschehoug Prize is published annually by the Norwegian publishing house Aschehoug. The Aschehoug Prize is awarded Norwegian authors on the basis of the merit of a recent publication. It is awarded on merit, irrespective of the publisher, base on a binding recommendation from the Norwegian...
  
   2000
• Alta
  Alta, Norway
  -Birdlife:For those interested in bird watching, the river outlet, known locally as Altaosen is well worth a visit. This tidal area is used as a stopover for many wetland species.-Transportation:...
  
  municipality Cultural Prize 2002