Krechel was born on 4 December 1947, in
Trier. From 1966 to 1972, she studied
German studies,
theatre, and
art history at the
University of Cologne. From 1969 to 1972, she worked as a
dramaturge in Dortmund. After 1978, she lived in
Frankfurt on Main for many years and since 2000 has lived and worked in
Berlin as a writer, focusing on
Lyric poetry, but also writing
prose,
drama, and
radio drama. In 2012 Krechel won the
German Book Prize for her
hybrid novel Landgericht, subsequently published as an
audiobook in 2014. German
public service broadcaster ZDF aired a film version in 2017. Ursula Krechel is a member of
Akademie der Künste (Academy of Arts) and the
German Academy for Language and Literature. The Akademie der Künste holds the Ursula Krechel archive, which includes her publications, documents, manuscripts and correspondence. She is Vice-President of the
Academy of Sciences and Literature, Mainz. In 2020, Krechel became the Honorary President of the
PEN Centre Germany. In 2025 she won the prestigious German literature award
Georg Büchner Prize. == Works ==