Published on the same day day as “Two Discourses on the Communion on Fridays”, “On my Work as an Author” constitutes Kirkegaard’s first (of three) work(s) on his authorship. It is the shortest of the three works, but the only one published in his lifetime.

The work begins with “The Accounting” and is dated March, 1849. Added to this is a supplement dated November, 1850, entitled “My Position as a Religious Writer in ‘Christendom’ and my Strategy”.

In 1846, Kierkegaard had started using a protocol as his journal. This is the first of the journals denoted NB that he continued throughout the rest of his life. These journal entries, amounting to 36 volumes in all, are filled with attempts at understanding himself, his purpose, the meaning of his writings, and not least how he himself understood his authorship and wished for it to be understood in posterity. These latter considerations are the basis of the work “The Point of View for My Work as an Author”, of which “On My Work as an Author” is a short resumé – the resumé that he wrote of a larger work he was afraid might be misunderstood by his contemporaries and thus could not publish.

In short, the present work constitutes the essence of what Kierkegaard found necessary to be said about his own authorship before he died.

Kierkegaard had merely one copy of this title in his collection when he died (Auction Record no. 2178).

Himmelstrup 132.

The present copy is no. 86 in Girsel's "Kierkegaard" (The Catalogue) which can be found here.