Over 5,000 signed books by authors who stayed at the ambassade hotel, displayed in the unique library bar.

Writers’ hotel

What is a writers’ hotel without writers? A pen without ink?

The twenty-seven stories on this page form the heart of a project that was begun during the long lockdown in the winter of 2020-21, with the working title Sheltering in the Writers’ Hotel. Bookshops had been closed for months and for the authors there were no tours, no readings, no signings, no national Book Ball, no live awards ceremonies… The writers stayed away from the Ambassade Hotel and we missed them. After all, what is a writers’ hotel without writers? A pen without ink? This is how the idea came about to invite one author each week over six months to stay at the Ambassade Hotel and describe their writing lives at that time.

Book cover showcasing weekly columns by invited authors writing about their experience at the ambassade hotel.

Throughout the period May to November 2021, the newspaper Het Parool published the Writers’ Hotel columns in its weekly Arts Section. The twenty-seven Writers’ Hotel columns have been translated into English and have been published as a book titled The best place for you to stay is ultimately a book. It was published by our own publishing house Samsara Books as a promotional gift and is not for sale in book shops. However, you are most welcome to read all twenty-seven columns in English below.

In cooperation with:
Ambo Anthos, Atlas Contact, Arbeiderspers, DasMag, De Bezige Bij, De Geus, De Harmonie, Hollands Diep, Lebowski, Meulenhof, Overamstel, Pluim, Prometheus, Samsara Uitgeverij, Singel Uitgeverijen, Querido en van Nijgh & Ditmar.