Jan Wolkers (1925) grew up in a reformed middle-class family. In 1943 he went into hiding in Leiden and studied at the Leiden painting academy. After a period at the Academy of Visual Arts in The Hague, he studied sculpture at the Rijksacademie in Amsterdam from 1949 to 1953. In 1957, at the invitation of the French government, Wolkers joined the sculptor Zadkine in Paris for a year. In the same year he starts writing: “The terrible snowman” is his first story.
Wolkers published stories in Podium, Tirade, Hoos, De Gids, Merlyn and Podium. His first collection of short stories Serpentina’s Petticoat (1961) was received with mixed feelings. The bundle shocked both admiration and horror. His novel A rose of flesh caused just as much commotion. Titles Short American, Back to Oegstgeest and Turkish Delight appeared in quick succession. All three novels have been made into films.
(Source: https://www.debezigebij.nl/auteurs/jan-wolkers/)