Who Was Vedrana Rudan

Vedrana Rudan was a Croatian novelist, journalist, columnist, and human rights activist, one of the most widely read — and most controversial — authors from the former Yugoslav region. Vedrana Rudan was born on 29 October 1949 in Opatija and died on 18 August 2026, at the age of 76, after a long battle with a rare form of cancer. Over a career spanning more than five decades, she moved from journalism and radio editing to writing seventeen books — novels and essay collections translated into several languages. Her sharp, unflinchingly honest voice earned her both a devoted readership and no shortage of critics, but she rarely left anyone indifferent.Rudan positioned herself as a voice for those who, as she often put it, went unheard — women, the poor, victims of domestic and institutional violence. She wrote about subjects long considered taboo in Croatian and regional society: physical and psychological abuse within marriage, alcoholism, the fraught bond between mothers and daughters, the hypocrisy of the Catholic Church, and corruption among tycoons and political elites. Her openness on even the most intimate subjects repeatedly placed her at the center of public criticism, as well as legal and media disputes.

Early Life and Childhood

Vedrana Rudan was born in the coastal town of Opatija, but spent her childhood in the nearby village of Mošćenička Draga, in a modest household. Her father, of Herzegovinian descent, worked as a fisherman and gardener, while her mother, from the Lika region, was an educated woman who worked as a kindergarten director before being forced, under pressure from her husband and mother-in-law, to give up her career and devote herself entirely to domestic life.In later interviews and autobiographical writing, Rudan spoke openly about a difficult childhood marked by poverty and violence. By her own account, her relationship with her father was highly conflictual and marked by physical confrontation, while her mother's fate — forced to abandon her career, later struggling with depression — left a deep mark on the future writer. She began earning money at the age of twelve, and as a student traveled from Mošćenička Draga to Rijeka under modest conditions. These early confrontations with hardship and injustice later became central themes of her literary work.

Education

After finishing secondary school, Vedrana Rudan enrolled at the Teacher Training College in Rijeka, where she studied Croatian (or, as she often put it herself, "Serbian or Croatian") and German. She graduated in 1973. Before devoting herself professionally to journalism and, later, literature, she held a number of different jobs — she worked as a teacher, tour guide, and ice-cream seller, and as a radio editor — experiences that later provided rich material for her columns and novels about everyday life.

Early Career

Vedrana Rudan's professional path began in journalism. She wrote for several Croatian outlets, including Novi list, Slobodna Dalmacija, Jutarnji list, and the cult satirical weekly Feral Tribune, and also worked as a journalist and editor for state radio in Rijeka. Early in her career she showed a tendency toward blunt, uncompromising commentary on political and social affairs, which repeatedly put her at odds with those in power.A turning point came in 1991, when she was dismissed from Radio Rijeka for publicly criticizing then-president Franjo Tuđman. A final court ruling reinstated her in 1993, but, by her own account, she was effectively prevented from working normally and resigned. After losing her radio job, she and her husband briefly ran a real estate agency, while she gradually returned to journalism — writing longest for the weekly Nacional, one of Croatia's most influential publications at the time, where she also wrote a prominent column.

Rise to Fame

Vedrana Rudan's true breakthrough into wider regional public awareness came in 2002 with the publication of the novel "Uho, grlo, nož" ("Ear, Throat, Knife"). The book is a plotless monologue by an embittered, unhappily married woman, Tonka Babić, delivered in a furious, unmistakably feminist voice that immediately drew the attention of critics and readers alike. The novel was translated into several languages, including English (published in the United States as "Night" by Dalkey Archive Press), as well as Hungarian, Polish, French, Italian, Russian, and Macedonian, and stage adaptations were performed in Rijeka, Zagreb, Belgrade, and further afield in Warsaw, London, Budapest, and Santa Monica.Following her debut success, Rudan published "Ljubav na posljednji pogled" ("Love at Last Sight") in 2003, in which — by her own admission — she drew on her own experience of abuse in her first marriage. She described writing the novel as a form of catharsis, but also as an appeal to other women in similar situations to speak out. This was followed by "Ja, nevjernica" ("I, Unbeliever") in 2005, and in 2006 by "Crnci u Firenci" ("Blackmen in Florence"), in which, through the interwoven monologues of members of an extended Rijeka household, she further developed her distinctive polyphonic narrative style, which some critics compared to the film "American Beauty."

Major Achievements

Over more than two decades of literary work, Vedrana Rudan published seventeen books — novels, autobiographical works, and essay collections. Among her most significant titles are "Kad je žena kurva / kad je muškarac peder" (2008), a collection of columns adapted for the stage in 2014 as "Kurva" ("Whore"), directed by Zijah Sokolović; "Dabogda te majka rodila" (2010), a novel devoted to the complex bond between mothers and daughters; "Kosturi okruga Madison" (2012); "Muškarac u grlu" (2016); and the autobiography "Ples oko sunca" ("Dancing Around the Sun") from 2019, her most candid account yet of her own life, its rises and falls.In her final years she published the novels "Puding od vanilije" (2021), "Doživotna robija" (2022), and "Besplatna dostava" (2023), and in 2024, already amid her illness, the book "Umrijeti bez stresa." Alongside her literary work, for years she also wrote a widely read blog called "Kako umrijeti bez stresa" ("How to Die Without Stress"), commenting on current social and political events in her characteristic sharp style. She was a member of the Croatian Writers' Society, and in 2017 signed the Declaration on the Common Language of Croats, Serbs, Bosniaks, and Montenegrins.

Personal Life

Vedrana Rudan left behind an openly shared and turbulent personal history. From her first marriage, which by her account lasted fourteen years and was marked by abuse, she had two children — a daughter, Asja, and a son, Slaven. She later married the lawyer Ljubiša Drageljević, with whom her relationship began while she was still in her first marriage, and with whom she lived for decades in Rijeka.Rudan was known for not shying away from even the most intimate subjects — she spoke openly about the abuse she had endured, her mother's difficult life, her own coming of age in poverty, as well as everyday pleasures such as reading, traveling, gardening, and fashion.In early May 2024, she publicly announced that she had been diagnosed with a rare and aggressive cancer of the bile ducts — a disease that is difficult to detect because it rarely produces symptoms in its early stages. Thanks to regular check-ups, the cancer was caught while it was still operable, and she underwent surgery in May 2024. Initial follow-up scans were encouraging, showing no signs of metastasis, but at her next check-up, just two months later, the disease had already spread significantly. Over the following years she spoke about all of this publicly and with striking directness — writing about her fear of death, the costs of treatment, and the difficulties faced by cancer patients — and in March 2025, appearing on the show "Nedjeljom u 2" with host Aleksandar Stanković, she stated openly that she was dying.In late July 2026, she again drew public attention with an emotional column about the daily life of cancer patients and the medical staff who fight for them, in which she described, among other things, being cared for by her family in her final days. During the same period, according to media reports, she non-finally lost a legal dispute with the Croatian Health Insurance Fund over the costs of diagnostic procedures related to her treatment.Vedrana Rudan died on 18 August 2026. News of her death was announced on her official Facebook page in a short message characteristic of her style: that she had "gone somewhere with no signal" — a phrase she herself had used before when speaking about mortality, telling the public that she considered herself "immortal" and that her death should be understood in exactly that way. Her death was confirmed by sources close to her family, as well as by her Serbian publisher, Laguna. The exact place of her death has not been specified in available sources; according to her last public posts, she spent her final days at home, surrounded by her family.Rudan had written about her own funeral for years in advance, in her characteristic dark humor. On her blog, she stated that she had arranged in advance to be cremated, wishing for her ashes to be scattered at sea. She explained her decision, in her own words, through a joke about life's circularity — that she had been "devoured" by her own children while alive, and that after death she would "feed the fish." In one of her last posts on the subject, she also humorously dismissed the idea of being buried in expensive clothing, saying she had no intention of wearing designer labels in front of "Saint Peter."

Interesting Facts

• Although she spent her entire career writing in Croatian, she often referred to the language of her studies at the Teacher Training College in Rijeka as "Serbian or Croatian," underscoring her open stance toward linguistic and national divisions in the former Yugoslav region.
• She was one of the signatories of the 2017 Declaration on the Common Language of Croats, Serbs, Bosniaks, and Montenegrins.
• Her debut novel "Uho, grlo, nož" was translated and published in the United States as "Night," translated by British Slavist Celia Hawkesworth, through the renowned publisher Dalkey Archive Press.
• Her blog "Kako umrijeti bez stresa," which she wrote from 2010 to 2015, was one of the most widely read personal blogs in the region; her final post, titled "Odustajem" ("I Give Up"), was read around 50,000 times.
• Her essay collection "Kad je žena kurva / kad je muškarac peder" was adapted in 2014 into the stage play "Kurva," directed by Zijah Sokolović.
• She frequently visited Serbia, where she had a large readership, and her Serbian-market publisher was Belgrade-based Laguna.

Awards and Recognition

Unlike many authors of her generation, Vedrana Rudan was not primarily recognized during her career through formal literary awards, but rather through exceptional readership, numerous translations of her work into foreign languages, and stage adaptations of her novels and columns performed in multiple cities across the region and Europe. Her influence lies chiefly in the fact that, for decades, she was one of the most recognizable and impactful voices in regional publishing and literature, able to bring major public attention to subjects such as domestic violence and the status of women. No reliably confirmed information about formal literary awards appears in publicly available sources.

Legacy and Influence

Vedrana Rudan is remembered as one of the most recognizable and courageous voices in Croatian and regional literature and journalism of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Through her direct, often shocking style, she opened up space for public discussion of subjects long left unspoken — domestic violence, the status of women in patriarchal society, and the hypocrisy of institutions and political elites. Her works, translated into English, Hungarian, Slovenian, Polish, French, Italian, Russian, and Macedonian, reached audiences beyond the borders of the former Yugoslavia, while stage adaptations of her novels and columns were performed in Rijeka, Zagreb, Belgrade, Warsaw, London, Budapest, and Santa Monica.Her final years, marked by a public and remarkably candid battle with cancer, further cemented her reputation as a writer who never retreated from public life, even in the face of the most difficult personal circumstances — instead using her own experience to draw attention to the struggles of cancer patients and shortcomings in the healthcare system. Her voice, recognizable for its anger, humor, and honesty, remains part of the region's cultural memory.

Conclusion

Vedrana Rudan was one of the most powerful and recognizable literary figures from the former Yugoslav region — a writer who rose from a difficult, modest childhood in Mošćenička Draga to become one of the most widely read and influential voices in regional literature and journalism. Through novels such as "Uho, grlo, nož," "Ljubav na posljednji pogled," and "Ples oko sunca," as well as decades of sharp newspaper columns, she spoke openly about violence, hypocrisy, and injustice, sparing neither herself nor others. She died on 18 August 2026, after a public and courageous battle with cancer, leaving behind a rich body of work and a reputation as an author who was never afraid to say what she thought.