Student, Author and Literature Mediator at the same time

Spotlights, large stages and a captivated audience are nothing out of the ordinary for Rahel Behnisch. She has been travelling the German-speaking world with her texts for almost a decade. The spotlight is part of everyday life for the University of Würzburg student of German studies.

On Tuesday, 11 November 2025, the initial situation looks similar: A full auditorium and all eyes are on Rahel as she performs one of her texts. But the occasion is different. This time, she is receiving one of the City of Würzburg's 2,500 euro "Kulturförderpreise". In this interview, Rahel talks about herself, her literature and what's next on her artistic programme.

Firstly, congratulations on the award. How does it feel to receive this award?

I can't really believe it yet. It will take me a while to process it. But I'm definitely very proud to know that my work for culture in Würzburg is appreciated. This shows that the young cultural scene in particular, as well as my writing and my poetry, are being recognised.

You perform on poetry slam stages, work in the book trade, do a literature podcast and study German studies: is there anything you can't do?

What I can't do is say "no". But I'm working on looking at my capacities. It's particularly difficult to say "no" to projects that I want to do. But you can't always do everything. I'm still learning to say no to projects at the moment. I can also see that I can already integrate my hobbies, such as reading and writing, into my work in many areas. And of course it gives me a lot of encouragement when this is perceived as work.

What topics do you deal with in your writing?

On the whole, I write across the board. But I think my writing is very personal. I mainly write poetry. I deal with a lot of autobiographical things in it. But there are a few themes that run through again and again: Anxiety, mental illness, being queer and feminism. In addition to poems, I have bigger book projects in mind that are not always just about autofiction and personal matters. For example, I would love to write a book for young people.

Of course, I love performing at poetry slams. But it's important to me that my stage performances are only seen as part of my art, as I write a lot of poetry for reading. But you can see that for me, everything revolves around literature and the communication of literature in one form or another. Whether in my own writing or in the podcast. I want to motivate people to write and to read.

How do you manage everything?

My time management is terrible - I'm not a good role model. But I manage to juggle all these things because I love doing everything. And that's something I'm happy to "sacrifice" myself for. But it's definitely exhausting, and I sometimes read my texts for university at 2 o'clock in the morning. I'm telling you this honestly because I don't want to give the impression that everything works perfectly for me, as it might appear on social media. I don't write five poems a day before university. To be honest, I work a lot under time pressure and stress, but with a love of literature.

You completed the university's additional qualification in cultural mediation in December 2024. Which area of culture did you get a taste of?

You attend various seminars on the certificate programme. You either complete an internship or realise your own project. The programme is very accommodating to participants and takes into account the realities of life for students who are culturally active. I am a good example of this: I probably wouldn't have found the time to set up a new project. That's why I didn't get a taste of a new area through the programme. As a final project, I presented the Würzburg "Next Generation Poetry Slam", which I organise at the "Cairo youth centre".

What's next on the programme?

From next year, Yannik Ambrusits and I will be taking over the big poetry slam in Würzburg - so three in total in the city, as we also organise the "Slam the Topic!" at the Kulturhaus Chambinzky. In spring 2026, Lektora Verlag will be publishing a book that I'm co-editing with a friend. It's an anthology with texts about queer love without focussing on the political dimension behind it - in other words, stories about love for love's sake. A book that tells the love stories we are fighting for. The collection is called "On the Edges of Love" and contains texts by 53 queer authors. And after my Bachelor's degree, I'll probably start my Master's degree in "Literatur, Kultur, Medien" here at the university in April 2026. I'll probably do it part-time, as I'll be working more in the bookshop and travelling freelance. So there's a lot on the programme!

Thank you very much for the interview.