Blicher was born in Vium near Viborg in 1782 and grew up close to the moors of Jutland. He became a parson like his father and from 1825-1847 served in the parish at Spentrup where he died, after his dismissal, in 1848.
After first publications of tales in literary magazines in the late 20's he developped into being one of Denmark's foremost novelists. His Diary of a Parish Clerk, published in 1824, was his break-through story.
Today he is regarded as the pioneer of the Danish short story and regional writing, and his novel Præsten i Vejlbye was adapted in the Danish Kulturkanon as one of the 10 Order of Merit novels in 2006. His special skills lie in the descriptions of his moor landscape and its peasantry, in Romantic scenery and realistic psychology. Blicher also wrote poetry and patriotic songs.