In 1992, Martin Suter began writing a weekly column called Business Class for the Weltwoche newspaper, a role he would hold for more than a decade until 2004. That column became the foundation of a career in which journalism, fiction, and screenwriting would intersect across several decades of sustained output.

Born on February 29, 1948, in Zurich, Suter holds Swiss and Spanish citizenship and works primarily in the German language. He was educated at the University of London and has pursued careers as a writer, journalist, copywriter, screenwriter, and novelist. His column Business Class ran in the Weltwoche from 1992 to 2004, and his journalistic work has continued beyond that period: he has contributed a column to NZZ Folio and another that now appears in the Tages-Anzeiger. The material gathered across these columns has been compiled and published as nine books, giving his periodical writing a lasting presence in print.

Among his notable works as a novelist are The Dark Side of the Moon, The Chef, and Melody. His work in screenwriting brought him international recognition when he received the Sitges Film Festival Best Screenplay award, and his fiction has also earned him the Prix du Premier Roman. These two awards reflect the range of his creative output, spanning both literary prose and cinematic writing.

The Prix du Premier Roman, awarded for a debut novel, marks one of the concrete points of reception for Suter's fiction. Alongside the Sitges Film Festival recognition for his screenplay work, these honors represent the critical acknowledgment his writing has received across different forms. His columns, collected into nine volumes, continue to circulate as published books, anchoring his journalism in a form that extends well beyond their original newspaper context.