Dagmar Edqvist was the daughter of a lecturer in Visby, completed upper secondary school in 1922, and married a teacher in 1923.
She made her debut in 1932 with the publication of the widely-discussed novel Kamrathustru, which, together with Rymlingen fast, 1933, was made into a film. The films were entitled “Livet går vidare” and “Kvinna ombord” respectively. Her novels Tre män och Cecilia, 1935, in which the main character is a woman researcher, and Andra äktenskapet, 1939, fitted in with the contemporary debate about the modern career woman’s attitude to men and love. Fallet Ingegerd Bremssen of 1937, also made into a film, is an anti-racist novel describing a rape from a psychoanalytical perspective. In Osynliga stängsel, 1944, the message is one of radical pacifism.
She wrote over twenty novels, including historical works such as her novel about a sorcerer, Trolldryck, 1949, and in the 1960s she wrote a series of novels set in Africa. Her books have been translated into many languages.