She grew up in Havana, where she ended up studying Electronic Engineering, without putting aside her interest in literature. Her career as a writer began with the publication of some of her short stories in several anthologies and magazines. The tale Aniversario was adapted for the stage in 1996. Her first collection, Espuma was published three years later, and two of its short stories were made into TV scripts for Cuban television. Her debut novelSilencios won the Spanish award Lengua de Trapoin 1999 and has been translated into several languages. In 2010, this novel was adapted for the stage in France and, in 2013, the University choral ensemble of Montpellier, Ecume, has made "Cubana soy", a creation for the musical theatre. In 2003, she won the Italian award for international short stories I Colori delle Donne and in both 2006 and 2007 was a member of the jury for the International Literature AwardJuan Rulfo, sponsored by Radio France International in Paris. In 2007, the Hay Festival and the organizers of the Bogotá World Book Capital selected Karla Suárez as one of the 39 highest profile Latin American writers under the age of 39. In 2012, her novel Habana, año cero won the French Prize Carbet from the Caribbean and Tout-Monde and the French award of the insular book. In 2019, her short story "El pañuelo" won the 18th annual Julio Cortázar Award for Best Iberoamerican Story, awarded by The Cuban Book Institute, la Casa de las Américas, and UNEAC. She also wrote the stories for a books of photos collections with the Italian photographer Francesco Gattoni: Cuba les chemins du hasard, and Rome, par-delà les chemins. And Grietas en las paredes with the Luxembourgois photographer Yvon Lambert. She got scholarships in Cuba and France Maison des Ecrivains Etrangers et Traducteurs, Saint-Nazaire; Agence Régionale pour l'Écrit et le Livre en Aquitanie, Bordeaux; and Clermont Communauté, Clermont-Ferrand. After five years in Rome and six in Paris, she now lives in Lisbon since 2010. She coordinates the Reading Club of Lisbon at El Instituto Cervantes and she is also Professor of Creative Writing at the Escuela de Escritores in Madrid.
