 As a novelist he was not as popular as Hendrik Conscience, but nevertheless he was quite successful as an author and enjoyed as a lot of appreciation as a literature critic.Reciprocal envy and Van Kerckhovens strive to make the Flemish movement more liberal, led as from 1846 to a split with Hendrik Conscience, who saw more in the alignment of the Flemish movement to the catholic politicians.The conflict escalated fast and it became, in 1847, a bitter feud which was fought out in the Antwerp magazines "De Roskam" en "De Schrobber".