Genre: Translation

Deadline Approaches for Gulf Coast Prize in Translation

The Gulf Coast Prize in Translation, whose submission cycle closes in just under three weeks, recognizes a prose excerpt translated into English from another language. Why not gather the required materials and share your rendering of someone else’s words for a chance to win a prize of $1,000 and publication?

Submit up to 10 pages of a story or essay in translation, a copy of the original text, a brief biography of the author, a synopsis of the work being translated, and proof that permission to translate the work has been granted with a $26 submission fee, which includes a subscription to Gulf Coast, or a $13 entry fee, which includes a half-year subscription, by August 31. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Started in 1982 by Donald Barthelme and Phillip Lopate as a 64-page student-run publication, Gulf Coast today counts on a readership of over 3,000 as the nationally distributed journal housed within the University of Houston’s English Department. The press’s annual translation prize alternates genres each year, awarding a group of poems and a prose excerpt. Anam Zafar won the 2021 prize for her translation of Najat Albed Alsamad’s story “My Friend’s Basement” and has said of Alsamad’s work that it “exposes conflict as an individual experience in which entire countries simply cannot be viewed through a single, zoomed-out lens.” One of four of Gulf Coast’s contests, the translation prize represents the journal’s enduring commitment “to providing a balanced combination of literary approaches and voices.”

Anton Hur on Translating Literature

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“I’m not there to serve the author or serve the text, I’m there to interpret it.” In this video, writer and translator Anton Hur speaks about the role of the translator, Korean literature, and his work on the novel Counterweight (Pantheon, 2023) by the pseudonymous South Korean science fiction author Djuna.

Ricardo Alberto Maldonado on Linguistic Diversity

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“What I’m hoping is, ten years from now, a young Puerto Rican poet on the island or somewhere else knows that this is a possibility, that living a life with and through poetry is an honorable way of engaging with the world.” Ricardo Alberto Maldonado, the first Latino executive director and president of the Academy of American Poets, reflects on why he began writing and the importance of expanding the linguistic diversity of poetry in this PBS NewsHour interview with Jeffrey Brown.

Award-Winning Authors on Why Books Matter

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“Books sustain us. Books inspire us. Books fortify us. Books help us become who we are,” says poet John Keene in this video featuring National Book Award–winning authors—including Tess Gunty, Megan McDowell, Imani Perry, Samanta Schweblin, and Sabaa Tahir—speaking about why they believe books matter for the National Book Foundation’s Read With NBF program.

Poetry of War: Reflections From Ukrainian Poets

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In this virtual event sponsored by the University of Toronto and moderated by Ohla Khometa, contemporary Ukrainian poets Alex Averbuch, Daryna Gladun, Iya Kiva, Julia Musakovska, and Oksana Maksymchuk share their poems and discuss the ongoing war in Ukraine, and the displacement and loss they’ve experienced.

powerHouse at Industry City

Located in the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, powerHouse at Industry City is an offshoot of the famed Dumbo bookstore and event space. PowerHouse brings its brand of curated fiction, nonfiction, art, design, cooking, kids, early readers and novelty books and gifts, married to a robust events programming schedule of signings, events, and appearances. The store features a subterranean photo gallery as well a craft coffee and spirits tasting café.

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