A list of grants available which allow publishers to publish high quality international literature in translation
The Czech Literary Centre is a state-funded organisation supporting and promoting Czech literature abroad and in the Czech Republic, and providing information on authors, books and translation grants offered by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic to foreign publishers. The centre also runs residencies for international writers and translators of Czech literature. The centre is a section of the Moravian Library.
Subsidies are available for foreign publishers for up to 100% of translator’s fees, support for authors’ travel abroad and support for national stands at book fairs. Support for Czech literature abroad involves sponsoring the annual seminar for scholars and translators interested in Czech literature, organised by the Writers’ Association, to which about 30 persons from abroad are invited every year.
The Ministry of Culture has a website with information in English. Application forms can be downloaded from the Ministry’s website. A list of subsidised books (but not of the amounts granted) is also available on the website.
Detailed information is provided by the Czech Literary Centre here: https://www.czechlit.cz/en/grant/translation/
The Danish Arts Foundation’s Committee for Literature runs a number of international funding programmes. These funding programmes are intended for publishers, translators, foreign institutions and authors seeking funding for trips or translation of work in connection with specific literary projects. More information can be found here.
Books from Denmark gives you an overview of current Danish titles selected by the foundation, which are intended for the international book market. Find out more here.
English PEN is the founding centre of PEN International, the worldwide fellowship of writers promoting free expression. Through its campaigns and programmes, English PEN promotes the freedom to write and the freedom to read. Internationally, English PEN campaigns on behalf of persecuted writers, editors and publishers. In the UK, it campaigns to reform laws that curb free expression, and for greater access to literature. It runs a number of programmes for creative writing and translation and a busy events programme. http://www.englishpen.org
Grants from English PEN
PEN Promotes (formerly known as Writers in Translation) has been promoting literature in translation since 2005 and is supported by Bloomberg. Each year, a dedicated committee of professionals selects between 8-10 books that are translated into English from a wide variety of foreign languages. English PEN awards grants to UK publishers to help promote, market and champion these titles. Its aim is to celebrate books of outstanding literary value, which show a dedication to free speech and intercultural understanding, and therefore have a clear link to the PEN charter.
PEN Translates! is English PEN’s new grants scheme for translation. Launched in 2012 at the London Book Fair, this unique new fund is open to submissions from all UK-based publishers. Building on the success of English PEN’s Writers in Translation programme, it is committed to supporting works of outstanding literary merit, strong and innovative publishing projects and diverse writing from around the world.
The Etxepare Basque Institute’s mission is to promote Basque language and culture around the world, including the promotion and support of translations of Basque literature into other languages and collaborations with organisations dedicated to the diffusion of Basque culture.
The EBI issues grants for the promotion of Basque literature, translation of works and travel for writers.
The European Cultural Foundation initiates and supports cultural exchange and creative expression across wider Europe. They share and connect knowledge across the European cultural sector, and campaign for the arts on all levels of political decision-making. ECF link policy and practice, to act as catalysts for artistic and cultural expression and to have a concrete impact on European cultural policies and strategies.
Grants for translation projects administered by Acción Cultural Española, or AC/E encourage foreign publishers to translate original literary works from Spanish as part of Spain’s participation in Frankfurt Book Fair. For more information, please click here
The Icelandic Literature Center offers grants to foreign publishers for translations from Icelandic. Grants are available for fiction (prose, poetry and drama), non-fiction of general interest, comic books and children’s books.
Applications can only be made after the foreign publisher has acquired the work and signed a contract with the translator. Applications can be made to cover all or part of the translation fee; grants will usually only cover a part of the fee. Applications are assessed on the quality of the work to be translated, and the qualifications of the translator. The deadlines for applications each year are 15th February and 15th September.
The Jan Michalski Prize for Literature is attributed each year by the Jan Michalski Foundation (based in Switzerland) to a work of world literature. An original feature of the prize is its multicultural nature. It is open to authors from the world over and is intended to contribute to their international recognition. The prize will be awarded for works of fiction or non fiction, irrespective of the language in which they are written. The winner will receive an amount of CHF 50,000, offering the possibility of greater dedication to his or her art. The authors of short-listed works will be invited for a three-month period of residence at the Maison de l’Ecriture.
The Foundation also promotes and supports literary projects, particularly through the granting of financial support. Find out more at: http://www.fondation-janmichalski.com/en/bourses/.
The Latvian Literature platform was established in order to promote recognition of Latvian literature and its distribution abroad, thus ensuring international cooperation among publishers, literary agents, writers, translators, and organisations working in the fields of literature and publishing. We are here to provide you with diverse information about Latvian authors, books, our publishing industry and innovations within the industry.
The platform is a partnership of three key literary institutions – the International Writers and Translators House, the Latvian Writers Union, and the Latvian Publishers Association. The Internaitonal Writers and Translators House provides residencies for international writers and translators of Latvian Literature.
