Latest news
Open letter to Veen Bosch & Keuning in regards to the usage of AI to translate books into English language
We are horrified to read in The Bookseller about Veen Bosch & Keuning’s “limited experiment with some Dutch authors, for their books to be translated into English language using AI”. Veen Bosch & Keuning claim that they are “not creating books with AI, it all starts and ends with human action” – yet this is patently not the case.
Children’s rights in 20 languages
In the spring of 2024, the Bologna Children’s Bookfair asked CEATL to join in a new collective project: a video programme of literary translators reading out the UN Convention on the Rights of a Child. The initiative is part of a partnership between BCBF and CEATL that, since 2022, has promoted best practice in literary translation and copyright.
Georgi Gospodinov and his translators at the Strasbourg Conference
The European Conference on Literary Translation opened on 2 October 2024 with a literary evening featuring the Bulgarian writer Georgi Gospodinov and his translators: Magdalena Pytlak (Polish), Milena Selimi (Albanian), Angela Rodel (English) – co-winner of the Booker Prize International – Marie Vrinat-Nikolov (French) and María Vútova (Spanish).
Counterpoint
Counterpoint is an e-zine for everyone interested in literary translation. Whether you are a translator, publisher, agent, researcher, student or journalist, or just have a general interest in literature across borders, the European book market, and in the people that shape both, there will be something in Counterpoint of interest to you.
We report on what’s going on inside CEATL, and we look outside as well. We present feature articles about translators and translating and deal with the broad cultural, artistic and economic context of our work. We intend Counterpoint to live up to its name and be a place where independent and sometimes contrasting voices come together and form a stronger and more enthralling whole, much like the art of literary translation itself.
Counterpoint is free of charge and published twice a year in English and French.
This month we present…
DoSlov (Slovakia), our newest member!
It’s not every day that CEATL can introduce a new member, so we’re very happy and proud to present DoSlov to you!
DoSlov, the Slovak literary translators’ and editors’ association, was founded in 2019 by seven female freelance translators. ‘We were dissatisfied with the steadily worsening working conditions and increasingly unfair publishing contracts,’ says Barbara Sigmundová, one of the founding members. ‘So, we decided to take the initiative, formalise our “working group” and start DoSlov. “Do” means “into” and “Slov” means “words” so it echoes the idea that translators and editors shape ideas into words, but also the fact that our common working tool is the SLOVak language.’
Currently, after little more than five years of existence, DoSlov has 120 members and 5 honourable members who translate from 22 languages!
One of DoSlov’s main goals is to increase the visibility of literary translators and editors and bring these professionals together to raise awareness of their rights as authors, improve their working conditions, and contribute to their lifelong learning experience. Throughout the year, they organise workshops for translation professionals and students, as well as informal activities for the members, such as “literary picnics” or the yearly Christmas party.
‘To enhance the visibility of literary translation professionals, we have developed a member directory that showcases our literary translators and editors, and the “visible translators’ gallery” that features images of book covers where Slovak translators are named,’ Barbara tells us.
An important medium for showcasing DoSlov’s work is Verzia – the quarterly magazine of literature in translation. Each issue delves into literature from diverse regions, featuring excerpts, interviews with translators, reviews, translators’ reading recommendations and much more. ‘This year we have published issues focusing on Norwegian, Slovenian and Italian literature and an issue on Arabic literature is currently in progress. Upon the launch of each new issue, we organise public events featuring its authors and translators, promoting literary translation and its cultural significance,’ Barbara proudly explains. ‘We also co-organise the TRANZ Literary Translation Festival in Banská Bystrica. The 2025 edition will take place on 2 – 3 May, so save the date!’
As you can read, DoSlov is a very active association, doing lots of inspiring work. So why not check out their website and social media pages (and give them a follow…) to find out more about DoSlov and Verzia!