Wednesday 7 July 2010

Wolff Symposium 2010

As Chad Post points out at Three Percent, you can listen to podcasts from the Wolff Symposium in Chicago from 21-22 June. The annual event is run by the Goethe Institut and brings together translators from German, editors and other people. Ross Benjamin was given the Helen and Kurt Wolff Translation Award (I'm looking forward to painting the town red with him when he comes over to Berlin as part of his prize). And there were panels, panels, panels.

I'm in the middle of listening to Daniel Slager from Milkweed Editions, Dennis Loy Johnson from Melville House, Jeremy M. Davies from Dalkey Archive Press and Annie Janusch of the Quarterly Conversation - talking about an increased interest in translated fiction. I'm pleased to hear Slager saying he's noticed a boom in young translators out there in the world, and I hope they'll all keep plugging away, sending unsolicited manuscripts and sample translations and generally getting on everyone's nerves.

It's rare that I feel I'd like to live anywhere else but Berlin, but this is one event that always triggers huge envy. But at least the rest of us can catch up with what went on at WBEZ.

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