Translation resources

There is a wealth of support and information available for translators.

The British Centre for Literary Translation is Britain’s leading centre for the development, promotion and support of literary translation. The BCLT YouTube channel offers a wide range of resources, including talks, seminars and events.

 

The Translators Association (TA) provides a source of expert advice for individual literary translators and is also a collective voice representing the profession as a whole. The Translators Association and the Society of Authors have published a statement on racial equality in literary translation, with recommended reading and a list of initiatives aimed at inclusion and equitable access to literary translation and publishing.

 

The Emerging Translators Network is a forum and support network for early-career literary translators working into English (primarily) and focussed essentially on the UK, although there is an interest in the wider English-language publishing world.

 

English PEN champions literature beyond national and linguistic borders, and beyond conventional literary expectations, through the PEN Translates grant, PEN Transmissions – the online magazine for international voices – and their public events programme.

International Translation Day (30 September) is the largest coming-together of the UK translation community, with an exciting programme of talks, workshops and networking opportunities. Explore English PEN’s programme and check out the events in the nationwide programme here.

 

Literature Across Frontiers is a European Platform for Literary Exchange, Translation and Policy Debate which aims to develop intercultural dialogue through literature and translation and highlight less translated literatures. LAF conducts research, contributes to strategic policy debates and provides online resources and information on the international literary sector.

 

Each year, the London Book Fair’s Literary Translation Centre features a range of seminars, discussions and networking opportunities.

 

Modern Poetry in Translation brings together brings the best new poetry, essays and reviews from around the world. MPT aims to give voice to the silenced, exiled and excluded, and create a diverse and creative community of translators, poets and readers. MPT runs poetry readings and online translation workshops and hosts virtual residencies for poets and translators.

 

The Poetry Translation Centre gives the best contemporary poems from Africa, Asia and Latin America a new life in the English language, working with diaspora communities for whom poetry is of great importance. Their activities include translation workshops, public events and publishing activities, and their website is a free archive of international poetry.

 

The Stephen Spender Trust celebrates multilingualism and literary translation through a range of initiatives, including the Poetry in Translation Prize and Creative Translation education programmes.

 

Translators Aloud shines a light on literary translators, with readings from their work.

 

Literary translator Charlotte Coombe has set up a Literary Translation Database full of valuable information and contacts for the literary translation sector in the UK. You can access the database here. We asked Charlie a few questions about her work, and why she set up the database. Read the blog here.