Rebecca DeWald, Emerging Translator Mentorships Programme Manager said:

‘This year’s cohort is our most wide-reaching yet, as our nine wonderful mentees are spread across the globe from Vancouver to Melbourne, helping us to mark a milestone: since its inception, the Emerging Translator Mentorships Programme has now supported over 150 emerging translators. With our very first Australian mentee and the introduction of our new Literature from Taiwan strand, we are continuing to break new ground – and looking at the mentees’ diverse proposals, I know they will do the same and add a host of new and hitherto unheard voices to the canon of books available to English-language readers.’ 

Each mentee will be matched up with an experienced translator for a six-month period during which they work together on practical translation projects, developing their craft through working on a chosen text or texts.  

Founded in 2010 by writer, editor and translator Daniel Hahn, and organised by the NCW, the Emerging Translator Mentorships Programme has so far supported more than 148 translators working across 39 languages.  

Alumni of the programme have also gone on to feature on prize lists and been awarded major awards, such as Nichola Smalley, whose translation of Andrzej Tichý’s Wretchedness won the 2021 Oxford-Weidenfeld Prize and was longlisted for the International Booker Prize, as was Reuben Woolley’s translation of Andrey Kurkov’s Jimi Hendrix Live in Lviv. Or Sophie Hughes, whose translations of Alia Trabucco Zerán’s The Remainder and Fernanda Melchor’s Hurricane Season were shortlisted for the 2019 and the 2020 International Booker Prize, respectively. Most recently Kate Webster’s translation of Urszula Honek’s White Nights was longlisted for the International Booker Prize 2024.  

Lil Boyce, the recipient of the Italian mentorship said: 

‘I’m just starting out as a literary translator, and I’m acutely aware of the need to nurture both craft and community – this feels like a rare opportunity to do both, with the kind of sustained support that promotes reflection and growth. It feels like a real privilege to be working with my mentor, Elena Pala. With her support, I’m hoping to become bolder in my translation choices, and I’m looking forward to learning something about the industry, too.’ 

Jeremy Tiang, mentor for the inaugural Literature from Taiwan strand, said: 

‘In recent years, Taiwanese Literature has made a great splash on the international stage, winning major awards and finding readers in other languages. None of this would have happened without the diligent behind-the-scenes efforts of institutions such as the National Museum of Taiwan Literature, who have done sterling work developing and supporting the next generation of translators. I am delighted that the new Literature from Taiwan mentorship strand, which builds on several iterations of NMTL-supported translation workshops, will continue to usher emerging translators of Taiwanese Literature into the profession.’  

The Emerging Translator Mentorships Programme is supported by Arts Council England, the Danish Arts Foundation, the Dutch Foundation for Literature, the Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Londra, the Literary Translation Institute of Korea, the Royal Norwegian Embassy, NORLA, the Polish Cultural Institute, ProHelvetia, the National Museum of Taiwan Literature, the Ministry of Culture Taiwan, the Charles Wallace India Trust, SALT at ALTA and the Society of Authors.