American Literary Translators Association
@littranslate.bsky.social
The American Literary Translators Association (ALTA) promotes literary translation through advocacy, education and services to literary translators.
https://literarytranslators.org/
https://literarytranslators.org/
Pinned
📣 Submissions for the 2026 ALTA awards are open!
Publisher and translators: Submit works published in 2025 to our book prizes 🏆
Emerging translators: Apply to the 2026 Travel Fellowships to get to the ALTA49 conference in Portland, OR ✈️
Submissions close on March 16! Learn more: buff.ly/x2W71cx
Publisher and translators: Submit works published in 2025 to our book prizes 🏆
Emerging translators: Apply to the 2026 Travel Fellowships to get to the ALTA49 conference in Portland, OR ✈️
Submissions close on March 16! Learn more: buff.ly/x2W71cx
At the Kolkata Literary Meet, ALTA member Arunava Sinha spoke about how he started translating and how translating poetry is “elliptical.” Read more at the Telegraph India:
‘Almost by accident’: Arunava Sinha recounts how his career in translation began with ‘Chowringhee’
www.telegraphindia.com
February 12, 2026 at 3:03 PM
At the Kolkata Literary Meet, ALTA member Arunava Sinha spoke about how he started translating and how translating poetry is “elliptical.” Read more at the Telegraph India:
Reposted by American Literary Translators Association
How do you win a translation prize—and what happens when you do? 2024 winner @sanarch.bsky.social will discuss her process and craft in partnership with @himalsouthasian.bsky.social and @openletterbooks.bsky.social on February 16.
RSVP to join us at bit.ly/ASprizemasterclass!
RSVP to join us at bit.ly/ASprizemasterclass!
February 10, 2026 at 4:46 PM
How do you win a translation prize—and what happens when you do? 2024 winner @sanarch.bsky.social will discuss her process and craft in partnership with @himalsouthasian.bsky.social and @openletterbooks.bsky.social on February 16.
RSVP to join us at bit.ly/ASprizemasterclass!
RSVP to join us at bit.ly/ASprizemasterclass!
Looking for new reads for February? Look no further than Electric Lit’s roundup of 15 translated novels to read this spring, featuring ALTA members Lily Meyer, Zoë Perry, and Julia Sanches. At Electric Lit:
15 Translated Novels You Should Read This Winter and Spring - Electric Literature
The first half of 2026 is introducing literary voices from Iran, Mauritius, Brazil, and elsewhere
electricliterature.com
February 11, 2026 at 3:03 PM
Looking for new reads for February? Look no further than Electric Lit’s roundup of 15 translated novels to read this spring, featuring ALTA members Lily Meyer, Zoë Perry, and Julia Sanches. At Electric Lit:
Reposted by American Literary Translators Association
Congratulations to all the 2026 ALTA Emerging Translator Mentorship program mentees! 🎉 I’m delighted to serve as the HK Poetry mentor for the talented Allie Xiang on her translations of poems by Damian Cheung 小西. Please check out all the mentees’ bios! ✨
🎉 The American Literary Translators Association is delighted to introduce you to the 2026 ALTA Emerging Translator Mentorship Program mentees!
There are 14 mentees taking part in 13 mentorships in 2026. Learn all about the mentorships and this year's stellar mentees here: buff.ly/vDXkws5
There are 14 mentees taking part in 13 mentorships in 2026. Learn all about the mentorships and this year's stellar mentees here: buff.ly/vDXkws5
February 10, 2026 at 4:05 PM
Congratulations to all the 2026 ALTA Emerging Translator Mentorship program mentees! 🎉 I’m delighted to serve as the HK Poetry mentor for the talented Allie Xiang on her translations of poems by Damian Cheung 小西. Please check out all the mentees’ bios! ✨
Reposted by American Literary Translators Association
🎉🎉🎉
Excited to be mentor for the first children's book translation mentorship from ALTA, sponsored by @saltatchicago.bsky.social 😍
Excited to be working with Riya Parikh over the next year.
#xl8 #translation #worldkidlit #kidlit
Excited to be mentor for the first children's book translation mentorship from ALTA, sponsored by @saltatchicago.bsky.social 😍
Excited to be working with Riya Parikh over the next year.
#xl8 #translation #worldkidlit #kidlit
🎉 The American Literary Translators Association is delighted to introduce you to the 2026 ALTA Emerging Translator Mentorship Program mentees!
There are 14 mentees taking part in 13 mentorships in 2026. Learn all about the mentorships and this year's stellar mentees here: buff.ly/vDXkws5
There are 14 mentees taking part in 13 mentorships in 2026. Learn all about the mentorships and this year's stellar mentees here: buff.ly/vDXkws5
February 10, 2026 at 9:41 PM
🎉🎉🎉
Excited to be mentor for the first children's book translation mentorship from ALTA, sponsored by @saltatchicago.bsky.social 😍
Excited to be working with Riya Parikh over the next year.
#xl8 #translation #worldkidlit #kidlit
Excited to be mentor for the first children's book translation mentorship from ALTA, sponsored by @saltatchicago.bsky.social 😍
Excited to be working with Riya Parikh over the next year.
#xl8 #translation #worldkidlit #kidlit
“Kannada isn’t just one language [...] English is a flexible, welcoming language; it has room for these foreign influences if we are brave enough to leave them in.”
2026 ALTA Mentor Deepa Bhasthi speaks on linguistic diversity, AI, and what is gained in translation. At the Federal: buff.ly/Dk8VTex
2026 ALTA Mentor Deepa Bhasthi speaks on linguistic diversity, AI, and what is gained in translation. At the Federal: buff.ly/Dk8VTex
Deepa Bhasthi interview: ‘AI can never capture silence between words, produce literary work’
The International Booker Prize–winning translator on translating Banu Mushtaq’s Heart Lamp with an accent, South Indian idioms, AI and literature, Dravidian languages, and why culture is gained,…
thefederal.com
February 10, 2026 at 9:30 PM
“Kannada isn’t just one language [...] English is a flexible, welcoming language; it has room for these foreign influences if we are brave enough to leave them in.”
2026 ALTA Mentor Deepa Bhasthi speaks on linguistic diversity, AI, and what is gained in translation. At the Federal: buff.ly/Dk8VTex
2026 ALTA Mentor Deepa Bhasthi speaks on linguistic diversity, AI, and what is gained in translation. At the Federal: buff.ly/Dk8VTex
🎉 The American Literary Translators Association is delighted to introduce you to the 2026 ALTA Emerging Translator Mentorship Program mentees!
There are 14 mentees taking part in 13 mentorships in 2026. Learn all about the mentorships and this year's stellar mentees here: buff.ly/vDXkws5
There are 14 mentees taking part in 13 mentorships in 2026. Learn all about the mentorships and this year's stellar mentees here: buff.ly/vDXkws5
February 10, 2026 at 3:00 PM
🎉 The American Literary Translators Association is delighted to introduce you to the 2026 ALTA Emerging Translator Mentorship Program mentees!
There are 14 mentees taking part in 13 mentorships in 2026. Learn all about the mentorships and this year's stellar mentees here: buff.ly/vDXkws5
There are 14 mentees taking part in 13 mentorships in 2026. Learn all about the mentorships and this year's stellar mentees here: buff.ly/vDXkws5
Reposted by American Literary Translators Association
🫀 Not to be skipped ➡️ March 19: A *free* online discussion of human translation in the age of AI — featuring past #NOTIS President Shelley Fairweather-Vega — from the American Literary Translators Association (@littranslate.bsky.social) and the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown 📚 #xl8
We are delighted to team up with the Fine Arts Work Center to offer this (free!) event, "Human Translators in the Age of AI," to be held 3/19 at 6pm ET! Feat. Shelley Fairweather-Vega, Ian Giles, Umair Kazi & Kristen Renee Miller, moderated by Chenxin Jiang. More info here: buff.ly/fVccQNF
February 6, 2026 at 10:22 AM
🫀 Not to be skipped ➡️ March 19: A *free* online discussion of human translation in the age of AI — featuring past #NOTIS President Shelley Fairweather-Vega — from the American Literary Translators Association (@littranslate.bsky.social) and the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown 📚 #xl8
“This translation is [...] an act of cultural resistance—amplifying a voice long silenced by censorship and allowing it to reach new audiences.”
Azadeh Eriss talks about her project of translating Amir Ahmadi Arian’s THAT MID-DECEMBER DAY into English. At Binghamton University: buff.ly/Pu89HiZ
Azadeh Eriss talks about her project of translating Amir Ahmadi Arian’s THAT MID-DECEMBER DAY into English. At Binghamton University: buff.ly/Pu89HiZ
Doctoral student to translate English professor’s banned novel from Persian to English - Binghamton News
Azadeh Eriss hopes to bring Iranian literature to a global audience during a time of struggle in her homeland
www.binghamton.edu
February 9, 2026 at 3:01 PM
“This translation is [...] an act of cultural resistance—amplifying a voice long silenced by censorship and allowing it to reach new audiences.”
Azadeh Eriss talks about her project of translating Amir Ahmadi Arian’s THAT MID-DECEMBER DAY into English. At Binghamton University: buff.ly/Pu89HiZ
Azadeh Eriss talks about her project of translating Amir Ahmadi Arian’s THAT MID-DECEMBER DAY into English. At Binghamton University: buff.ly/Pu89HiZ
“A very timely reminder of [...] the dreadful consequences of the blind belief that might is right, however many people’s lives are destroyed.”
Translator Nick Caistor speaks about WINTER WARRIORS by Olivier Norek and thedifficulties of its translation. At @ocregister.bsky.social:
Translator Nick Caistor speaks about WINTER WARRIORS by Olivier Norek and thedifficulties of its translation. At @ocregister.bsky.social:
Why Olivier Norek’s ‘Winter Warriors’ is a ‘timely’ book, says its translator
Plus, the Caldecott, Newbery and Coretta Scott King awards honored a range of books for young people this week.
www.ocregister.com
February 6, 2026 at 3:02 PM
“A very timely reminder of [...] the dreadful consequences of the blind belief that might is right, however many people’s lives are destroyed.”
Translator Nick Caistor speaks about WINTER WARRIORS by Olivier Norek and thedifficulties of its translation. At @ocregister.bsky.social:
Translator Nick Caistor speaks about WINTER WARRIORS by Olivier Norek and thedifficulties of its translation. At @ocregister.bsky.social:
🎉 The winners of the PEN Translates awards from English PEN have been announced! Congratulations to all on this list, including ALTA members Soleil David, Daniel Hahn, Tony Hao, Dominique Hoffman, Elisabeth Jaquette, and past ALTA mentees Natascha Bruce and Poorna Swami!
PEN Translates winners announced - News & Events - English PEN
Browse the latest news and events from English PEN News Events
www.englishpen.org
February 6, 2026 at 2:02 PM
🎉 The winners of the PEN Translates awards from English PEN have been announced! Congratulations to all on this list, including ALTA members Soleil David, Daniel Hahn, Tony Hao, Dominique Hoffman, Elisabeth Jaquette, and past ALTA mentees Natascha Bruce and Poorna Swami!
We are delighted to team up with the Fine Arts Work Center to offer this (free!) event, "Human Translators in the Age of AI," to be held 3/19 at 6pm ET! Feat. Shelley Fairweather-Vega, Ian Giles, Umair Kazi & Kristen Renee Miller, moderated by Chenxin Jiang. More info here: buff.ly/fVccQNF
February 5, 2026 at 9:30 PM
We are delighted to team up with the Fine Arts Work Center to offer this (free!) event, "Human Translators in the Age of AI," to be held 3/19 at 6pm ET! Feat. Shelley Fairweather-Vega, Ian Giles, Umair Kazi & Kristen Renee Miller, moderated by Chenxin Jiang. More info here: buff.ly/fVccQNF
Fresh off the presses! Take a look at these new translations to add to your TBR, including a translation by ALTA member Philip Boehm. At @theguardian.com:
The best recent translated fiction – review roundup
White Moss by Anna Nerkagi | The Old Fire by Elisa Shua Dusapin | The Roof Beneath Their Feet by Geetanjali Shree | Berlin Shuffle by Ulrich Alexander Boschwitz
www.theguardian.com
February 5, 2026 at 3:04 PM
Fresh off the presses! Take a look at these new translations to add to your TBR, including a translation by ALTA member Philip Boehm. At @theguardian.com:
Reposted by American Literary Translators Association
The only organization in the United States devoted exclusively to literary translators, the @littranslate.bsky.social’s mission is to advance the art of literary translation & connect students, teachers, publishers & readers of translation. Bookfair booth 1066!
January 29, 2026 at 7:01 PM
The only organization in the United States devoted exclusively to literary translators, the @littranslate.bsky.social’s mission is to advance the art of literary translation & connect students, teachers, publishers & readers of translation. Bookfair booth 1066!
“And maybe that’s the power of silence: it keeps you isolated, makes you into an island that survives in spite of the waves of fools crashing all around you.”
The persistent hopelessness of Fernanda Melchor’s EATING ASHES is vivid in Megan McDowell’s lyrical translation. At LARB:
The persistent hopelessness of Fernanda Melchor’s EATING ASHES is vivid in Megan McDowell’s lyrical translation. At LARB:
We Lived Inside Sadness Itself | Los Angeles Review of Books
On Brenda Navarro’s novel ‘Eating Ashes,’ newly translated by Megan McDowell.
lareviewofbooks.org
February 4, 2026 at 3:01 PM
“And maybe that’s the power of silence: it keeps you isolated, makes you into an island that survives in spite of the waves of fools crashing all around you.”
The persistent hopelessness of Fernanda Melchor’s EATING ASHES is vivid in Megan McDowell’s lyrical translation. At LARB:
The persistent hopelessness of Fernanda Melchor’s EATING ASHES is vivid in Megan McDowell’s lyrical translation. At LARB:
Looking to read more international literature written by women? Check out these six great picks in translation, featuring books translated by former ALTA Award Winners Lin King (2025) and Martin Aitken (2022), as well as 2026 ALTA Mentor Deepa Bhasti. At the California Aggie:
A beginner’s guide to reading women in translation | The Aggie
Davis, California
theaggie.org
February 3, 2026 at 3:01 PM
Looking to read more international literature written by women? Check out these six great picks in translation, featuring books translated by former ALTA Award Winners Lin King (2025) and Martin Aitken (2022), as well as 2026 ALTA Mentor Deepa Bhasti. At the California Aggie:
“The steppe bombards you, and in the cabin of the truck you lie as though naked, looking through the dark window.”
Check out former ALTA Travel Fellow Elina Alter’s vivid translation of STEPPE by Oksana Vasyakina. At @literaryhub.bsky.social: lithub.com/steppe/
Check out former ALTA Travel Fellow Elina Alter’s vivid translation of STEPPE by Oksana Vasyakina. At @literaryhub.bsky.social: lithub.com/steppe/
Steppe
I’ve seen the steppe from the window of an airplane. Do you know what it looks like? The steppe looks like a sinewy piece of yellow meat. Dark-orange lines, like heavy serpents, stripe the sands, g…
lithub.com
February 2, 2026 at 3:02 PM
“The steppe bombards you, and in the cabin of the truck you lie as though naked, looking through the dark window.”
Check out former ALTA Travel Fellow Elina Alter’s vivid translation of STEPPE by Oksana Vasyakina. At @literaryhub.bsky.social: lithub.com/steppe/
Check out former ALTA Travel Fellow Elina Alter’s vivid translation of STEPPE by Oksana Vasyakina. At @literaryhub.bsky.social: lithub.com/steppe/
“I don’t think AI can translate the unpredictability of poetry, the linguistic surprises.”
Dong Li, who was in residence at Princeton’s Program in Translation and Intercultural Communication in fall 2025, speaks about recognizing the creative labor of translators. At Princeton: buff.ly/kdpG6cr
Dong Li, who was in residence at Princeton’s Program in Translation and Intercultural Communication in fall 2025, speaks about recognizing the creative labor of translators. At Princeton: buff.ly/kdpG6cr
Q&A: Languages Expert Dong Li Explains the ‘Living’ Craft of Translation
‘I don’t think AI can translate the unpredictability of poetry, the linguistic surprises’
paw.princeton.edu
January 30, 2026 at 3:04 PM
“I don’t think AI can translate the unpredictability of poetry, the linguistic surprises.”
Dong Li, who was in residence at Princeton’s Program in Translation and Intercultural Communication in fall 2025, speaks about recognizing the creative labor of translators. At Princeton: buff.ly/kdpG6cr
Dong Li, who was in residence at Princeton’s Program in Translation and Intercultural Communication in fall 2025, speaks about recognizing the creative labor of translators. At Princeton: buff.ly/kdpG6cr
In her review of J.M. Coetzee and Mariana Dimópulos’s SPEAKING IN TONGUES, translator Chloe Garcia Roberts reflects on “the paradox of language [...] to love the language fate has consigned you, while also acknowledging its destructive tendencies.” At LA Review of Books: buff.ly/hcTtN4A
Has English Killed Global Literature? | Los Angeles Review of Books
Chloe Garcia Roberts considers J. M. Coetzee and Mariana Dimópulos’s new book on translation.
lareviewofbooks.org
January 29, 2026 at 3:03 PM
In her review of J.M. Coetzee and Mariana Dimópulos’s SPEAKING IN TONGUES, translator Chloe Garcia Roberts reflects on “the paradox of language [...] to love the language fate has consigned you, while also acknowledging its destructive tendencies.” At LA Review of Books: buff.ly/hcTtN4A
"Every adverb is Tuesday for some of us, and a body part for some, maybe more than just one.”
Read Thiri Zune’s haunting translation of Nay Thit’s poem “The Language I Don’t Speak” at Asymptote: buff.ly/LsNRYP1
Read Thiri Zune’s haunting translation of Nay Thit’s poem “The Language I Don’t Speak” at Asymptote: buff.ly/LsNRYP1
The Language I Don’t Speak - Asymptote
(1)I wake up inside the mouth of The Language I Don’t Speak.The Language I Don’t Speak tries to make us take the precepts. While acting like It is speaking to us, It tries to talk to others about us.…
www.asymptotejournal.com
January 28, 2026 at 3:05 PM
"Every adverb is Tuesday for some of us, and a body part for some, maybe more than just one.”
Read Thiri Zune’s haunting translation of Nay Thit’s poem “The Language I Don’t Speak” at Asymptote: buff.ly/LsNRYP1
Read Thiri Zune’s haunting translation of Nay Thit’s poem “The Language I Don’t Speak” at Asymptote: buff.ly/LsNRYP1
Reposted by American Literary Translators Association
We are excited to open applications for a UK-based Translator in Residence working with/in Endangered Languages.
Find full details, including fee and residency requirements, below.
Application deadline: 15 February, 2026
buff.ly/yibsATf
Find full details, including fee and residency requirements, below.
Application deadline: 15 February, 2026
buff.ly/yibsATf
January 15, 2026 at 1:01 PM
We are excited to open applications for a UK-based Translator in Residence working with/in Endangered Languages.
Find full details, including fee and residency requirements, below.
Application deadline: 15 February, 2026
buff.ly/yibsATf
Find full details, including fee and residency requirements, below.
Application deadline: 15 February, 2026
buff.ly/yibsATf
Study literary translation at the 12th Annual Bread Loaf Translators' Conference in Vermont's Green Mountains, June 14-20! You'll get the chance to meet editors from presses there, including Two Lines Press, FSG, and Yale University Press. Rolling apps end 3/15: buff.ly/y2RUhju
January 27, 2026 at 3:02 PM
Study literary translation at the 12th Annual Bread Loaf Translators' Conference in Vermont's Green Mountains, June 14-20! You'll get the chance to meet editors from presses there, including Two Lines Press, FSG, and Yale University Press. Rolling apps end 3/15: buff.ly/y2RUhju
ALTA’s presence at the conference and bookfair would not be possible without the hard work of volunteers! Apply to be a volunteer with ALTA in exchange for conference registration at AWP26 (held March 5-7 in Baltimore, MD) by next Monday, February 2! Learn more and apply here:
ALTA
A L T A
literarytranslators.org
January 26, 2026 at 9:30 PM
ALTA’s presence at the conference and bookfair would not be possible without the hard work of volunteers! Apply to be a volunteer with ALTA in exchange for conference registration at AWP26 (held March 5-7 in Baltimore, MD) by next Monday, February 2! Learn more and apply here:
Looking for new fiction to read? Check out this January Watchlist, featuring ALTA member Maren Baudet-Lackner’s translation of THE AQUATICS by Osvalde Lewat. At Words Without Borders / @wwborders.bsky.social: buff.ly/dsBoLng
The Watchlist: January 2026 - Words Without Borders
Tobias Carroll recommends novels from Cameroon, Colombia, Russia, and more, plus the newest from Nobel laureate Olga Tokarczuk.
wordswithoutborders.org
January 26, 2026 at 3:01 PM
Looking for new fiction to read? Check out this January Watchlist, featuring ALTA member Maren Baudet-Lackner’s translation of THE AQUATICS by Osvalde Lewat. At Words Without Borders / @wwborders.bsky.social: buff.ly/dsBoLng
“Intensely poetic, yet deeply grounded, Honey Hunger reveals the layers of contemporary Oman through voices that are often unheard.”
Marilyn Booth has won the 2025 Saif Ghobash Banipal Prize for her translation of Zahran Alqasmi’s HONEY HUNGER. At the Banipal Trust:
Marilyn Booth has won the 2025 Saif Ghobash Banipal Prize for her translation of Zahran Alqasmi’s HONEY HUNGER. At the Banipal Trust:
Banipal Trust for Arab Literature - The Banipal Translation Prize - The 2025 Award
The Trust supports the deepening and enriching of cultural dialogue between the Arab world and the West (particularly Europe and North America) in order to bring the literature of today's Arab…
www.banipaltrust.org.uk
January 23, 2026 at 3:03 PM
“Intensely poetic, yet deeply grounded, Honey Hunger reveals the layers of contemporary Oman through voices that are often unheard.”
Marilyn Booth has won the 2025 Saif Ghobash Banipal Prize for her translation of Zahran Alqasmi’s HONEY HUNGER. At the Banipal Trust:
Marilyn Booth has won the 2025 Saif Ghobash Banipal Prize for her translation of Zahran Alqasmi’s HONEY HUNGER. At the Banipal Trust: