Addie Leak
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addieleak.bsky.social
Addie Leak
@addieleak.bsky.social
42 followers 53 following 13 posts
Translator (AR/FR>EN), lover of languages/lit/travel. 🐈 mom, future Jordanian citizen, avid hiker/backpacker. Catch me on the #JordanTrail! #amtranslating Hi Maryam It's Arwa: https://wordswithoutborders.org/read/article/2022-07/hi-maryam-its-arwa
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addieleak.bsky.social
Addie Leak @addieleak.bsky.social · Jan 22
This is me! Read my intro and the rest of the amazing feature on Words Without Borders.
Reposted by Addie Leak
commonmag.bsky.social
"We stop in everywhere, then head home after we lose our cravings but before we lose our minds."

Read Issue 29's "Sufi Trance," a tender fiction piece by Maryam Dajani and translated by Addie Leak (@addieleak.bsky.social), below. And do check out the rest of our Amman portfolio!
Sufi Trance
MARYAM DAJANI <br> I’m leaving Abdoun after having sushi at Noodasia, heading toward Airport Road. The traffic light in front of me turns red, and all I have to do is step on the brakes… but where…
buff.ly
May 31, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Reposted by Addie Leak
commonmag.bsky.social
"She’d drawn a girl on the beach, writing on the sand with a crooked branch. Beneath her, she wrote in English: Find me."

Ala Janbek strolls Amman's anatomy in his Issue 29 essay "Wandering," translated by @addieleak.bsky.social‬. Read this and the complete Amman portfolio below!

buff.ly/Tu8vRsp
Wandering
ALA JANBEK <br> After a year and a half in the neighborhood, I no longer wonder if I should buy a snack from the red shop or the blue one; instead, I buy from Abu Hussein, who throws in a date and a…
buff.ly
June 15, 2025 at 2:03 PM
Reposted by Addie Leak
commonmag.bsky.social
"I whirl around with Amman, weary, in a Sufi trance that has never given me the grace to achieve oneness."

Maryam Dajani's "Sufi Trance" circles and spirals into Amman's soundscapes, deftly translated by Addie Leak (@addieleak.bsky.social). Read this jewel of Issue 29's Amman portfolio here!
Sufi Trance
MARYAM DAJANI <br> I’m leaving Abdoun after having sushi at Noodasia, heading toward Airport Road. The traffic light in front of me turns red, and all I have to do is step on the brakes… but where…
buff.ly
June 7, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Reposted by Addie Leak
wwborders.bsky.social
Last call to attend our livestreamed Ottaway Award ceremony on 6/3! Join us as we celebrate Christopher Merrill with a laudation from Alane Salierno Mason, along with remarks from Merrill himself. RSVP here: wordswithoutborders.org/events/2025-...
A portrait of Christopher Merrill with the text “2025 Ottaway Award Ceremony Honoring Christopher Merrill. RSVP for free: wwborders.live/2025Ottaway. Online via Zoom Tuesday, June 3, 6 pm EDT (UTC-4)”
June 2, 2025 at 2:57 PM
Reposted by Addie Leak
antonhur.com
Ever notice how we don’t have a bestselling or award-winning book written by ChatGPT? Believe me, if one existed, OpenAI would shout it from the rooftops. But the only thing they can generate is trash.
June 1, 2025 at 7:52 PM
addieleak.bsky.social
Paywall means I can't actually access the info, but I am tentatively overjoyed? YAY positive blurb in a series of heartrending news cycles...
nytimes.com The New York Times @nytimes.com · Jun 1
More than a century after the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921, one of the most horrific episodes of racial violence in U.S. history, the city’s mayor announced a $105 million reparations package on Sunday. It is the first large-scale plan committing funds to address the impact of the atrocity.
$105 Million Reparations Package for Tulsa Race Massacre Unveiled by Mayor
www.nytimes.com
June 3, 2025 at 9:23 AM
Reposted by Addie Leak
wwborders.bsky.social
"Fifteen years ago, Arabic literature in translation was mostly published with an anthropological lens by university presses. The influx of new translators has shifted the landscape." WWB Executive Director @lissiejaquette.bsky.social in Publisher's Weekly: www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/...
Away from the Underdog Narrative: PW Talks with Lissie Jaquette
The executive director of the translated literature nonprofit Words Without Borders, who also translates from Arabic, sees the landscape for literature in translation finally changing in the U.S.
www.publishersweekly.com
May 27, 2025 at 4:16 PM
addieleak.bsky.social
Yeeees, check it out! And the hard copy magazine is stunning!
commonmag.bsky.social The Common @commonmag.bsky.social · May 31
"We stop in everywhere, then head home after we lose our cravings but before we lose our minds."

Read Issue 29's "Sufi Trance," a tender fiction piece by Maryam Dajani and translated by Addie Leak (@addieleak.bsky.social), below. And do check out the rest of our Amman portfolio!
Sufi Trance
MARYAM DAJANI <br> I’m leaving Abdoun after having sushi at Noodasia, heading toward Airport Road. The traffic light in front of me turns red, and all I have to do is step on the brakes… but where…
buff.ly
June 2, 2025 at 3:23 PM
Reposted by Addie Leak
nplusonemag.com
Also in essays, an excerpt from Iman Mersal’s MOTHERHOOD AND ITS GHOSTS, translated from the Arabic by Robin Moger. www.nplusonemag.com/issue-50/ess...
Our Butterfly | Iman Mersal
Delivered Youssef to the place in Maine. I say “the place,” because I don’t know how to describe it. Is it a camp? A hospital? An asylum?
www.nplusonemag.com
May 21, 2025 at 2:33 PM
addieleak.bsky.social
This is so exciting! More of this in the US, please!
arablit.bsky.social ArabLit & ArabLit Quarterly @arablit.bsky.social · May 22
On Bulbul, a First-of-its-kind Arabic Children’s Magazine in North America

Pediatrician and children’s-book author Arwa Nasir is the force behind Bulbul Books, an Arabic children’s-book publishing house based in the US. This year, she has launched a new monthly magazine of the same name.
On Bulbul, a First-of-its-kind Arabic Children’s Magazine in North America
Pediatrician and children’s-book author Arwa Nasir is the force behind Bulbul Books, an Arabic children’s-book publishing house based in the US. This year, she has launched a new monthly magazine of the same name.
arablit.org
May 23, 2025 at 12:27 PM
Reposted by Addie Leak
commonmag.bsky.social
"The story of Amman is therefore an old one: Revitalized by immigrants after a period of dormancy, the city then developed a centripetal force that drew migrants from many and various surrounding areas."

Hisham Bustani writes about Amman in his essay in Issue 29.

buff.ly/KTjVUI4
Amman: The Heaviness and Lightness of Place
HISHAM BUSTANI <br> Today, I follow the old path of the sayl around Jabal Amman (the “mountain” of Amman) and grieve. Nature spent centuries shaping a miracle, only for it to be destroyed in a few…
buff.ly
May 12, 2025 at 1:03 PM
Reposted by Addie Leak
tracepress.bsky.social
🌱 FRIDAY
May 16- 8 pm
Molasses Books
(brooklyn)

Please join @mayadamayadamay.bsky.social & Miled Faiza reading poems / translations from #ArabicBetweenLoveAndWar with Laura al-Tibi & Amr Amer
trace press & molasses bkstore May 16 event Poster with green background, book cover & event details.
May 13, 2025 at 4:31 PM
Reposted by Addie Leak
arablit.bsky.social
Today on ArabLit: a new "Between Two Arabic Translators."

Special shout-outs to @tracepress.bsky.social, Seagull Books, Ammiel Alcalay.

arablit.org/2025/05/14/o...
Mona Kareem: I wanted to take the veil of innocence off of literary translation. The colonial nature of translation is widely discussed in translation theory and translation studies, yet it often focuses on colonial archives or dictionaries, to give some examples. Literary translation, however, has been able to maintain its righteousness and innocence, which is really an extension of white innocence.
May 14, 2025 at 7:42 AM
addieleak.bsky.social
Very much looking forward to this webinar--always so much more to learn!
May 10, 2025 at 9:30 AM
Reposted by Addie Leak
authorsguild.org
All true democracies place a high value on freedom of expression in the arts and humanities, as have all U.S. presidential administrations. Until now. The quality of a democracy can be judged by the quality of its arts.

Stay tuned for updates on our legal actions.

authorsguild.org/news/trumps-...
May 9, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Reposted by Addie Leak
wwborders.bsky.social
For most of our existence, WWB has received funding from the NEA. Now, like many others, we must chart a path forward without it. But our readers still deserve access to dazzling global writing. Please donate or share our work to support our mission of bringing the world close through literature.
The following text, above a green circle reading "swipe" connected to the WWB logo through a line: "Literature is how we create the world we want to live in. But that world is threatened by the administration's cuts to the NEA and the rich arts landscape it once supported. And the work we do to uplift bold, innovative global writing is newly at risk." The following text, above a green circle reading "swipe" connected to the WWB logo through a line: "Like many other arts organizations across the country, we learned on Friday night that our 2025 NEA grant has been terminated because our work “no longer aligns” with the administration’s priorities. Moving forward, we cannot rely on funding that has sustained our magazine and our programs for well over a decade. Yet despite these challenges, we stand firm in our mission to amplify global literary voices and invite readers to explore a wider world through literature." The following text, above a green circle reading "swipe" connected to the WWB logo through a line: "If you, like us, believe in the power of global stories, here’s what you can do in this destabilizing moment to support WWB and our vision of literature that embraces global interconnectedness:" A set of green text boxes organized above the social media logos for Facebook, Bluesky, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn, as well as a black button with white text reading "wordswithoutborders.org" and "wwb-campus.org". Two images, one of a teacher instructing students in a classroom and one of a selfie of smiling folks at a WWB event, are interspersed with the text boxes. The boxes contain calls-to-action to support WWB, including to donate, to subscribe to newsletters, to joine WWB Campus for free, to meet us at our free public events, and to follow us on social media and share our posts.
May 5, 2025 at 8:33 PM
Reposted by Addie Leak
commonmag.bsky.social
"Amman is not incidental. The sayl, the stream that patiently carved a path between seven hills for thousands of years, drew [...] the din of life."

Hisham Bustani writes a wonderful essay, "Amman: The Heaviness and Lightness of Place," describing the history and the landscape of Amman.
Amman: The Heaviness and Lightness of Place
HISHAM BUSTANI <br> Today, I follow the old path of the sayl around Jabal Amman (the “mountain” of Amman) and grieve. Nature spent centuries shaping a miracle, only for it to be destroyed in a few…
buff.ly
May 5, 2025 at 6:02 PM
addieleak.bsky.social
Psyched to be a part of this--can't wait to read the full issue.
commonmag.bsky.social The Common @commonmag.bsky.social · May 5
Issue 29 is OUT and we're so excited to share our portfolio of writing and art from Amman, Jordan, including this beautiful portfolio of color photography by Majd Hijjawi, Momen Malkawi, and Husam Manasrah. You can see all the photos (and the rest of the issue!!) live on our website right now. 📸
Amman in Color: Majd Hijjawi, Momen Malkawi, Husam Manasrah
By MAJD HIJJAWI, MOMEN MALKAWI, and HUSAM MANASRAH   Photography by Majd Hijjawi An abandoned villa in Um Uthaina. This house is a remnant of a once affluent residential neighborhood in…
buff.ly
May 6, 2025 at 9:17 AM
Reposted by Addie Leak
arablit.bsky.social
Today on ArabLit: arablit.org/2025/01/27/o...
January 27, 2025 at 1:53 PM
Reposted by Addie Leak
arablit.bsky.social
Read his "Bird with a Broken Wing," his second-ever published story. ❤️ arablit.org/2024/12/20/6...
January 22, 2025 at 11:40 AM
addieleak.bsky.social
This is me! Read my intro and the rest of the amazing feature on Words Without Borders.
January 22, 2025 at 11:36 AM
addieleak.bsky.social
Going into 2025 still bad at the internet but glad not to be on X. Also reading a 1938 memoir called A Woman in the Polar Night that makes me want to move to a hut on Svalbard, make my peace with darkness, and have an arctic fox for a pet--at least before climate change does away with us all...
January 22, 2025 at 11:29 AM
Reposted by Addie Leak
arablit.bsky.social
Syrian flash fiction finalist Emad Saad talks about his journey to writing, which only began in the last few years. (Tr. Elena Pare.)

"This is me, an aspiring writer at 60."

arablit.org/2025/01/22/r...
‘Reading is a Lifestyle’: By Flash Fiction Finalist Emad Saad
For our forthcoming bilingual publication — which will feature the fifteen short stories shortlisted for the 2024 Arabic Flash Fiction Prize, co-produced by ArabLit and Komet Kashakeel — we made up…
arablit.org
January 22, 2025 at 6:56 AM
Reposted by Addie Leak
shreedaisy.bsky.social
Don’t miss this hallucinogenic short story about Islamophobic violence in India translated by @withvai.bsky.social !
withvai.bsky.social Vaibhav Sharma @withvai.bsky.social · Dec 15
My translation of Anil Yadav's Hindi short story is out in the latest issue of The Bombay Literary Magazine. Please read and share your views. Thanks to @tansol.bsky.social for his guidance and the lovely note.

TW: Violence, Assault, Islamophobia

bombaylitmag.com/issue59-vaib...
A Shiny New Toy - The Bombay Literary Magazine | TBLM
bombaylitmag.com
December 15, 2024 at 12:54 PM