Apply for Banff!

It’s that time of year again, when translators can apply for a number of residencies and grants, like the one at the Ledig House (deadline passed, sorry), the PEN Translation Fund (deadline of February 1, 2013), NEA Translation Fellowships (deadline of January 3, 2013), and the Banff International Literary Translation Centre (deadline of February 15, 2013).

I’ve personally never been to Banff (when are you going to start a publisher fellowship program? we deserve a little bit of love, don’t we? please?), but from what I’ve heard, it’s absolutely incredible. It’s a three-week program (taking place from June 3-22, 2013) and provides the perfect setting for translators to work on their projects.

The 15 literary translators who participate in the program each year are from one of the three founding countries – Canada, Mexico, and the United States – translating from any language, as well as from any other country translating literature from the Americas (both the North and South American continents). Each year the program strives to include translators who are at different stages of their careers, from those with only one book-length published translation to veterans who have been translating as a primary professional activity for many years. Since the inaugural program in 2003, the Centre has hosted translators from approximately 30 countries translating work involving nearly 40 languages.

Translators may request a joint residency of up to one week with the author they are translating. Most guest authors come from Canada, the United States, and Mexico, but the program is sometimes able to bring authors from farther afield. Individual work sessions with the consulting translators serving in residence, as well as with the program directors, are also available. Participants meet three times a week for roundtables and presentations, and to discuss work in progress as well as broader issues in the practice of literary translation.

Here’s all the information you need to apply. And if you’re a student, you should keep this in mind:

Each year BILTC accepts one student from each of the following countries: the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Students wishing to apply need not fulfill the publication requirement (see above). Students from Mexico and Canada must apply through their universities. Students from the United States may apply directly to the program.