Asymptote’s hugely popular translation contest, ‘Close Approximations,’ is now open to translators at the beginning of their careers. This contest accepts poetry, fiction and literary nonfiction translations of works in public domain or which translators have statement from the holder of the copyright verifying that the rights are available. To apply, submit 5 to 10 pages of translated poetry or 10 to 25 pages of translated fiction or nonfiction through Submittable.
The winner and runner-up of each category will walk away with 1,000 USD and 500 USD respectively. They will also be featured in the April 2016 issue.
Submission guidelines:
All text must be formatted in a standard 12-point font. Poetry entries must be single-spaced unless otherwise necessary. Fiction and nonfiction entries must be double-spaced. If submitting an excerpt of a novel or memoir, please pick one continuous excerpt that can stand on its own. For the nonfiction category, we will consider only literary nonfiction. Each submission must contain a translation or translations of work by one single poet or author only.
Your submission should be saved as one single Word Document under the file name [GENRE—Original Language—last name of translated poet/author].doc or [GENRE—Original Language—last name of translated poet/author].docx (e.g. POETRY—SWAHILI—KIM.docx). Include: the English translation, the original text of the work(s).
The document should begin with three lines bearing the following information only: the title of the translated work, the poet/author of the original work and the language from which the work has been translated.
DO NOT include the name(s) of the translator(s) anywhere in this Word document (e.g. in the header or footer of the document).
There will be a nonrefundable contest fee of 15 USD to be paid via Submittable.
Self-translations are not permitted. Translations must not have been previously published. “Publication” here includes appearances in limited-circulation or defunct print publications/online outlets. Simultaneous submissions are not allowed. Multiple submissions across different genres are allowed. Collaborative translations are allowed.
Up to two entries are allowed per individual for poetry and up to three entries each are allowed per individual for fiction and nonfiction. If submitting more than one entry, please upload each as a separate Submittable submission (Note that the contest fee will apply to each).
The results will be announced in our April 2016 issue, slated for release on 15 April, 2016. Find the results of the first ‘Close Approximations’ contest (as well as links to the winning entries) here. Queries about the contest can be sent to contest@asymptotejournal.com.
Deadline: 1 Feb 2016.