At the packed QUILL/QAX reading/mixer this week, the Queens Council on the Arts announced a new translation prize: the QUILL Translation Award. The award will be given annually for a work-in-progress (a full-length book of poems or novella-length work of fiction), translated from any language into English, to be completed within one year of receipt of the award. Eligible applicants must live in the borough of Queens, must be 18 or older, and may not currently be enrolled in a degree-granting program. Preference will be given to works that have not previously been translated, though retranslations are eligible – the application should include an explanation of why a new translation is needed.) The winner will receive $500 to support the completion of the translated work, and the Queens Council on the Arts will provide assistance in locating an appropriate publisher. The QUILL Translation Award is funded by the New York State Council on the Arts.
Application forms and instructions will be posted on the QCA website by Feb. 28, 2011. I’ll post a direct link here as well. The deadline for submissions is April 18, 2011. The award will be presented at a celebratory reading featuring the winning translation on June 18, 2011.
WNYC sent a reporter to the QCA reading, and is scheduled to run a feature on translation in Queens this coming Monday, Feb. 21 during Morning Edition and/or All Things Considered. Tune in at 93.9 FM, AM 820 or online.
P.S. The direct link with application instructions is now online, as is the story WNYC aired about the event and prize.