Mujib MEHRDAD (poet, playwright, translator; Afghanistan) is the author of the poetry collections [Gladiators Are Still Dying] (2007; winner of the Afghan Civil Society’s literature contest), [The Fishes Have Fled Our Veins] (2008), and [Audience] (2009), and of the collection of essays [The Rain Passed]. He has translated Ginsberg, Plath, Langston Hughes, Mayakovsky, Tagore, and others, into Dari. He is a board member of the literary organization Kashane Nawesendagan [House of Authors] and teaches Persian literature at Albironi University in Kapisa. His participation is made possible by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2014 Resident
fiction writer, poet, translator
Laurynas KATKUS (poet, fiction writer, translator, essayist; Lithuania) is the author of the novel Judantys šešėliai [Moving Shadows] (2012), the essay collection Sklepas [The Basement] (2011), and the poetry collections Balsai, Rašteliai [Voices, Notes] (1998), Nardymo pamokos [Diving Lessons] (2003) and Už septynių gatvių [Behind 7 Streets] (2009). His writing has been widely translated, appearing New European Poets: an Anthology, Absinthe, The Drunken Boat and elsewhere; he translates from the English, German and Spanish. His participation is made possible by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2014 Resident
poet, scholar, translator
Sadek MOHAMMED (poet, translator, scholar; Iraq) is the co-editor of Flowers of Flame: Unheard Voices of Iraq (2008), which received a 2009 IPPY/Independent Publisher Book Award. His literary work has appeared in Atlanta Review, Best American Nonrequired Reading and elsewhere; he also has a scholarly volume on translation practice and theory. He has translated Maya Angelou’s poetry into Arabic and the collection Ishtar's Songs: Iraqi Poetry since the 1970s into English. Mohammed is the Dean of the College of Arts at the University of Imam Jaafar Al-Sadiq in Baghdad. His participation is made possible by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2014 Resident
fiction writer, poet, publisher, translator
MYAY HMONE LWIN (poet, fiction writer, translator; Burma/Myanmar) is the author of the poetry collection Se ma lar [Wanna Ride?] (2010), the short story collection Yangon tayeiksanyone mha pyan yaggaun lootnay [An Otter Sneaked Out From the Yangon Zoo] (2014), and the novels Nhit phie da pine [One By Two 1/2] (2011), Khu (2011), A yate ta kyi kyi [Watch Out Your Shadow] (2012) and Kyat sar ko khae pyat nhit pyat ywae ma ya [What Has Been Written on the Stone Can’t Be Erased by an Eraser] (2013). He owns a publishing house and printing press, and is on the Board of Directors of PEN Myanmar. His participation is privately funded.
2014 Resident
journalist, poet
Andra ROTARU (poet, journalist; Romania) is a cultural journalist and literary activist. Her 2005 debut collection Într-un pat sub cearșaful alb [In a Bed Under the White Sheets] garnered four national awards; it was followed by the poetry volumes Ținuturile sudului [Southern Lands] (2010) and Lemur (2013), the latter turned into a collaborative dance/video performance presented in the U.S. and across Europe. Her work has been widely translated and anthologized. Her participation is made possible by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2014 Resident
poet, translator
CHEN Li (陳黎, poet, essayist, translator; Taiwan) is the author of 14 books of poetry, among them [Animal Lullaby] (1980), [Love Song of Buffet the Clown] (1990), [Lightly/Slowly] (2009), [Me/City] (2011), [Evil/Exorcized] (2012), [Dynasty/Saint] (2013), and [Island/Country] (2014). Together with his wife, translator Chang Fen-ling, he has published some 20 volumes of poetry in translation, including that of Plath, Larkin, Heaney, Neruda, Paz, and Szymborska. He is the recipient of the National Award for Literature and Arts, the China Times Literary Award, and the Taiwan Literature Award. Chen Li has taught creative writing at National Dong Hwa University and is the organizer of the Pacific Poetry Festival. His participation is made possible by Taiwan’s Ministry of Culture.
2014 Resident
fiction writer, journalist, non-fiction writer, poet, translator
Sabata-mpho MOKAE (poet, nonfiction and fiction writer; South Africa) is the author of the poetry collection Escaping Trauma (2012) and the biography The Story of Sol T. Plaatje (2010). His debut novel in Setswana, Ga Ke Modisa [I’m Not My Brother’s Keeper] (2012) won the M-Net Literary Award for Best Novel in Setswana as well as the M-Net Film Award; the youth novella Dikeledi [Tears] was launched in 2014. In 2011 he also won the South African Literary Award in the literary journalism category. He is a columnist and a journalist, and a co-founder of the annual Sol Plaatje Literary Festival. He participates courtesy of the U.S. Consulate General in Cape Town.
2014 Resident
poet
Ali Cobby ECKERMANN (poet; Australia) is the author of six books, including the poetry collections Little Bit Long Time (2009), Kami (2010), Love Dreaming and Other Poems (2011), and Ruby Moonlight (2011), the verse novel His Father’s Eyes (2011) and a poetic memoir, Too Afraid to Cry (2013). Her awards include the Australia Poetry Centre’s 2008 New Poets Award and the 2013 Book of the Year for Ruby Moonlight. She co-edited Southerly Journal’s 2012 Aboriginal issue titled A Handful of Sand. Her participation is made possible by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2014 Resident
fiction writer, poet
Gerður KRISTNÝ (fiction writer, poet; Iceland) is the author of five poetry collections, two novels, nine books for children, a travelogue and one biography. Widely awarded, her work has been translated into 21 languages. In 2011 the musical [The Ball at Bessastadir], based on her fiction, was staged at Iceland’s National Theatre. Kristný has worked in broadcasting, and is the former editor-in-chief of a literary monthly. Her participation is made possible by The Paul and Hualing Engle Fund.
2014 Resident
fiction writer, poet, translator
Ahmed SHAFIE (poet, fiction writer, translator; Egypt) is the author of the poetry collection [and Other Poems] (2009) and the novel [The Creator] (2013). He has translated Charles Simic, Billy Collins, Lucille Clifton, and an anthology of Afro-American poems into Arabic. Shafie writes for the poetry translation blog ‘Aswast men Honak’ [Distant Voices], and blogs at ‘Qera’at Ahmed Shafie,’ [Readings of Ahmed Shafie]. His participation is made possible by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2014 Resident
poet, translator
Anja UTLER (poet, translator; Germany) is the author of the poetry collections jana, vermacht (2009), brinnen (2006), münden – entzüngeln (2004), aufsagen (1999), and of the poetological essay plötzlicher mohn (2007). Her latest book, ausgeübt. Eine Kurskorrektur, is a poetic exploration of prose. Translated into a dozen languages, her poems and essays circulate widely. An English translation of Utler’s poetry collection, engulf – enkindle, was a finalist for the 2012 Best Translated Book Award. She participates courtesy of the Max Kade Foundation.
2014 Resident
fiction writer, poet
YEOW Kai Chai (poet, fiction writer; Singapore) is the author of poetry collections Secret Manta (2001) and Pretend I’m Not Here (2006). His poems and stories have been widely published and anthologized. He is an editor at the Quarterly Literary Review Singapore, and has been an editor and music critic for The Straits Times. His third poetry collection, One to the Dark Tower Comes, is forthcoming. He participates courtesy of the Singapore National Arts Council.
2014 Resident
poet
Natasha TINIACOS (poet; Venezuela) is the author of the poetry collections Historia privada de un etcétera [Private Story of an Et Cetera] (2011/2015) and the award-winning Mujer a fuego lento [Woman at Low Heat] (2006). Her work appears in Venezuelan and Spanish journals and magazines; she translates poetry for the site The Verbatim Project and is the editor in chief of BACKROOMCaracas, a platform for contemporary Venezuelan art. Her participation is made possible by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2014 Resident
performance artist, poet
Daren KAMALI (poet, performer; New Zealand) began performing as a musician and street poet, later putting out the albums Immigrant Story and Keep It Real. He is the author of poetry collections Poems and Songs from the Underwater World (2011) and Squid Out of Water (2014), two parts of the trilogy Squidluminaries, forthcoming in 2015. He has facilitated writing workshops and poetry slams, and worked as a music director and youth mentor. A co-founder of the South Auckland Poets Collective, he participates courtesy of Creative New Zealand.
2014 Resident
poet, translator
Omar PÉREZ (poet, essayist, translator; Cuba) won Cuba’s National Critics’ Prize for the collection of essays La perseverancia de un hombre oscuro (2000), and the 2010 Nicolás Guillén Award for Poetry for Crítica de la razón puta. His other books of poetry include Algo de lo sagrado (1996), ¿Oíste hablar del gato de pelea? (1999), Canciones y letanías (2002) and Lingua Franca (2009), with two of them appearing as bilingual editions (Something of the Sacred and Did You Hear About the Fighting Cat?). His recent work moves across media, especially music and collage. He has been an editor at Letras Cubanas, and translates contemporary literature from Italy, Africa, UK and U.S. He participates courtesy of the William B. Quarton fund through the Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation.
2014 Resident
fiction writer, playwright, poet
Binayak BANERJEE (fiction writer, poet, playwright; India) is the author of the novels [A Year with Sohagini] (2008), [The Winner] (2009), and [Star Harbor] (2011), the poem collections [You My Life, You Alien] (2008), and [One Hundred Love Poems] (2013), and, in 2013, the play [Rabindranath Public Limited] (2013). He writes for Bengali literary magazines, is engaged with the Shakespeare Society of Eastern India, and teaches English at the Sri Ram Roy School and the Syamaprasad College in Kolkata. His participation is made possible by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2014 Resident
poet
TANG Siu Wa 鄧小樺(poet, essayist; Hong Kong) is the author of two poetry collections [A Bottle Unmoved and The Opposite of Sounds], two volumes of prose writing [A Motley of Banalities and Just Like Nothing Happens], and a collection of interviews [Asking Directions from the People]; she is the editor of the collections [Wait and See: Collected Works of Six New Hong Kong Writers], [The Tomb of Film] and [The Same Darkness Befalls Dawn: Hong Kong June Fourth Poetry]. Tang Siu-wa is a founding editor of the literary magazine Fleurs des lettres and a co-founder of the House of Hong Kong Literature; a literary organizer and human rights activist, she teaches creative writing at various Hong Kong institutions, and contributes columns and criticism to a variety of local media. She participates courtesy of the Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation.
2015 Resident
fiction writer, poet, translator
VILLEDA (poet, translator, fiction writer; Mexico) is the author of four books of poetry, most recently Dodo (2014). Her work in poetry and multimedia, widely anthologized and translated, has received recognition through several awards, including the 2014 National Fine Arts Prize for Children’s Fiction and the 2013 Elías Nandino National Award for Youth Poetry. She participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2015 Resident
filmmaker, poet, translator
Marie SILKEBERG (poet, translator, nonfiction writer, filmmaker; Sweden) is the author of seven poetry collections, including 23:23 (2006) and Material (2010), and the essay volume Avståndsmätning (2005). Among her translations are those of Inger Christensen and Rosemarie Waldrop; she also collaborates with musicians on text and sound compositions and poetry films. A recipient of a number of awards, the 2013 Marin Sorescu Prize most recently, she teaches literary composition at the University of Southern Denmark. Her participation is made possible by the Paul and Hualing Engle Fund
2015 Resident
poet, translator
Aki SALMELA (poet, translator; Finland) is the author of seven poetry collections and a number of translations, including the poetry of John Ashbery, Charles Simic, and James Tate. His work has been widely anthologized, and appears in literary journals throughout Europe. His first collection, Sanomattomia lehtiä, won the Kalevi Jäntti Prize in 2004; in 2008 he received the Finnish Broadcast Corporation’s Tanssiva Karhu Poetry Prize. His participation is made possible by an anonymous donation to the IWP.
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