Genevieve L. ASENJO (fiction writer, poet, translator; Philippines) is the author of four books including Lumbay ng Dila (The Melancholy of the Tongue), winner of the country’s 2011 National Book Award. Her short stories and poems have appeared in many magazines and anthologies. She translates into the Philippine languages Kinaray-a, Hiligaynon, and Filipino, and is the founder-director of Balay Sugidanun (Storytelling House). She is Associate Professor of literature and creative writing at De La Salle University-Manila. Her participation is made possible by a grant from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2012 Resident
poet, translator
Andrei KHADANOVICH (poet, translator; Belarus) is the author of eight collections of poetry, including Лісты з-пад коўдры [Letters from under the Blanket] (2004), Несымэтрычныя сны [Nonsymmetrical Dreams] (2010), and a poetry book for children Нататкі таткі [Father’s Notes]. A translator of English, French, Lithuanian, Polish, Russian, and Ukrainian poetry, he has had his work translated into 14 languages. He is the president of PEN Belarus. He teaches literature at Belarusian State University and Belarusian National Jakub Kolas Lyceum of Liberal Arts, and translation at the Belarusian Collegium. He participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2012 Resident
poet, translator
Rodrigo Garcia LOPES (poet, translator; Brazil) has published five collections of poetry, including Solarium (1994), Polivox (2001) and Nômada (2004). His poems, essays and interviews have been widely published and anthologized, including in Os Cem Melhores Poemas Brasileiros do Século 20 [The Best 100 Brazilian Poems of the Twentieth Century]. His second CD, Canções do Estúdio Realidade [Songs from Reality Studio), a new book of poems and a first novel, the detective story O Trovador [The Troubadour] are forthcoming in 2012. He translates from the English (Whitman, Laura Riding, Plath) and from the French (Rimbaud, Apollinaire). A freelance journalist and translator, he co-edits the arts magazine Coyote; he also performs his poems and songs regularly around Brazil. His participation is courtesy the William B. Quarton Foundation.
2012 Resident
fiction writer, poet, translator
Gulala NOURI (poet, fiction writer, translator; Iraq) has worked as a Kurdish-language teacher and in women’s issues and human rights. Currently, she works in Kurdistan for the High Commission of Erbil Citadel Revitalization (HCECR). Nouri has published four collections of poetry, [While the Dolphin is Sleeping] (1999), [This Crowd is Not Up To You] (2001), [Calendars of Loneliness] (2005), and [Firewood] (2009). Her translations of Vladimir Vysotsky’s poetry from the Russian into Kurdish and Arabic came out in 2011. Nouri has two books forthcoming, a translation of stories on the Halabja massacre, and her first story collection. Her participation was funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2012 Resident
fiction writer, poet, translator
Bilal TANWEER (fiction writer, poet, translator; Pakistan) teaches creative writing at Lahore University of Management Sciences. His short stories, essays, and poetry have been published by Granta, Critical Muslim, Life’s Too Short Literary Review: New Writing From Pakistan, Vallum, Dawn, The Express Tribune, The News on Sunday, and The Caravan (India); his translations from the Urdu have appeared in Words Without Borders and The Annual of Urdu Studies. In 2010 he received the PEN Translation Fund Grant for Chakiwara Chronicles by Muhammad Khalid Akhtar; in 2011 he was selected as a Granta New Voice. He participates thanks to a grant from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2012 Resident
children's author, fiction writer, physician, translator
Mohib ZEGHAM (fiction writer, translator; Afghanistan) is a cardiologist practicing in Kabul, and the author of two short story collections, three children’s books, and the novels [The Suicide Bomber (Zanmargai ځانمرګی), 2009] and [The Order of the President (Da Olasmesher Farman د ولسمشر فرمان), 2012]. He regularly translates medical articles, children’s literature, and works of psychology into Pashto; he also directs the children’s-book publishing house Mosawer, and is the editor of the cultural magazine Sapida. He participates courtesy of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul.
2013 Resident
poet, scholar, translator
WANG Jiaxin 王家新 (poet, essayist, translator, scholar; China) is the author of five poetry collections, ten books of critical essays, and a translator of, among others, Paul Celan. Among his edited anthologies are a volume of Yeats’ works, three collections of 20th century European and American poetry, and two of contemporary Chinese poetry. His first collection of poems in English, Darkening Mirror: New and Selected Poems, is being readied for publication. Wang Jiaxin is a professor at Renmin University (Beijing) and the director of its International Writing Center. He participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2013 Resident
fiction writer, poet, translator
Lili MENDOZA (fiction writer, poet, translator; Panama) is the author of the short story collection Corazón de charol a-go-gó (2009). Her stories and poetry have been anthologized in Panama, Costa Rica, Spain, Peru, and the U.S., and showcased at literary events in Europe. An active member of the Theater Guild of Ancon, Mendoza also collaborates in musical and dance performances. She participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
2013 Resident
fiction writer, translator
Yui TANIZAKI (fiction writer, translator; Japan) is the author of the novel Maiochiru Mura (2009), which garnered her the 2007 Bungagukai Prize for New Writers.Her stories and essays are featured in numerous literary magazines; her translations include Kiran Desai’s Inheritance of Loss and Jennifer Egan’s A Visit from the Goon Squad. She participates courtesy of the Japan Foundation.
2013 Resident
fiction writer, translator
Erez VOLK (translator; Israel), a software engineer, linguist and chef, is an editor and a translator from the English, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish into Hebrew and English. His translations range from classics (Chekhov, Hugo, Walser) to contemporary writers like Carlos Ruíz Zafón. He participates courtesy of the United States-Israel Education Foundation.
2013 Resident
poet, translator
Zeyar LYNN (poet, translator; Burma/Myanmar) is the author of seven poetry collections, including [Distinguishing Features] (2006), [Real/Life: Prose Poems] (2009) and [Kilimanjaro] (2010). He has translated John Ashbery, Charles Bernstein, Donald Justice, Sylvia Plath, Wisława Szymborska and Tomas Tranströmer, as well as many Chinese, Japanese, Australian, East European and Russian poets. Since 2005 he has organized and hosted the annual UNESCO World Poetry Day event in Yangon. He is also one of the editors of the quarterly Poetry World. He teaches English at a specialized language school. His participation is privately funded.
2013 Resident
fiction writer, translator
Muhamed ABDELNABI (fiction writer, translator; Egypt) is the author of the short story collections [A Rose For Who Betrays] (2003) and [The Ghost of Anton Chekhov] (2012), and of the novel [The Return of the Sheikh] (2012), long-listed for the 2013 Arabic Booker Prize. His stories and essays have appeared in many Arabic-language publications in print and on-line. Said’s translations into Arabic include among others work by Hisham Matar, Joe Sacco, the Dalai Lama, and Tariq Ali. He participates courtesy of the William B. Quarton Foundation.
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
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
fiction writer, playwright, translator
Auguste CORTEAU (fiction writer, playwright, translator; Greece) is the author of fourteen novels, among them [Shameless Suicides] (2005), [The Obliteration of Nikos] (2008), [Sixteen] (2010), and [The Book of Katherine] (2013), and the short story collection [The Man Who Ate Too Much] (2012). He also won the 2004 Greek National Book Award for Children’s Literature and the IBBY Prize for Best Children’s Novel. Corteau has translated over 30 titles, including the work of Apollinaire, Faulkner, Salinger, Proulx, Updike and Banville. He writes primarily in English, teaches creative writing, and is a self-taught pianist. He participates courtesy of the U.S. Embassy in Athens.
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.
Find Us Online