Literature Contest about Contemporary Vietnam

Literature Contest about Contemporary Vietnam calls for applications
Deadline: 30 Nov 2017

From Goethe Institut:

Invitation to Vietnamese Authors to contribute to an Anthology for German Readers.

The Goethe-Institut is the Cultural Center of Germany. We promote cultural dialogue between Germany and Vietnam. Literature can play a central role in our effort to facilitate mutual understanding. Through literature audiences of can mutually receive ideas and impressions about what is in the minds and hearts of writers and audiences of the other country.

Vietnam has become a popular tourist destination, but language barriers prevent Germans from a deeper appreciation and understanding of the Vietnam of today. The German book market reflects a lack of knowledge of Vietnamese writers born after 1969. The Goethe-Institut aims to narrow this gap of knowledge and literary appreciation.

CALL FOR WRITERS AND POETS

The Goethe-Institut calls Vietnamese writers who live and have lived in Vietnam to participate in this endeavor to produce an anthology of short stories which help to understand what is on the minds and in the souls of the Vietnamese people of today. We are looking for hitherto unpublished short stories. We plan their publication in German translation. The publication in the Vietnamese language is an option which we would pursue only if this is what the authors wish from us.

TOPIC AND GENRE

Contemporary Vietnam in short stories and poems in Vietnamese language. No longer than 10.000 (Ten thousand) words.

HONORARIUM

We will pay a fee of 10 Mio. VND for each short story which will be selected for the anthology. This fee includes the right for translation and publication for German – speaking audiences.

FAIR SELECTION

The selection of the short stories and poems for the anthology will be made by a jury composed of Vietnamese critics, Vietnologists, German translators (of Vietnamese language) and Vietnamese writers living outside Vietnam.

The names of the members of the jury will be made public only at the time when the anthology will be published. The names of the authors of the short stories will be made known to the jury until after they have decided which short stories should be included in the anthology. This way the Goethe-Institut wants to block off influences from the publishing industry or from a preconceived notion about which authors should be part of the selection.

AIM OF THE PROJECT

The anthology aims to be an ensemble of literary voices about life in Vietnam today. We hope to learn about Life in Vietnam. What is on people’s mind today? What can be said about the transformation of life in the countryside and in the cities? What is the role of the family, of women and men? How is the relation to nature, to history, to cultural heritage reflected? We would be happy if the anthology helps us to understand some of these or other aspects of life in Vietnam.

DATE

Submission date: November 30, 2017
Address: Mr. Wilfried Eckstein, director Goethe-Institut Vietnam
[email protected]

Goethe-Institut Hanoi 56-58 Nguyen Thai Hoc, Ba Dinh, Hanoi Tel.: +84 24 3734 2251 Fax: +84 24 3734 2254 [email protected] website