European Union Prize for Literature 2024 :Nominated authors : cycle 05

Can you imagine a European literary Prize, covering the 40 or so countries taking part in the Creative Europe programme, with the ambition of raising the profile and recognition of authors who have received little or no translation? And if so, how can it be organised and how can the authors receiving this unique award be promoted? Since 2009, the organisers, with financial support from the European Union, have been tackling this almost impossible task. The task is to find trustworthy and experienced contacts in the various participating countries, so as to be able to put the spotlight on the author who will represent his or her literature. But not all at the same time, as it is not possible to make such a selection from so many countries each year, so it was decided to work in 3-year cycles, with all countries represented once per cycle. Each year, between 11 and 14 countries take part in the selection of authors who have published between two and four works of fiction and who have not yet been discovered by publishers in other countries, whether in Europe or beyond. Over the years, the Prize has changed, but the rules for selecting authors have remained the same. The vast majority of the authors featured in this compilation have been translated into many European languages and beyond. The Prize is therefore achieving its objective of highlighting new European works and introducing new readers to the talents of neighbouring countries (in the broadest sense). The Prize organisers would like to thank all those who have been associated with this prize since its inception, who have selected the books, promoted the authors, translated them and introduced them to new readers. The authors’ bibliographical notes refer to the date on which they took part in the prize. For longer translated extracts, please visit the Prize website.