Keynote with Lawrence Schimel - Manchester in Translation 2022

Lawrence Schimel: On the dual practice of translating and being translated between mother and stepmother tongues.

Lawrence Schimel joins us to reflect on his expansive career as a writer and translator, one that has seen him publish over one hundred and twenty books to date.

Translating from and into his ‘stepmother tongue’ of Spanish, Lawrence will offer insights from his career and share advice to emerging translators. He will discuss how being translated, as well as translating the work of others, informs his dual practice as both writer and translator. This talk is a fantastic opportunity for budding translators and those interested in the process to discover the ins and outs of translation and writing as creative practice.

Lawrence Schimel is an award-winning bilingual American writer, translator, and anthologist. His work spans novels, graphic novels and poetry collections and has been translated into over 40 languages. His graphic novels have won a Crystal Kite Award from SCBWI and have been selected for the White Ravens from the International Youth Library in Munich and chosen for IBBY’s Outstanding Books for Young People with Disabilities three times. He has also been awarded the Lamda Literary prize twice which recognises the crucial role LGBTQ writers play in shaping the world. He translates between Spanish and English and along with Layla Benitez-James is a recipient of the 2022 NEA Translation Fellowship to translate HIJA DEL CAMINO by Lucía Asué Momío Rubio into English.

Manchester in Translation will be an opportunity for budding translators – or those with a passion for languages – in the North of England to develop practical skills for literary translation in particular, learn about the life of the translator and discover ways of getting themselves published.

The FREE online conference will run over three days from the 22nd to the 24th of February and will include a keynote from award-winning translator of Spanish-English, Lawrence Schimel, two panel events and three workshops focusing on literary translation from Portugese, Turkish and French into English.