First off is the which will result in Open Letter (and possibly a UK press) publishing a contemporary Bulgarian novel in translation. I’m going to be one of the judges for this, and to participate, all a Bulgarian writer has to do is submit the following to Milena Deleva (mdeleva [at] ekf [dot] bg):

• Minimum 30, maximum 50 pages from your novel (Times New Roman, 12 pt, double space);

• Biography (maximum 300 words);

• Synopsis (maximum 1500 words);

All materials should be in English language.

Closing date: 20 September 2010

Each Bulgarian writer is allowed to submit one novel for this competition.

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The second contest is to Basically, the winner of this contest will be able to spend three weeks here in Rochester working with us on their translation project, help us identify more Bulgarian books to publish, and learn about the U.S. publishing scene. Because of the funding for this grant, you must be a Bulgarian citizen who has published at least three translations either from English into Bulgarian or vice versa. Here’s the info on how to apply:

The applying translators should submit:

• Professional biography listing their major literary translations from/into English;

• Synopsis of originally written in Bulgarian language fiction work, which they are planning to translate or refine during their residency at Open Letter Books;

• Agreement from the author or the publisher of the book for translation. The book should be written by a living Bulgarian writer;

• Translation sample of fiction work: 20 pages for novel or 10 pages minimum if applying with short story (please send one or more complete stories in order to reach the required minimum) The samples could be from the intended text for translation during the work stay at Open Letter Books.

• Statement of Purpose explaining the interest in the fellowship, the relevance of the residency to the translator’s career, areas of literary interests etc.

Deadline for Applications: 27 September 2010

Again, all info must be sent to Milena Deleva at mdeleva [at] ekf [dot] bg.

Both are excellent opportunities, and I feel very fortunate that Milena and Elizabeth chose us to work with. And I look forward to reading all your submissions and applications . . .

To be honest, I didn’t even realize that Bulgaria — which is part of the EU — doesn’t use Euros.

What I know now: Sozopol is one of the most beautiful places on earth. The beach is pristine, the water unbelievable, the weather spectacular, the food delicious. Even the Art Gallery where all the Seminar events take place is wonderful and charming. And the people! Not just the people involved with the Workshop itself—and Elizabeth Kosotova and Milena Deleva deserve a very special, very public shout-out for their generosity and overall brilliance—but the three sisters that ran the where we stayed were also amazing, as were all of the other locals we met during the Seminars.

My main point with this post is that any and all eligible fiction writers should apply for this. The American writers that I spent the most time with — and — absolutely loved the morning workshop sessions, and the afternoon translation panels were always quite interesting. The evening lectures — from and — were really fascinating, as was the reading by all ten of the American and Bulgarian fellows. And I haven’t laughed as hard in months as I did during the evening informal bonding sessions that took place over a seemingly limitless amount of wine . . .

Definitely apply for this.

There were a number of interesting outcomes from this, starting with the but that totally deserves its own post . . .