In April & May 2014 the fourth edition of the Translators Bliss Tour (‘Vertalersgeluktournee’) will take place in The Netherlands. The tour offers readers and literature lovers the opportunity to enter into a dialogue with translators on their profession: what choices do they make? And what makes the translation profession so challenging and rewarding?

In several short readings, sixteen different translators from eight different languages will talk about their work, in particular the translations which have been nominated for the European Literature Prize 2014 (http://www NULL.letterenfonds NULL.nl/nl/entry/654/vertalersgeluktournee-2014). This year, the translators will visit bookstores in eleven Dutch cities: Groningen Breda, Zutphen, Rotterdam, Utrecht, Sittard, Middelburg, Heemstede, Haarlem, Gouda and Amsterdam. The tour starts on Tuesday 8 April and ends on Thursday 22 May. A detailed schedule (in Dutch) can be found here (http://www NULL.letterenfonds NULL.nl/nl/entry/654/vertalersgeluktournee-2014).

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Andrea Kluitmann (photo: Luc Nijenhuis)

At every single event three translators will talk about his or her work and the translation of the nominated novel. The complete longlist of nominated works for the European Literature Prize 2014 can be found here (http://www NULL.letterenfonds NULL.nl/en/entry/596/european-literature-prize-2014-longlist-announced). The shortlist will be announced on 3 June in SPUI25 in Amsterdam.

The Translation Bliss Tour 2014 is organized by literary translators Nicolette Hoekmeijer and Andrea Kluitmann in cooperation with the Dutch Foundation for Literature. Both the European Literature Prize 2014 and the Translators Bliss Tour 2014 are financially supported by the Dutch Foundation for Literature and the Lira Foundation.

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Nicolette Hoekmeijer (photo: Keke Keukelaar)

For an informal exchange of ideas about translators initiatives like these you may contact Nicolette Hoekmeijer (http://www NULL.letterenfonds NULL.nl/nl/nicolette-hoekmeijer). Both Nicolette Hoekmeijer and Maarten Valken (http://www NULL.letterenfonds NULL.nl/en/maarten-valken), head of translation policy at the Dutch Foundation for Literature, will be present at the Londen Book Fair from Tuesday to Thursday, April 8-10th.

Here you can find an impression of the three previous editions of the Translators Bliss Tour: 2013 (http://www NULL.letterenfonds NULL.nl/nl/entry/325/vijftien-tinten-vertalersgeluk) (including two short animation videos), 2012 (http://www NULL.letterenfonds NULL.nl/nl/entry/142/vertalersgeluk) and 2011 (http://www NULL.letterenfonds NULL.nl/nl/entry/271/vertalersgeluk-2011).