Castle Kacina, Empire Chateau near Kutna Hora, Bohemia, Czech Republic, public library, interior
The Svět Knihy Pilsen is an international book fair and literary festival held in autumn by more than sixty publishers. Its rich literary program contains presentations of publishing achievements, author readings, discussions, lectures, workshops, theater performances and competitions, and aims to offer an overview of current book production. Currently, around 8,000 people attend the fair over the course of two days.
Svět Knihy is a company of the Union of Czech Booksellers and Publishers whose main activities include organizing international book fairs and literary festivals. The Svět Knihy Prague, the largest book festival in the Czech Republic, attracts over 50,000 visitors and more than 400 exhibitors. Over four days every May, the fair presents almost 800 performing writers, illustrators, translators, experts and other professionals from the book industry.
The most important task of the annual Magnesia Litera Book Award is to promote quality literature without limitation and regardless of genre. Writers, poets, translators, publishers, scholars and theorists are all given the same attention, which is why the award has been divided into several categories, such as prose, poetry, journalism, translation or blog of the year. In order to avoid too narrow specialization, the winners in the categories Discovery of the Year as well as Book of the Year are selected by 300 different respondents from the book industry. The prize is endowed with 200,000 CZK and was established in 2002.
The Franz Kafka Literature Prize (Cena Franze Kafky) has been awarded since 2001 by the Prague Franz Kafka Society (Spolecnost Franze Kafky). This international literary award is intended to honor a work by a contemporary writer that appeals to readers without regard to their origin, nationality, or culture. The award comes with a prize money of 10,000 USD and a bronze statuette resembling a monument to Kafka in a smaller form.
First announced in 2007 and named after the Czech Canadian writer and publisher Josef Škvorecký, this prize recognizes the best original prose work of the previous twelve months. The aim of the award is to promote artistic prose work as a pillar of cultural identity. The prize is endowed with the amount of 50,000 CZK.
The Jiří Orten Award is a Czech Literature Prize originally established in 1987 to honor the young deceased poet Jiří Orten. Artists should be no older than 30 at the time of completion of their work to be eligible. The prize is handed either to a work of prose or poetry in Czech of which the main part was published one year before the submission deadline. Currently, the prize is endowed with 50,000 CZK.
The Czech State Award for Translation is awarded for the translation of a literary work from a foreign language into Czech. It is given by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic, who decides based on the recommendation of juries appointed by the Minister of Culture. The prize consists of a certificate and 300,000 CZK. It is awarded each year in October 28, along with the Czech State Award for Literature.
Organized by the Czech section of the International Board and Books for Young People (IBBY), the Golden Ribbon Awards were first presented in 1992 and are the main Czech awards for children’s books. The annual Golden Ribbon Award is awarded in four areas, which are further divided into several categories of which translation is one. Through accompanying programs, such as a traveling exhibition of illustrations, art workshops, discussions and author readings, it also supports the growth of reading literacy, the development of a relationship with books and children’s cultural activities.
The Jaroslav Seifert Prize is a prestigious Czech literary prize created by the Charta 77 Foundation in Stockholm in January 1986. It is awarded for a significant work published in the Czech Republic or abroad in the previous three years. It has been awarded every two years since 2013. The prize is endowed with a total of 100,000 CZK.
The literary residency in the Broumov monastery is open to Czech and foreign writers and translators. The program seeks to provide a space for focused work on a creative project, while revitalizing the cultural life in the Broumov region. Social gatherings and reading sessions for residency participants are also included.
The city of Lisomyšl offers a literary residency for writers of detective literature to work on a current project. The literary residency includes a one-month stay in an apartment on Castle Hill as well as a monthly stipend of 1000 EUR. Also, the authors get free admission to local cultural institutions. Conditions for the stay are the creation of a short story for the city of Litomyšl and a reading in the municipal library.
The Czech Literary Center offers two residencies for translators from the Czech language, foreign researchers of Czech studies, and literary researchers with an interest in Czech culture. The residencies are located in Brno and Prague and last for three to four weeks. The residence program aims to offer a chance to participate in local literary life, meet translated authors, and provide time and space for research and creativity. The resident is paid 250 EUR per week and receives accommodation in a residential apartment in Prague or Brno.
The Residential Program for Writers of the Arts Institute is affiliated with the Visegrad Literary Residency Program and seeks to connect writers from the Visegrad countries. Located in Prague, candidates should be writers, poets or translators who have published one work, or journalists who have contributed three pieces of writing to a widely known newspaper or magazine. Candidates must be from a Visegrad country. Residents can receive support of 1300 EUR for six weeks in summer, or 2400 EUR for two months in late autumn.
This UNESCO project Prague City of Literature offers stays for foreign writers and translators in Prague. Applications are accepted from July until the end of August. Recipients are provided free accommodation, reimbursement of travel expenses and a stipend of approx. 600 EUR per month. The writers are expected to work on a Prague-related project during their stay.
