ITEF fellows at Doğan Egmont’s headquarters in Istanbul’s Şişli district. Image: Kalem Agency
By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson
Deadline for Applications: March 31
Another international publishing event trying to buck the coronavirus emergency—as Publishing Scotland appears to be doing—is the Istanbul International Literature Festival program produced by literary agent Nermin Mollaoğlu and the Kalem Agency has opened its call for applications to its 2020 fellowship program.
Turkey’s festival—themed this year on the hopeful phrase “sunflower literature”—is currently scheduled to run June 15 to 21, and is expected to feature speakers and authors including Mircea Cartarescu, Alejandro Zambra, Cevat Karahasan, Asli Perker, Burhan Sönmez, Duygu Akin, Azra Kohen, Ebru Aygün Kohen, Defne Suman, Elif Doğan, Luke Frostick, and Nazlı Berivan Ak.
“ITEF, the Istanbul International Literature Festival, aims to increase the visibility of Turkish literature abroad,” Mollaoğlu says, “to promote Turkish literature worldwide and to enrich the literary scene in Turkey by extending horizons and creating new dialogues.
“With these aims in mind, the festival established the ITEF Fellowship Program in 2011.”
The program has become one of the better known such efforts to move publishing professionals through international markets.
The program consists of a three-day trip in which fellows visit Turkish publishing houses, market presentations, matchmaking events, dinners, and networking opportunities. Covered expenses include airfare and local transport and two meals daily for three days. Fellows cover their own accommodation expenses for four nights, June 14 to 17.
An application form is here. The deadline for the form’s return to Istanbul is March 31.
Nermin Mollaoğlu
In her promotional material for the program, Mollaoğlu writes, “ITEF is a unique meeting point in Istanbul for writers, publishers, agents, translators, journalists, literary fund managers, festival coordinators and all of those passionate about world literature.
“The fellowship program allows a limited number of literary professionals from around the world to meet with Turkish counterparts in their field, to share best practice and ideas and spark new projects and literary exchanges.”
Having begun in 2011 with just five fellows, and in some years the group has been as large as 21. Close to 150 fellows have made the trip over the years.
Last year’s fellows, as we announced, were:
- Amanda Qassar / Warwick’s, La Jolla / USA
- Andrea Montejo / Indent Literary Agency, USA
- Arpad Kollar / Hungarian Literary Authors’ Collecting Society / Hungary
- Ben Brock / Quercus (Hachette) / UK
- Ilaria Tarasconi / Bonnier Zaffre UK / UK
- Ioana Mogosanu / Corint Publishing / Romania
- Juliet Mabey / Oneworld Publications / UK
- Luara Franca / Companhia das Letras / Brazil
- Natasha Glimore / Idlewild Books / USA
- Rebekah Rine / Watermark Books & Café / USA
- Vesna Gazdic / Translator / Serbia
- Vicki Satlow / Vicki Satlow Literary Agency / Italy
- Vito Francesco D’Onghia / Ampi Margini Literary Agency / UK
For questions about the program, use the address fellowship@itef.com.tr
Former ITEF fellows at YKY – Yapı Kredi Publications – in Istanbul’s Beyoğlu district. Image: Kalem Agency
Europa’s Michael Reynolds Brokers Ferrante Audio Deal
Europa Editions has sold world English audio rights for Elena Ferrante’s The Lying Life of Adults to Penguin Random House Audio, with the audiobook to be released with the hardcover and ebook editions on June 9.
The deal was brokered by Michael Reynolds at Europa on behalf of the author and rights were acquired by Catherine Bucaria and Jennifer Donovan of PRH.
When it was released in Italy on November 7, it debuted at No. 1 in bestseller categories of both Italian fiction and overall books. Europa says it remains in the Top 10.
The new title follows the pseudonymous Ferrante’s Neopolitan quartet and is set in Naples. It’s described by the publisher in promotional copy as “the story of Giovanna, whose adolescent crisis sends her in search of an identity she can trust, a search that shows her the two sides of her home city: the Naples of the heights, which assumes a mask of refinement, and the Naples of the depths, a place of excess and vulgarity.”
In media messaging today (March 13), Reynolds is quoted, saying, “We fielded interest from many exceptional audiobook publishers whose enthusiasm for The Lying Life of Adults was evident in their offer and compelling marketing plans. I’m very grateful to those editors for their interest in working with us on this project.
“Penguin Random House’s position in the audiobook market, their willingness to collaborate closely with us to integrate audiobook marketing with our existing marketing plans for the digital and physical editions of Ferrante’s new novel, and the level of enthusiasm that everybody from editorial to production to sales showed for this novel made them the perfect partner for us to launch what promises to be one of the biggest literary releases of the year.”
More from Publishing Perspectives on the Turkish market is here, more from us on translation is here, and more of our Industry Notes series is here.
In our Spring 2020 Magazine, Publishing Perspectives has interviewed publishers, industry experts, entrepreneurs, and authors to present a look at the book business for the coming year. Inside this issue of Publishing Perspectives Magazine, you’ll find articles and resources including:
- Publishing and the coronavirus
- Richard Charkin’s view of key industry challenges
- China’s growing comic book market
- Brussels Book Fair debuts its rights center
- Eksmo CEO Evgeny Kapyev on Russia’s book market
- Matchmaking for publishers and producers in Latin America
- Book market data
- A world tour of copyright developments
- Translation sales resulting from Norway’s Frankfurter Buchmesse guest of honor program
- An AI startup creating interactive stories
- An interview with author Andrew Keen
Download ‘Publishing in Times of Crisis’ free of charge here.