ELit Literature House Europe held its first event in Ljubljana, Slovenia, on March 2nd with a series of readings and workshops featuring European Literature prizewinners. On April 17th more prizewinners will appear in London, and then in Budapest on April 24th.
Further events take place through 2015 in Hamburg, Paris and Vienna, culminating in the European Literature Days in the Wachau in Austria. This new network of literary organisations has created an ‘Observatory’ of Contemporary European Literature, operating throughout the year. It will publish regular observations and comments on current literary trends. ELit Literature House Europe receives funding for 2015-2018 from the EU “Creative Europe” Programme.
Organisations from six European countries have come together to create ELit Literature House Europe, dedicated to nurturing the diverse landscape of contemporary literature. Slovenia is represented by the publishing house and festival organisation Beletrina-Academic Press, Hungary by the European Cultural Foundation Budapest and its partners, Lettre International Budapest and the Budapest Book Fair; from Germany comes Literaturhaus Hamburg, and from the UK the media partnership Sounds Right London and its associate, the European Literature Network; France is represented by the Université de la Sorbonne Nouvelle-Paris 3, and Austria by Wachau Kultur Melk GmbH and the NOE Festival und Kino GmbH, both from the Wachau, where ELit Literature House Europe is based.
The new network aims to improve collaboration in the field of European literature. The main focus of this is the Observatory of Contemporary European Literature, which publishes commentary, research and discussion on literary innovations and developments across the whole continent. The Observatory is a think-tank for the European Literature market; at its heart is the exchange of ideas between authors and literary experts. It presents its findings to the literary world and the public with articles, reports and e-books via its website www.literaturhauseuropa.eu.
ELit Literature House Europe is committed to creating special events aimed at informing people about literature in the various cultural regions of Europe. It holds workshops and author readings in Budapest, Hamburg, Ljubljana, London and Paris, which allow writers to present their work outside their own language areas, as well as familiarising them with the latest developments in digital publishing and communication. It supports translation into other languages and develops innovative ways of advancing the spread of literature.
The European Literature Days are the highlight of the annual programme. They take place in the Wachau region of Austria from the 22nd to the 25th of October 2015. They consist of a series of literary events and readings open to the public, as well as a specialist symposium and annual exchange of ideas for the members of the Observatory of Contemporary European Literature .
Learn more at: www.literaturhauseuropa.eu