A refuge, a recollection, a promised land, a prison; the arms of family, or four concrete walls in the sky... Home means something different to each of us, but it means something to all of us. For our next Read Paper Republic series, we're looking for stories of home: of the quest to find one; the struggle to escape one; the battle to defend one. Fiction, non-fiction or poetry: it's all welcome.

If you are a Chinese>English translator and know of a home-related short story, essay or poems which you really like, we want to hear from you! This publication aims to support emerging translators (translators who haven't published more than one book) and we particularly welcome entries from those new to the profession.

Entry criteria:

1. Your piece must not have been translated and published before.
2. Fiction, non-fiction and poetry. (poetry can include multiple submissions)
3. We will ask you, if we choose your piece, to get permission from the author/rights holder (we may be able to help with that part).
4. We prefer a complete short story between 3,000 – 8,000 Chinese characters (around 2,000 – 5,000 translated English words).

Payment:

We will pay the translators a fee for translation, rate TBD.

To submit a piece:

If you would like to submit a piece, please send the following in ONE Word file:

1. The original Chinese copy. Please specify the character count.
2. A note about whether you have already got permission from the author/rights holder.
3. 100-200 word sample translation from the beginning of the piece (or the whole thing, if you've got it).
4. 100-200 word summary of the piece and the author.

Deadline:

Please send your submissions to info@paper-republic.org no later than 14th February 2024. We will respond as soon as we have read and considered all submissions.

Copyright: we’ll discuss with you the copyright terms if your piece is chosen.

We are also looking for editors and graphic designers. Please drop us an email to info@paper-republic.org, if you’re interested in editing or designing, summarizing your experience. For graphic designers, please send your designer profile and quotation.

About Paper Republic

Our mission at Paper Republic is to promote Chinese literature in English translation. We focus on new writing from contemporary Chinese writers. We are a registered Charity in the UK, registration number 1182259.