Phrases: New Poets in Translation supports eight emerging poets, age 18-35, based in Scotland and Ukraine to explore cultural exchange and collaboration through a hybrid digital/in-person translation residency. Phrases is organised with the financial support of the UK/UA Creative Partnerships programme, designed by the British Council and the Ukrainian Institute.
Four emerging Scottish poets and four emerging Ukrainian poets are working together on creative adaptation of each others work through two digital workshops, working with mentors Ryan Van Winkle, poet and artistic director of StAnza: Scotland’s International Poetry Festival, and Ostap Slyvynsky, poet and creative director of Propysy Literary Workshop Festival for Novice Writers, PEN Ukraine’s festival for emerging writers. The writers shared translated work and discussed the translation process at a live joint event with StAnza and Propysy on Saturday 9th March.
Four of these eight writers will go on to focus on developing new work and translations through a digital and physical residency space, facilitated by Moniack Mhor, Scotland’s Creative Writing Centre.
Phrases: Stage 1 Digital Writers-in-Residence
About the Programme
There are two stages to the Phrases residency programme. The first will bring together four emerging Scottish poets, and four emerging Ukrainian poets to explore the process of co-translation. Writers will work in pairs to complete versions of their poems, from English into Ukrainian and Ukrainian into English.
The second stage will invite two of the Stage 1 Scottish poets and two of the Stage 1 Ukrainian poets to continue working together to develop new work and translations, through a hybrid residency programme comprising of a digital sharing space followed by a two-week residency in September 2024 at Moniack Mhor in the Scottish Highlands.
Stage 1: Four Scottish poets/ Four Ukrainian poets
- 31st January 2024: Online workshop with Ryan Van Winkle and Ostap Slyvynsky
- February: Paired translation time to be arranged between participants.
- 28th February 2024: Online workshop on sharing of work (exact date tbc with participants)
- 9th March 2024: Live Online reading event as part of StAnza 2024 Round the World, hosted by Moniack Mhor
- All eight writers will receive a £300 stipend for the first stage of the programme
Following Stage 1 there will be a second selection process to invite two Scottish and two Ukrainian poets to continue working together during Stage 2.
Stage 2: Two Scottish poets/ Two Ukrainian poets
- June – August 2024: Moniack Mhor will facilitate an online space for the four poets to continue working together, sharing new work and exploring opportunities and learnings from translation
- 2nd September – 14th September 2024: The selected four poets will spend two weeks at Moniack Mhor in the Scottish Highlands, where they will have time and space to develop new work and translations, as well as take part in a live reading event and participate in a video performance to be shared at StAnza 2025
- All four writers will receive a £700 stipend, plus travel and accommodation, for the second stage of the programme
