Two Lines Press awarded National Endowment for the Arts grant!
We’ve been awarded a $40,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to support the work of Two Lines Press.
January might be slowly approaching its end, but the year is only just beginning. We’re ready to tackle 2024 with revitalized verve, because we are extremely pleased to say we have been awarded $40,000 from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA)(opens in a new tab) to support the work of Two Lines Press.(opens in a new tab)
This grant will support efforts to diversify publishing by bringing stellar contemporary literature in translation to new audiences. As we continue to spotlight international authors previously unpublished in English, this award enables us to broaden our readership and provide unwavering support to translators throughout the publication process.
Executive Director & Publisher Michael Holtmann expresses his gratitude to the NEA: “Heartfelt thanks to the NEA staff for adjudicating the review process, to the panelists who saw the promise in our application, and to the National Council on the Arts for supporting the work of Two Lines Press along with our stellar peers. Literature in translation advances culture by introducing novel and transformative ideas across distant and disparate communities—in rich, often surprising language thanks to the art of great translators. I can’t wait for even more readers to pick up the books we’re publishing this year.”
In 2024, we are showcasing a dizzying array of great work: from the English-language debuts of Swiss author Rebecca Gisler (About Uncle, trans. Jordan Stump) and Spanish novelist Layla Martínez (Woodworm, trans. Sophie Hughes & Annie McDermott) to a collection of spine-tingling horror stories from some of our favorite Latin American authors and translators (Through the Night Like a Snake), we are bringing a diverse range of voices to sing their wild and nebulous tales. And we’re not stopping there. We’re also giving even more shine to 2023 National Book Award-finalist Astrid Roemer through her family epic Off-White (trans. Lucy Scott & David McKay) and bringing some more of the legendary Wolfgang Hilbig to your doorstep (Under the Neomoon, trans. Isabel Fargo Cole). And if you’re hoping to genre-hop, worry not—Romanian poetry in translation (Cigarettes Until Tomorrow) is on our list, too. And once again working with 2023 Nadia Christensen Award winner Mia Spangenberg, we’re publishing Pirkko Saisio’s Lowest Common Denominator (trans. Mia Spangenberg) to satisfy your hankering for one of the greatest Finnish authors around. And to round out our year, we have Croatian author Damir Karakaš’s indomitable Celebration (trans. Ellen Elias-Bursac); and Johannes Anyuru’s scintillating AI-conversation-starter novel Ixelles (trans. Nichola Smalley).
In total, the NEA will award 958 Grants for Arts Projects(opens in a new tab) awards totaling more than $27.1 million. National Endowment for the Arts Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, PhD said, “The NEA is pleased to announce these grants, all of which strengthen our nation’s arts sector in different ways. Whether it’s the creation of new art, opportunities for the public to participate and engage in the arts, or work to better understand the impact of the arts, these grants contribute to the well-being of individuals and communities, help meet the challenges of our time, and build towards a future in which all people can lead artful lives and reach their full potential.”
We’re excited to have you along for our journey in 2024, and can’t wait to show you what we do with this grant and your support.
Giovanna Lomanto is a poet and essayist with a tendency to play the same song on repeat until she has memorized every last note. She received her BA in English at U.C. Berkeley and finished her MFA at NYU, during which time she published two poetry collections and two mixed media chapbooks.
