th
# 69 •OCTOBER 5 , 2015
more dynamic and diverse. Let’s say that it tastes
differently from Italy. The
paradox is that the Italian
publishing houses are widely open to introduce
great American writers in
our country. They care less
the opposite.
addition, we have other
two big issues to consider: the translation costs,
and the few incentives to
facilitate the publication
and dissemination abroad. The Italian publishing
houses are struggling to
follow the promotion. In
short, it is a narrow road
Is it possible, in your opi- for the Italian writers.
nion, to increase the number of Italian books publi- That’ s why we consider
shed in the US and their the translation so imporpromotion? How?
tant. The translators themselves play a fundamental
It is a hope. There are se- role in a foreign market.
veral book fairs in Ameri- A good translation under
ca, for example the Book the eyes of an American
Expo America (BEA), whi- publisher can make the
ch are a great showcase difference.
for the publishing world, and also for the Italian Maria Ida Gaeta, Director
one. What penalizes our- of the House Of Literature
selves is the access to that of Rome, whom we work
market, especially for the very closely on The Bridge,
smaller publishing hou- explains how we can help
ses. As stated by Leopold to increase the number of
Sposato, responsible for Italian books in America:
the cultural industry of “Considering that the Itathe ITALIAN TRADE COM- lian editors translate a lot
MISSION (ICE), the num- from foreign languages
bers are quite a matter. If (especially English) but
10,000 published copies instead invest very little in
may seem like a good the promotion of Italian
number in Italy, in the Uni- authors abroad, the role
ted States it would still be of awards such as The Bria very small number for a dge becomes really imso large-scale market. In portant. It would enhance
and stimulate knowledge,
publication and dissemination of contemporary
Italian literary culture, helping the writers but also
prodding and urging our
publishers to risk more “
In short, offering an incentive that covers the translation of the winner books
represents our ambition
to undermine this paradox and entice publishers,
both Italian and American,
to be opened to greater
challenges.
WE THE ITALIANS | 11
www.wetheitalians.com