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call for submissions

DoubleSpeak, Penn’s only literary translation magazine, is now accepting submissions for its 2020-2021 edition!

DoubleSpeak features original translations of previously published poetry and prose, as well as original essays on translation. We accept submissions from everyone, whether or not they are connected to Penn. Submissions are accepted on a rolling basis until February 28, 2021, but we encourage you to submit early on in order to ensure a spot in the magazine.

You might not consider yourself a translator, or even a writer, but everyone is connected to language, more deeply than you might realize. As DoubleSpeak, we are looking for anyone and everyone who loves language like we do. If you speak Swahili, Arabic, Farsi, Russian, Cantonese or any other language, we want to hear from you. Share your story about being bilingual, what it means to translate a life between two languages and cultures. Translate so that we can read and love Gabriel Garcia Lorca as much as you do. If you only speak English, we want to hear from you. Trust us when we say that you can translate anything and everything you want to—it just takes a bit of perseverance and a passion for language.

Please do reach out to us at staff@doublespeakmagazine.org with any questions, to get involved with DoubleSpeak staff, or to join the listserv! If you want to translate and submit, but aren’t sure how to begin, definitely reach out. We’d be happy to help you get started. Please feel free to email our Editor-in-Chief, Heta Patel, at hetap@sas.upenn.edu with any questions or concerns too. See our website https://www.doublespeakmagazine.org/ and print issues (available at the Kelly Writers House) for examples of past work.

Submission deadline: Rolling until February 28, 2021.

Submit to

What to include:

Word or PDF document including your translation and the original work
Poet’s bio: where they are from, why they are important, their reception in their country, etc. ~ 200 words
Translator’s bio: contextualize yourself. Brief. ~ 100 words
Note on Translation: discuss why you translated the poem the way you did, specific choices you made, compromises you had to make during the process, etc. Speak about the process of translation. ~300 words
Optional: A photo that you feel relates to the poem (personally taken, or from a friend, not one stripped from online)

We look forward to receiving your translations soon!