This August, we once again celebrate Women in Translation (#WiT) Month! This reading series was initiated by blogger Meytal Radzinski in 2014 to raise awareness of translated literature by women, queer, and nonbinary authors, and promote gender and cultural diversity in literary publishing. This year, our free, virtual reading series gathers voices from across time zones for an international celebration!
Organized under the support of PEN America and the PEN America Translation Committee, these events bring together three panels of translators, joined by their authors, working in a diversity of languages. The readings will be followed by brief Q&A discussions. We hope you’ll join us for these one-of-a-kind bilingual readings!
The August 20 session will be moderated by Joon-Li Kim, with readings in Brazilian Portuguese, Korean, French & English, Traditional Chinese, and Spanish.
The translator/author pairs are as follows:
- Ilze Duarte (trans) and Claudia Nina (Brazilian Portuguese)
- Sung Ryu (trans) and Hoyoung Moon (Korean)
- Cole Swensen (trans & author)/Nathalie Koble (trans & author) (French & English)
- Emily Lu (trans) and Maniniwei (Traditional Chinese)
- Jeanine Legato (trans) and Catalina Navas (Spanish)
Participants
Joon-Li Kim translates from Korean into English. Her co-translation with Doo-Sun Ryu, No Hand Held Mine, was published in 2025. Her translations and writing have appeared in The Georgia Review, World Literature Today, and On the Seawall. She has received funding from Daesan Foundation and Literature Translation Institute of Korea.
Ilze Duarte translates from Portuguese. She is the translator of Marilia Arnaud’s story collection The Book of Affects. Other translations appear in LALT, Words Without Borders, and elsewhere.
Rio native Claudia Nina is the author of four novels and several short stories published in Brazilian magazines and edited volumes. Two of her short stories appear in English translation.
Sung Ryu is a translator working from and into Korean. She has called many places home, including South Korea, the United States, Canada, and now Singapore. https://sungryu.asuscomm.com/about/
Hoyoung Moon is a translator and writer whose work plays with opacity. Their work has been published or is forthcoming in The Offing, AGNI, and Asymptote. https://hoyoung.info
Cole Swensen has written 20 volumes of poetry, including Veer (Alice James, 2026) and translated 30 books from French. She divides her time between France and California.
Nathalie Koble is a translator, poet, and scholar based in Paris; she teaches medieval literature at the École normale supérieure and is the editor of an anthology of women troubadours, Trobairitz.
Emily Lu is a poet, translator, and psychiatrist. She was shortlisted for Fitzcarraldo’s Poetry in Translation Prize. Her work has appeared in Granta, Words Without Borders, and elsewhere. https://luyueyang.wordpress.com
Jeanine Legato lives in Bogotà, Columbia, where she works as a conference interpreter. Her translations have been featured in Deep Vellum´s Best Literary Translations Anthology, Under a Warm Green Linden, and Consequence Forum.
Maniniwei was born in Malaysia and studied fine arts in Taiwan. She has published more than 20 books. Her first novel, Ghost Auntie, was shortlisted for the Red Chamber Award. https://maniniwei.wixsite.com/maniniwei/info
Jeanine Legato lives in Bogotà, Columbia, where she works as a conference interpreter. Her translations have been featured in Deep Vellum´s Best Literary Translations Anthology, Under a Warm Green Linden, and Consequence Forum.
Catalina Navas is the author of Camino de hielo (Planeta, 2019), Correr la tierra (Seix Barral, 2020), and El movimiento en la crisálida (Alfaguara, 2022).