From 5th until 7th June, the “Latvian Literature” platform is welcoming to Riga 19 journalists, publishers, and festival organizers from six countries. During the visit, the guests will have the chance to learn more about the book industry in Latvia and meet authors and publishers in person.
During the three days of their stay, the guests are to attend lectures on the Latvian book industry (Renāte Punka, director of Latvian Publishers' Association), prose and poetry (literary critic Anda Baklāne), children’s literature and illustrations (translator Jolanta Pētersone), the “Latvian Literature” activities and the grant programme for foreign publishers (“Latvian Literature” project manager Juta Pīrāga), literature advertising campaign “#iamintrovert” (creative director Una Rozenbauma), and meet Latvian authors and illustrators.
The delegation will also be visiting the the National Library of Latvia, learning more about Latvian culture (Latvian Institute, International Affairs, Paula Prauliņa), going on an excursion around old Riga, and meeting the Orbita Group. The publishers are also scheduled to meet up with their Latvian counterparts in prose, poetry and children’s literature publishers. A separate set of events will be put up for journalists and festival organizers based on their interests and material to be published in foreign media.
“This is already the 11th visit of this kind but for the first time it is jointly organized for publishers, journalists and festival organizers from different countries. It is especially nice to be joined by representatives from the marvelous literary festivals in Berlin, Zurich, Normandy, and see them interested in reflecting Latvian literature in their programmes in the future,” elaborated the foreign project manager Ildze Jansone.
Riga will be welcoming editors from publishing houses Aula (Finland), SAND (Germany), Papperlapapp (Austria), Kommode Verlag (Switzerland), Helvetiq (Switzerland), Louisoder Verlag (Germany), MARE (Germany), Picus Verlag (Austria), Verlag Galiani Berlin (Germany), as well as journalists from NZZ am Sonntag (Switzerland), Lonesomereader.com (Great Britain), Putsch Media (France), and others.
Photo: Toms Harjo