Publishing industry professionals gather together to talk about Northern literature

24.01.2022

The program of the international literature event Black Hole has been released

The second annual Black Hole – Books meet Rights literature event takes place on 11.–12.2.2022 in a virtual environment. The seminar arranged by Oulu Writers Association focuses on literary exports and will host discussions about Northern Finnish literature, translating, publishing Finnish literature abroad, and the effects of the Covid pandemic on the book industry. 

Highlights of the program include publishers Bjarne Michael Jensen and Jeanne Dalgaard from Jensen & Dalgaard publishing house in Denmark, who will talk about their experiences on publishing Finnish literature in Denmark. The awarded translator Elina Kritzokat, translating from Finnish to German will speak about translating Finnish literature to the most important book market in Europe. Director Nick Barley from Edinburgh International Book Festival will speak about the effects of the Covid pandemic on literary events, and authors Sami Lopakka and Simo Hiltunen will discuss the characteristics of Northern literature with literature scholar Jyrki Korpua. Sámi poet Niillas Holmberg, whose first novel has been sold to France, will talk about Samí literature with professor Veli-Pekka Lehtola.

One of the special features of the event is one-on-one meetings, for which there is time allotted on both seminar days. The attendees are encouraged to book meetings with each other even before the event begins. The match-making features of the Brella platform will make it easy to find the best-fitting contacts. 

The event is open to all book industry professionals and free of charge. The whole program and registration can be found at www.blackhole.fi

Black Hole – Books meet Rights is a part of the Oulu Writers Association’s ongoing project to build a network for publishing professionals aiming to further Northern literary exports. The event is made possible by the financial support of the Council of Oulu region and the City of Oulu. Partners include Finnish Literature Exchange FILI, Helsinki Literary Agency, and Arts Promotion Center Finland.