Poland

46% of Polish readers enjoy reading translations of foreign-language literature. What potential does German fiction have on the Polish market in this context?

“In principle there is no problem with translations of classics – for instance Fallada has recently been reissued, and there are new translations of Remarque, Rilke and Benn, as well as other authors. Many publishers are venturing to commission new translations of novels by the Mann brothers, or to republish works by Böll, Frisch and Dürrenmatt” – that’s how Ryszard Turczyn, translator and laureate of the prestigious Dedecius Prize 2011, sums up the situation.

As consultant at a literature agency and representative of nearly thirty German fiction publishers in Poland, he also admits: “Viewed as a whole, the interest in German-language literature remains unchanged. The old clichés are as relevant as they always were. For these reasons, Polish publishers are concerned that the demand for German literature might not be great enough.” Indeed the average number of copies printed for quality titles is 2000 – 5000, of which some of the books are sold off cheaply anyway.

Janusz Drzewucki, director of the tradition-steeped Czytelnik publishing house, highlights the specific conditions of the market in his home country: “If we publish a book of a higher standard, we are counting on systematic readers, and according to National Library estimations that constitutes just about 12% of Polish people. The general appetite for quality literature has been sated. Inundation of the market with popular literature has thwarted our plans. Even the introduction of five percent VAT on books for 2011 will not exactly make the task easier for us. Launching new names from the less well-known area of contemporary German-speaking literature is fairly risky, which is why we limit ourselves to compulsory reading.”

Nevertheless the Czarne publishing house takes this risk. The Chief Editor, Magda Budzińska, says the following about an unusual niche market: “We find literature by new German-speaking authors of non-German origin, such as Fatah, Stanisić, Zaimoglu, Abonji or Müller and others, very interesting. Of these, of course it is books by literary Nobel Prize winner Herta Müller, who even came to Poland for two author’s readings, that have sold best. Furthermore her short story collection Der König verneigt sich und tötet (The King Bows and Kills) was put on as a theatre production by the Warsaw Dramatic Theatre.“

The Schritte/Kroki book series, which was started up by the S. Fischer Foundation in 2005, is of crucial importance for the publication of quality German-language literature in Poland. Their volumes are published by both large and small publishers in Poland: ranging from PIW, Słowo/obraz terytoria, Sic! and Atut to Ha!art and Biuro Literackie. Forty titles have reached the market in this way. The ambitious W.A.B. publishing house was also involved in the project. Their director Beata Stasińska talks of tilting at windmills all the time: “The situation of German literature in Poland is similarly difficult to that of Polish literature in Germany. Award-winning authors who are read a great deal and frequently translated such as Ingo Schulze, Jenny Erpenbeck, Julia Franck, Juli Zeh, and even Daniel Kehlmann, whose book Vermessung der Welt (Measuring the World) sold hundreds of thousands of copies in Germany, are not well-received by the readership. Even critics and reviewers lag behind foreign reviewers when it comes to curiosity and enthusiasm for reading. Perhaps Polish readers are not particularly interested in the cultural and literary lives of their Western neighbours. Perhaps the media keeps steering clear of literature with its focus on political themes and scandals. One particular exception to this is the triumphant return of Sebald, who has thousands of readers in Poland.”

Yet despite the difficult circumstances regarding reception of this literature in Poland, and although the majority share of her publishing house has been taken over by Empik, a strong and aggressive company in the book business, Stasińska is announcing publication of eleven German-language books over the next twelve months, mainly fiction and essay writing for the discerning reader. Monika Machlejd, manager of the editorial office for the same publisher, confirms the impression that many publishers approach German literature quite spontaneously: “We don’t have a specified quantity, some years we publish more German-language literature titles and in others less. The selection criteria are content-related, and in the case of certain books also commercially-orientated. The titles selected suit the profile of a series that is intended to familiarise the Polish reader with contemporary prose from different countries.

Other publishers also have their own methods of searching for quality literature: the ADiT theatre agency publishes contemporary German and Austrian drama, the Książnica publishing house publishes “women’s literature” and chick-lit as well as documentary writing, Znak uses the brand-name Znak Emotikon to publish quality literature for children and young people, thus raising a new generation of readers. The German publisher Arkadia, founded by Magdalena Modlińska-Nawroth who is Polish, is an interesting project. They publish authors such as Walser, Heidenreich and Aehnlich in the Polish language, and they work with fantastic translators to achieve this.

Other publishers react to what the market dictates. In 2010 the Polish most frequently read thrillers (22%), romantic novels (19%) as well as documentary writing (15%). Ryszard Turczyn says with surprise: “In the throes of the Scandinavian wave of success, interest in German-language crime literature has also risen rapidly. Publishers are asking for whole series by a single author, they are interested in classic crime novels from the sixties and the inter-war period. However this is not a lasting trend and is not a sign that the publishers’ perspective has changed. There is also a greater demand for social novels in a historical setting.” Both well-known and new publishers are trying to use the universally huge success of this literary genre to their advantage – the first group includes publishers such as W.A.B., Świat Książki and Czarne, the second comprises companies like G+J, Niebieska Studia and Akcent/BC Edukacja. The novels of Charlotte Link, published by Sonia Draga, are also successful, as is a historical novel by Ina Lorenz, although they sold slowly to begin with. Her ultimate success achieved as a result of hard work shows how important it is to promote a title with intensive advertising.

Experiences with German-language literature are as numerous and diverse as the publishers and translators, both on the German side and the Polish side. Generally speaking the position of German-language literature in Poland still leaves a lot to be desired. The low reading rate in Poland (56%), clichés, publishers who want to assess the potential of a particular book having no knowledge of German, greater interest in English literature and “smaller national literatures”, but also lack of advertising – all these are factors that hamper the development of German-language fiction in Poland. But the publishing market is not totally stable and new tendencies represent a chance for German literature at the same time, which the success of crime novels recently has shown. The support of publishers through the Schritte/Kroki project and the Goethe-Institut, as well as the long-term advertising strategies of various institutions, but equally the commitment shown by literary agents and other private individuals, are all gradually changing the circumstances of German-language literature.

The involvement and tremendous work put in by the translators themselves is not to be underestimated – unlike the situation in Germany they often seek out books themselves and recommend them to the publishers. One important aspect of this is improving the qualifications of up-and-coming translators. In this respect one course that inspires hope is a postgraduate study programme at the Vistula University in Warsaw, which was organised in 2011 for the first time by the recently-established Verband der Literaturübersetzer (Association of Literary Translators).

According to the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels (German Publishers and Booksellers Association), the number of German book licences acquired by Polish publishing houses may have dropped (for the years 2008–2010 the figures were 780, 624 and 678 for each year), but even in 2010 Poland continues to be amongst the global leaders in licence buying.

From the perspective of German publishers: