NOTIS’s Translation Division presents:
Poetry Translation A to Z: From First Poems to First Book
Presented by Wendy Call
Date: Wednesday, March 18, 2026
Time: 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. PST
Check-in begins at 5:50 p.m.
Location: Online via Zoom
Presentation Description
Are you curious about the world of translating (or co-translating) poetry? Or have you finished some poetry translations and want to know how move toward publishing a book? Either way, this workshop is for you! This session will be a whirlwind tour of poetry translation, including how to get started, how to sharpen your craft, and how (and where) to publish your translations. The emphasis will be on answering participants’ questions and concerns. Resources to be shared include lists of U.S.-based literary journals and publishers that welcome poetry and translations, as well as key anthologies, books, and resources to hone your craft.
Wendy Call has published four books of poetry in translation, with four (very) different publishers. She also co-founded and co-edits Best Literary Translations, an annual anthology that publishes poetry (and prose) translated from languages worldwide, created by a diverse range of translators and drawn from work published in a wide range of US-based literary journals.
Learning Objectives
#1. Learn a process for completing a successful poetry translation.
#2. Become familiar with the US poetry translation ecosystem: who publishes it and who reads it.
#3. Review a list of resources to further your learning after the workshop.
Workshop Outline
This workshop will begin by gathering information about all the participants: their experience with poetry translation, their goals as translators of poetry, what inspired them to attend the session, and whether they have arrived with specific questions. (This is all voluntary—participants are not required to offer this information—and will be gathered in writing, taking up no more than 10 minutes of the workshop session.)
The majority of the session time will be devoted to a discussion of how to move from Point A, wanting to translate some poetry to Point Z, having your first book of poetry in translation published. And, yes, there probably are two dozen steps in between those two points. This workshop will offer a fast-paced overview, devoting just five minutes to each of the eight topics below, focusing on attendees’ questions and offering further resources for each topic.
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How to choose a work to translate.
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How to secure permission to translate it.
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How to work with an author (if living), or with the author’s estate and/or other intermediaries (if the author is deceased).
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How translating poetry is different from translating prose or non-literary works.
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How to develop a first draft of a poem translation.
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How to approach the translation of, or compilation of, a book. We will talk about the pros and cons of (1) whole-book translations, (2) “selected poems” translations, and (3) anthologies of poetry in translation. (Two of my published translations have been single books that I translated in their entirety. Two have been my selections of a single author’s work, each spanning nearly two decades of the poet’s career. I also co-edit an annual anthology that is a mixture of poetry and prose from all over the world.)
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How to approach publishers and how this process differs from literary prose.
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How to connect with readers of poetry in translation.
In the final ten minutes of the workshop, each participant will write down a promise to themselves: What is the next step they will take on the path to published poetry in translation? My goal is to ensure they each have the resources / tools they need to take that next step.
Registration
Register online by March 13, 2026. Once registered, you will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link, meeting ID, and passcode. If you do not receive confirmation, your registration may not have gone through.
➡ Reminders with log-on instructions will be sent three days before and again the day before the event. If you don’t receive these, please email info@notisnet.org or text 425-615-6741.
Cost
Requirements
Before registering, please ensure your equipment and internet connection meet the online workshop requirements. Click here for system requirements.
CE Credits
| Organization |
Credit Type |
| ATA (American Translators Association) |
|
Please note: CE credits are not being requested from DSHS, AOC, OJD, CCHI, or IMIA/NBCMI.
Wendy Call (she/ella) is author, co-editor, or translator of nine books, including the annual anthology that she co-founded, Best Literary Translations (Deep Vellum, since 2024). She has translated three books of trilingual poetry by Irma Pineda, including Nostalgia Doesn’t Flow Away Like Riverwater (Deep Vellum, 2024), which she translated thanks to a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship. Her co-translation of How to Be a Good Savage and Other Poems (Milkweed, 2024), by Mikeas Sánchez, won the Gold Medal for Best Translation from the International Latino Book Awards and was longlisted for several other prizes. Wendy was a 2019 Fulbright Scholar to Colombia for poetry translation and the 2023 Translation in Residence at the University of Iowa. She teaches creative nonfiction in the Rainier Writing Workshop at Pacific Lutheran University and lives on Duwamish land, in Seattle, and Mixtec and Zapotec land, in Oaxaca.
Certificates of Attendance will be issued to those who attend the full event and arrive on time. Late arrivals will be allowed to stay but will not be eligible for CE credit. Certificates will be emailed the following week.
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Refunds available up to 5 days before the event (minus a $10 processing fee); no refunds within 5 days of the event.
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Credits cannot be transferred to other workshops.
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No refunds for technical issues such as internet connection problems or missed reminders.
This workshop will be recorded. Registrants will have limited-time access to the recording.
If you require accommodation, please contact NOTIS 2–3 weeks in advance or as soon as possible.
Email info@notisnet.org
12819 SE 38th St. #205, 