Meet our writers on tour at the DAY OF EUROPEAN AUTHORS, 27 March

19th March 2023

#ReadWithEurope: The Day of European Authors, to be celebrated on 27 of March 2023 for the very first time, is a new initiative led by the European Commissioner Mariya Gabriel. The tour of European writers and translators to schools is co-organised by the EWC and its member organisations, together with the consortium of the EUPL, to reconnect younger generations with book reading and to help them discover the diversity of European literature. Meet our authors:

Brussels, 19 March 2023

About the Day of European Authors

The Day of European Authors is an initiative of the European Commission and led by Commissioner Gabriel, to reconnect younger generations with book reading and to help them discover the diversity of European literature. The first edition of the Day of European Authors is taking place on 27 March 2023 with three parallel activities organised during the Day, always tagged with the hashtag #ReadWithEurope:

Reading sessions in schools: Secondary schools across the EU are invited through the eTwinning community and other channels to organize reading aloud sessions with European authors.

27 of March Tour by European Authors: The Commission organises a tour of European authors together with the EWC and the EUPL Consortium. The nearly 100 writers and translators will visit schools, libraries and bookstores, read a piece of their works, and encourage students to discover European authors. The EWC presents here its 40 colleagues who take part and help to launch the Day for its first celebration.

27 of March: A conference on reading promotion in Sofia / Bulgaria In the frame of the first edition of the Day of European Authors, the Commission is organising a one-day conference in Sofia on reading promotion, gathering Member States’ representatives of the ministries of Culture or Education, relevant public institutions and national NGOs active in this field as well as organisations representing the book and cultural sectors at European level. The EWC will be moderating the workshop “Back to School” together with CEATL.

Authors on Tour: meet the writers and translators from the EWC member associations and invited writers’ and translators’ unions to celebrate the
DAY OF EUROPEAN AUTHORS and #ReadWithEurope

Daniel Wehnhardt was born 1984 in Fürstenhagen, a town near Kassel, Germany. After studying Spanish and Political Sciences he worked for the Protestant Church and as a teacher in different Schools in northern and eastern Hesse. Since 2021 he writes historical and contemporary Suspense Novels as full-time author. He lives and works in Kassel. More on: www.danielwehnhardt.de

Zyranna Zateli was born in 1951 in the town of Sochos, northwest of Thessaloniki. She studied Drama in Athens, but has only ever worked as a writer. Last Year’s Fiancée, her first collection of short stories, was published in 1984, followed by a second in 1986 entitled Grace in the Desert. Her novel At Twilight They Return was published in 1993 and was awarded the National Award for Novel 1994. Her novel Death Came Last (2001), the first part of her trilogy entitled With the Strange Name Ramanthis Erevous, was awarded the National Award for Novel 2002. Her short story My Brother’s Magical Wooden Staffs was published in 2006, followed by Passion a Thousand Times, the second instalment in her trilogy, in 2009, a collection of short stories titled Pleasure in the Temples in 2011 and Dream Journals in 2017. The final instalment in her trilogy, She’s Visible as Invisible, was published in 2021. In 2010, Zyranna Zateli was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Academy of Athens. Her works have been translated into French, German, Italian, Dutch, Serbian, and English.

Maria Laura Capobianco was born in Palermo in 1989. After studying Modern Languages and Cultures, she graduated from the Civica Scuola Interpreti e Traduttori in Milan. Since 2016 she has collaborated with Editrice il Castoro and since 2020 with Gallucci Editore, lending her voice to Neil Patrick Harris, Joseph Coelho, Kira Willey, and other authors for children and teenagers. In 2019, Bompiani published a new translation of all of Oscar Wilde's tales – the collaborative work of six translators. She is also a translator of marketing content and a proofreader in the video game industry.

Andreas Roß, born in 1962, has lived in Darmstadt since 1985, is married, has two sons and has been a social worker for several decades. In addition to two collections of short stories, five crime novels have been published. Member of the crime writers' association "Syndikat" and the literary group "Poseidon". He developed his affection for the crime genre while serving in various correctional facilities. There he heard some stories that inspired him to write. Added to this was the love for his adopted home of Darmstadt.

The gifted Maaria Päivinen spent several years living in Munich and has since wandered the world, poking about its nooks and crannies. She has crossed nearly forty frontiers and seen beneath surfaces. Päivinen has previously published three novels and one collection of poetry. Her novel Scratches (ntamo 2013) was a 2014 Runeberg Prize nominee. Hungry, Thirsty (Into 2014) sparked substantial interest at the Frankfurt Book Fair, and translation rights have been sold to Germany and Iceland.

Mateja Gomboc is a writer, translator and professor. She is a professor of Slovene and Italian. She teaches Slovene at secondary school and translates from Italian, especially young adult literature. She is also the author of several language school books for secondary school. Most of all, she is a writer. Her bookshelves are stocked with picture books, young people's novels and novels and short fiction collections for adults. Her novel Balada o drevesu (The Ballad of the Tree) won the Slovenian Writers' Association's Award desetnica in 2022. She is also involved in the national project Growing with Books (Rastem s knijgo).

Rita Saliba is the author of a number of children’s books. In 2011 she ventured into teen writing. Three times winner of the National competition for Young Adult literature which led to the publication of three teen novels. The author published four collections of stories between 2014 and 2021. She also published three collections of microfiction between 2018 and 2022. Her first adult novel, was published in 2019. A book of verse by the author was published in 2022. Rita Saliba took part in various literary festivals both locally and abroad. She has led writing workshops in the first literature festival for children, Ħarba, at St James Cavalier – Centre for Creativity in 2010.

Magdalena Hai is a fantasy author; her works have been nominated for several awards (Finlandia for Children's and Young People's Literature, Nordic Council Children's and Young People's Literature Prize, LukuVarkaus, Atorox, Topelius, Arvid Lydecken, Runeberg Junior) and won Tulenkantaja (2018, Kurnivamahainen kitsa), Blogistanias Kuopus (2018, Third Sister), Kirjava Ketu (2014, Beggar Princess), Stalker Award (2015, Vaskimõrsja vironnos Vaskimõrsja) and Atorox (2016, Kaunis Ululian). In addition to children's and young adult literature, Hai writes short prose for adults and is involved with Osuuskumma , which publishes sci-fi, fantasy and horror, as well as other speculative fiction.

The work of the poet Indrek Mesikepp, who has the shortest writer’s name in Estonia - fs - draws together the contemporary lines of power in Estonian poetry, while at the same time staying clearly distinct, standing out. He is a poet sensitive to the times. In 2021 Indrek Mesikepp was chosen as the new editor-in-chief of the literature magazine Looming. He is the author of 6 books of poems. // Indrek Mesikepp on sündinud 1971. aastal. Ta lõpetas Tartu Ülikooli kunstiajaloolasena ja töötab aastast 2000 ajakirjas Looming. 2021. aasta kevadest on ta Loomingu peatoimetaja. Peamiselt kirjanikunime fs kasutades on ta andnud välja 6 luulekogu, samuti toimetanud teiste autorite (Vahur Afanasjev, Jüri Kolk jt) raamatuid, avaldanud lühiproosat ning artikleid kirjandusest, muusikast ja kunstist. Tema raamat “2004” pälvis Eesti Kultuurkapitali auhinna kui aasta 2004 parim luulekogu. fs-i teoseid on ilmunud soome, rootsi, vene, läti, bulgaaria ja udmurdi keeltes.

Claire Audhuy writes poetry and theatre, with the question of exile at its heart. Her works are places where mourning and love rub shoulders, where they seem to tame each other. As an author of reality, Claire Audhuy chooses to use documentary writing to tell us about the world around us. Her writing is permeated by questions of identity and living together, and her documentary theatre texts give a voice to the "voiceless" in plays such as Les Migrantes on exiled women, 120 jours à Hénin-Beaumont on the city that survives without migrants, Dieu, les caravanes et les voitures on the Roma, Pas de chips au paradis on detainees and migrants, Frères ennemis on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. She has also written poems: Misères de vie, J'aurais préféré que nousfassions obscurité ensemble, L'hiver dure 90 jours.she has published two books for young people: Les Mots de Bonne-Ma, and Unnôtre pays.she has already been a guest author at the Château du Pont d'Oye (2012), at the Villa Yourcenar (2015), at the Villa La Brugère (2017), at the Silos de Chaumont (2017), and at the Château de la Turmelière (CNL grant, 2018). His books have been awarded the Rhenalia Prize (2009), the Prix des Journées de Lyon des Auteurs de Théâtre (2013), the Prix Jeunes Textes en Liberté (2018), SélectionActuelles (Taps- 2018), Sélection Co-Po (2018)... A specialist in "theatres of the extreme", Dr Audhuy has conducted numerous interviews and published books such as Les Auschwitz (unpublished testimonies), Les Théâtres de l'extrême (a travel diary between the USA, Canada, Israel and Europe) and On a besoin d'un fantôme (clandestine concentration camp manuscripts about the creation of an imaginary Republic by children in a Nazi camp). She is also a director and actress.

Oisín McGann was born in Dublin and spent his childhood there and in Drogheda, County Louth. He studied at Ballyfermot Senior College and Dun Laoghaire School of Art and Design, and went on to work in illustration, design and film animation, later moving to London to work as an art director and copy writer in advertising. He has since become one of Ireland’s most prolific and best-known writer-illustrators, and has produced dozens of books for all levels of reader, including twelve novels. He is the author of the Mad Grandad books, Headbomz: Wreckin' Your Head (in association with the ISPCC), and novels such as Race the Atlantic Wind, The Gods and Their Machines and The Wildenstern Saga. His latest books are We Want Our Park Back, a picture book for Green-Schools, and A Short, Hopeful Guide to Climate Change, a non-fiction book in association with Friends of the Earth. He is the illustrator of comedian Jason Byrne’s Onion O’Brien series. He is a winner of the European Science Fiction Society Award, CBI's Children's Choice Award and has been shortlisted for numerous other awards, including the Waterstones Childrens’ Book Prize in the UK, le Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire in France and Locus Magazine's Best First Novel Award in the US. He is married with three children, two dogs and a cat, and lives somewhere in the Irish countryside, where he won’t be heard shouting at his computer.

Arno Jundze (born 1965) is a Latvian prose writer, cultural journalist, literary critic and theorist. He has hosted 100g of Culture and other TV programmes, and is one of the creators of the programme Black on White (Melns uz balta) for Latvian television (LTV1). Jundze is an editor of the cultural news section for one of the biggest newspapers in Latvia. He was a member of the State Culture Capital Foundation council and chairman of the board of its literature department from 2010 until 2012. Currently Jundze is head of the Latvian Writers' Union. He has also written two books for children, a collection of stories about Post-Soviet Latvia, and a novel, Dust in an Hourglass (Putekļi smilšu pulkstenī). His latest fantasy novel is Christopher and the Order of Shadows (Kristofers un ēnu ordenis). Jundze's works for children have been nominated for the prestigious Jānis Baltvilks Award, and his prose is popular with readers across the country.

Playwright, actress, cultural journalist. She is dedicated to dramatic writing: "No hay papel" (There is not paper) won the 2016 Eurodrams AWARD. “El presente es un animal” (The present is an animal), received the Grant for Creation and Development of Performing Arts 2016 by the CAM and the First International AWARD Dramaturgias invasoras 2018. "El corazón de astronauta" (Astronaut’s heart) selected for the 5th Theatrical Writing Laboratory 2017 by SGAE Fundation and Mujeres que cumplen 2018 AWARD given by SGAE Fundation. She is the author of the text for teenagers “Nuestras Stories” (Our Stories) published in Ñaque Editorial 2020. In 2022 she received the Subsidy for Dramatic Writing from the Ministry of Culture.

Born in Lisbon in 1951, having graduated in Architecture in 1976. José Fanha is a professor and trainer of teachers in the artistic areas, and is also a professor of several master's degrees at universities in the area of book and reading promotion, namely at the Orientale Institute in Naples and at the University of St. Etienne in France. He holds a Master's Degree in Educational Sciences from the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences in Lisbon. He attended screenwriting courses with the Brazilian Doc Comparato and the Italian Suzi Sechi d’Amico. As a reciter he shared the stage with Zeca Afonso, José Jorge Letria, Manuel Freire, Francisco Fanhais, Vitorino, Carlos Alberto Moniz and others, including the Spaniards Patxi Andión, Luís Pastor, Pi de Serra and Paco Ibañez. He is the author of several books of poetry, novelist and author of literature for children and youth, with close to 100 books published. He has written for radio, theatre, television and cinema and he is tha author of hundreds of lyrics, notably “O meu Coração não tem cor” with which Portugal came in 6th place at the 1996 Eurovision Song Contest. He has taken recited Lusophone poetry to Angola, Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde, USA, Sweden, Holland, Belgium, Italy, France and Spain. His name was given to eight school libraries, including one in Cidade da Praia in Cape Verde. He is a counsellor for Communities of Readers, Courses in Imaginative Writing, Poetry Workshops and has directed numerous training actions in the area of book promotion and reading. Fanha was also a member of the SPA board.

Silke Heimes studierte Medizin und Germanistik in Deutschland und Brasilien. Bevor sie eine Professur für Journalismus antrat, hat sie lange als Ärztin in Psychiatrien in Deutschland und der Schweiz gearbeitet. Sie lebt in Darmstadt sowie am Meer und in den Bergen, wo sie Romane und Sachbücher schreibt. Silke Heimes studied medicine and German language and literature in Germany and Brazil. Before taking up a professorship in journalism, she worked for a long time as a doctor in psychiatric hospitals in Germany and Switzerland. She lives in Darmstadt as well as by the sea and in the mountains, where she writes novels and non-fiction.

Maria Höfle (born in 1978) is an Austrian writer of crime fiction. Her debut novel Dein ist die Schuld (PIPER) was published in 2018. Her second novel Dein ist die Macht (PIPER) was released in 2021. Maria Höfle lives with her husband and daughter in Kufstein (Austria). She teaches Latin, English and German at a secondary school.

Andrei Khadanovich is a poet, translator of poetry, literary critic, essayist. Born in 1973 in Minsk. In 1995, he graduated from the Philology Department of Belarusian State University, where he later taught the history of French literature for many years. Member of the Union of Belarusian Writers and the Belarusian PEN, which he headed in 2008 - 2017. His poems have been translated into English, Czech, Spanish, Lithuanian, German, Slovak, Slovenian, and Russian. His works and translations have been marked by literary prizes and recognized by literary organizations from Belarus, Poland, and Slovenia. He translated, sang, and recorded the album “Mury” [L'Estaca] by Jacek Kaczmarski in Belarusian. His version of the title track became an unofficial anthem of the Belarusian opposition during the 2020 events.

Markku Löytönen, Professor. MSc 1979 and PhD 1986 University of Helsinki. My research interests range from the history of geography and exploration to quantitative methods and geographical information systems with special interest in the geography of health. Along with my academic career, I am also a well-known author of popular science books, among them five books for children. I have received five literature awards. I am/have been on the editorial board or editorial advisory board of Journal of Health and Place, International Journal of Health Geographics, and Belgeo. I have served as the Editor-in-Chief of Fennia and Terra.

Ever since the day he learned to read, Gert De Bie has been greedily devouring book after book. No family gathering went by without a picture being taken of Gert with a book in a corner of the table. A journalism course seemed the next logical step. An intense internship at De Groene Amsterdammer was the start of a passionate period as a freelance journalist for various newspapers and magazines. But literature kept pulling his sleeve incessantly, and in 2009 he opened the independent bookstore Het Voorwoord (‘The Foreword’) in the Belgian town of Heist-op den-Berg. Sharing his passion for books and literature led him to giving lectures about books in all their aspects with a special preference for cult books. He is also the organizer of the greatly appreciated literary event ‘Tussen de Letters’ (‘Between the lines’).

Juan Aparicio Belmonte (London, 1971) is a spanish writer, professor and humor cartoonist in various media. He has written the novels Mala suerte (Hard Luck, 2003), López López (2004), El disparatado círculo de los pájaros borrachos (The crazy circle of drunken birds, 2006), Una revolución pequeña (A small revolution, 2009), Mis seres queridos (My loved ones, 2010), Un amigo en la ciudad (A friend in the city, 2013), Ante todo criminal (First of all criminal, 2015), La encantadora familia Dumont (The charming Dumont family, 2019) and Pensilvania (Pennsylvania, 2022).

Sabine Gronover, born 1969 in Hamm-Heessen, studied education and art therapy at the WWU Münster and still works part-time as a therapist at the LWL-Klinik Münster and in the hospice. She has already written a number of Münsterland crime novels, as Frida Gronover she writes Danish crime novels for Ullstein Verlag What fascinates her about books - you can experience all sorts of things with them, be a hero, own an owl as a pet and save the world again and again and still be at home with the 3-course menu. Gronover lives with some animals and her family in the countryside near Drensteinfurt.

Conor Kostick is a writer of history and fiction, living in Dublin, Ireland. As a novelist, Conor Kostick's works have received several awards, including a place on the International Board of Books for Youth Honours List (2006); The Reading Association of Ireland 'Special Merit' award (2009); a place on the New York Public Library book for the teen age (2008); and the Master List of the Soaring Eagle Book Award (2008). Conor has been shortlisted for the Sakura Medal (Japan) and the Farniente Prize (Belgium). He was twice a nominee for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. A member of the board of the National Library of Ireland, Conor Kostick has long been an advocate for writers. He was chairperson of the Irish Writers Union 2002-4 and 2006-8; chair of the Irish Copyright Licensing Agency 2015-18 and member of the Irish Writers Centre, 2020.

Baptiste Cogitore is a writer and photo reporter. After studying comparative literature, he entered the Centre universitaire d'enseignement du journalisme (Cuej) in Strasbourg. There he specialised in JRI ("journalists reporter d'images"). After graduating in June 2013, he now works as a freelancer for various media (France 2, France 3, ARTE...). He is the author of two books published by Rodéo d'âme. From May to October 2014, with Claire Audhuy, he embarked on the Bulli Tour adventure on the roads of Eastern Europe. Their journey will be relayed through various media and events. Their adventure will also give rise to a 52-minute television report produced by Alsace 20 and a book published by Rodéo d'âme: Les théâtres de l'extrême, Journal de recherche.

Bianca Bellová, Czech novelist, lives in Prague. She has written six novels and one collection of short stories. Her novel Jezero (The Lake, 2016) won the Czech national Magnesia Litera prize for the Book of the Year and translated into 23 languages. She is also Laureate of the EUPL. Bianca Bellová je česká prozaička žijící v Praze. Je autorkou šesti románů a jedné sbírky povídek. Její román Jezero (2016) získal českou cenu Magnesia Litera za knihu roku a Cenu Evropské unie za literaturu a byl přeložen do 23 jazyků.

Born in France in 1966, came to Vienna more than thirty years ago. She is an author, translator for film, theater and literature, and a slam poet aka Ann Air (her initials!). Numerous publications, scholarships, and awards. 1966 in Frankreich geboren, kam vor über dreißig Jahren nach Wien. Sie ist Autorin, Übersetzerin für Film, Theater und Literatur, sowie Slam Poetin unter dem Namen Ann Air (ihre Initialen!). Zahlreiche Publikationen, Stipendien und Förderpreise.

Amelia Pérez de Villar (Madrid, 1964), is a writer and certified translator by la Universidad Complutense de Madrid and Institute of Linguists of London. She has worked for several Spanish publishing houses Fórcola, Galaxia Gutenberg, Páginas de Espuma, Ariel, La Fuga, Gallo Nero, Impedimenta, Punto de Vista y Firmamento del inglés (William Blades, Harold Bloom, Emily Brontë, Lucy Hughes-Hallet, Henry James, Alex Kapranos, Rudyard Kipling, Rachel Kushner, Pankaj Mishra, Abraham Merritt, Robert Louis Stevenson, Graham Swift, Edith Wharton, Thomas Wolfe, Virginia Woolf, D.H. Lawrence) y del italiano (Gabriele d’Annunzio, Giorgio Bassani, Dino Buzzati, Natalia Ginzburg, Vasco Pratolini, Mario Soldati y P. P. Pasolini). Shortlisted for the María Martínez Sierra Playwright Translation Prize given by ADE for her translation of all six of Pasolini’s plays, Teatro, published by Punto de Vista Editores. As a writer she has published prologues, reviews, short stories and articles in different collections (Hijos de Babel, Fórcola, 2013), and literary magazines (Renacimiento, Litoral, Nueva Revista, Culturamas, Cuadernos Hispanoamericanos, o El Cultural). Author of both non-fiction works, such as Dickens enamorado: Un ensayo biográfico (Fórcola, 2012) and Los enemigos del traductor (2019) and novels El pulso de la desmesura (2016) and Mi vida sin microondas (2018).

Gudrun Wieser, born in 1987 in Frohnleiten, went to school the Ursulinen in Graz (at that time still an all-girls school), followed by studying German and Latin at the Karl Franzens University in Graz. Out of passion for ancient languages, she added a doctorate in Latin in Graz and Vienna in 2017. As a teacher, she finally ended up at the historically rich Akademisches Gymnasium Graz, where she now teaches Latin, German, Intercultural Social Learning and Performing Arts. In addition, she performs as a storyteller alone and as the duo Wieser&Wiesler with the actress and author Marion Wiesler. https://www.gudrunwieser-autorin.com/

Boyan Angelov (1955) is a Bulgarian writer. He has a degree in Philosophy and Bulgarian Philology from Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski. He defended a doctoral thesis at the Institute for Philosophical Research at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. From 1998 to 2005 he studied and worked in Switzerland, where he earned a Doctorate degree in Valdorf’s Pedagogy and Social Psychology. Author of 32 poetry books in Bulgarian, his poems have been translated into more than twenty languages. He is the director of Bulgarian writer Publishing House and has been a Chairman of the Union of Bulgarian Writers.

Angela Kaimaklioti lives in Larnaca, Cyprus. She holds a degree in pedagogy and a master's degree in educational leadership and politics. She is a director of primary schools, president of the Larnaca Cultural Association and a member of the board of the Foundation for Culture for Children and Young People. She was vice-president of the Cyprus Writers' Union. She has published five books of poetry and a book of short stories. Her poems have been included in poetry anthologies and literary magazines. Her poetry book "At close quarters", has been translated into Serbian and English.

Gert Weihsmann, born in Villach in 1961, has lived in Vienna for more than three centuries. He is fulltime employed in the management of the International Beverage Industry for almost 20 years. In his second crime novel “Wiener Lied” he follows a nightly “Ronde” of dangerous encounters, musical passion and the willingness of an exceptional talent to risk his own death – for posterity an ingenious composition to leave.

Małgorzata Lebda – born in 1985. She grew up in the Beskid village Żeleźnikowa Wielka. Author of six books of poetry, including the award-winning volumes (Gueen Cells (2016) and Uckermárker Dreams (2018) – Gdynia Literary Award (2019).The last volume entitled Mer de Glace (Publisher "Warstwy", 2021) was awarded the most important poetic prize in Poland – the Wisława Szymborska prize (2022). Her books have been translated into Czech (translated by Bogdan Trojak); Italian (translated by Marina Ciccarini); Serbian (translated by Biserka Rajčić); and Ukrainian (translated by Yury Zavadsky); Slovenian (translated by Katarina Šalamun-Biedrzycka); Danish (translated by Frej Larsen and Paweł Partyka). Translations into English, German, and Romanian, as well as more books in Czech and Italian – are in progress. Doctor of humanities. Columnist. Culture animator. Editor. A researcher interested in the relationship between visuality and literature; somaesthetics; ecopoetics. Ultramarathoner (in September 2021, she ran a distance of 1,113 kilometers along the longest Polish river, the Vistula, implementing the activist and poetic project "Water reading" (https://magazynpismo.pl/soczewka/czytanie-wody-wisla/). Her debut as a prose, the book “Łakome”, will be published this year by ZNAK publishing house. He lives on a windy ridge in Beskid Sądecki and Krakow. She has over 12 years of teaching experience in working with children, youth, and adults in the context of literature and popularizing poetry in schools.

Alexander Pfeiffer was born in 1971 in Wiesbaden, Hessen, where he resides to this day. He is a writer, organizer of literary events, presenter und creative writing teacher for schools and other institutions. Apart from several volumes of short stories and poetry he has published four crime novels. His short crime story “Auf deine Lider senk ich Schlummer” was rewarded with the Friedrich-Glauser-Award in 2014. Pfeiffer is a member of the SYNDIKAT – Association of German Crime Writers, the German Writers Union, the PEN Centre Germany and the Cultural Advisory Board of the City of Wiesbaden.

English: Born 1957 in Vienna, Austria. Studied classical philology and history. Freelance writer; crime novels, non-fiction and screenplays, plays. Specialist in organised crime, secret services, terrorism, right-wing extremism, politics and history. Member of the PEN Club, Writers-In-Prison Committee, Syndikat (association for German-language crime literature). Producer of "Zäuners Krimisalon"; monthly on YouTube, TV21 and other social media. www.guenther-zaeuner.at

Anke Kemper is a writer of stage plays and a passionate actress of improvisational theatre. She also writes stories for kids and adults and illustrates books and magazines. With her workshop of „Writing and representing stories with support of improvisation“ (for kids from 10 years on) she visits schools and cultural projects. She is a member oft the Illustration-Organisation e. V. and of the Association of German-language crime writers: SYNDIKAT e. V. More information here: www.kempers-art.de

Antía Yáñez is a Civil Engineer graduated in 2015. In 2013 she began to participate in literary contests that she looked for on the Internet, winning several prizes. In 2016 she published her first book, O misterio de Portomarín, which has sold over 10 000 copies. Currently she combines writing with teaching in her own academy, and she also gives Creative Writing lessons at the University of A Coruña and other places, collaborates biweekly with articles in Luzes.gal, gives talks on literature and equality, coordinates Reading Clubs and prepares and leads activities of encouragement to reading for children.

Marta Grzywacz – graduate of the University of Warsaw started her career as radio and television journalist. Since 2013 she’s been working as historical columnist and author of non-fiction books. She publishes in Gazeta Wyborcza and Newsweek, writing mainly about the history of the 20th century. Her books, dealing with the difficult subject of World War II, were awarded both by critics and readers. She had also run workshops for student at the SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities in Warsaw. In her free time she guides tours around Warsaw’s Ghetto and historic town of Żyrardów.

Igor Rajki (1965, Zagreb) is a versatile and original author whose work includes short prose, short stories, novelettes, novels, plays, essays, and books for children and teenagers. He attended Faculty of Law for two years and later graduated in phonetics and linguistics from the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb. His short stories were first published in the late 1980s by Radio Zagreb 3 (specialized in broadcasting arts and cultural programmes) and in several periodicals. Since 1993. he regularely contributes to the children’s magazines “Modralasta” and “Smib”, where he publishes children’s stories and reportages. In “Modra lasta” he also collaborated with Krešimir Zimonić, writing the script for the poetic comic strip Zlatka . From 1996 to 2002 he worked as editor of several cultural websites. He is a member of the Croatian Freelance Artists' Association (since 2003) and of Croatian Writers Society (since 2011). Since 1990 his works are regularly published in various literary magazines and other periodicals. A few of his radio plays were produced by the drama department of Croatian National Radio.

Jáchym Topol is a novelist, poet, dramatist, and journalist. His work has been translated into twenty-five languages. Because of his father's dissident activities, Topol was not allowed to go to university. He worked as a stoker, stocker, construction worker, and coal deliveryman. Several times he was imprisoned for short periods, both for his samizdat publishing activities. He works as a programm director in Václav Havel‘s Library. Jáchym Topol received State Prize for Literature for his latest novel A sensitive person and his body of work. The book was published 2023 by Yale University Press in Alex Zucker's translation.

Miren Gorrotxategi Azkune (Azpeitia,1981) has a University Degree in Translation and Interpreting and a University Diploma in Tourism. She has a Master’s degree in hotel management and another one in Secondary school teaching. Having worked as a teacher at the Sorbonne University in Paris, she currently works as a Basque teacher in Secondary Education. After having won the Augustin Zubikarai grant, in 2016 she published her first novel 33 ezkil (Elkar), which was adapted into a film in 2020 under the the title Death knell. Her second novel, Sotoan Gordeak (Txalaparta), also a thriller, was written thanks to the (H)ilbeltza grant in 2019. In 2022 she took a leap to young literature with Lima (Elkar).

HRVOJE KOVAČEVIĆ was born on January 27, 1966 in Požega. During his high school days, he was involved in comics, amateur and animated films. In 1985, he came to Zagreb to study architecture, drew caricatures, sent them to international festivals and offered them to the editorial offices of all the newspapers he had heard of. After graduating, he worked in marketing. On January 1, 2002, he became a professional writer. Two thirds of the thirty books he has published so far are intended for children. In the part of the oeuvre intended for adults, a series of five crime novels stands out, in which inspector of the Department for Sexual and Blood Offenses of the Požega-Slavonia Police Department, Robert Vidmar, with the help of neighborhood policeman Mladen Crnković, solves cases of complex murders. In addition, he has published about seventy stories in periodicals, writes plays (he received the 3rd Marin Držić award for the play Studen Sudnji dana, and the SFERA award for the play Professional deformation) and screenplays, collaborates with radio (he has performed about twenty radio plays) and television. Today he lives in Stubičke Toplice. He is married and has two children.

The participating co-organisers:

Basque Writers’ Association – Euskal Idazleen Elkartea (ES)
Community of Belarusian Writers in Lithunia (LT)
Union of Bulgarian Writers – Съюзът на българските писатели (BGR)
Croatian Writers’ Association – Društvo hrvatskih književnika (HR)
Croatian Writers Society – Hrvatsko društvo pisaca (HR)
Literature and Criticism Association – Όμιλος Λογοτεχνίας και Κριτικής (CY)
Czech Writers’ Association – asociace spisovatelu (CZ)
Estonian Writers’ Union – Eesti Kirjanike Liit (EKL)
The Union of Finnish Writers – Suomen Kirjailijaliitto (FI)
The Association of Finnish Nonfiction Writers (FI)
Flemish Writers’ Association – De Vlaamse Auteursvereniging (BE)
Association of Writers in Galician Language – Asociación de Escritores en Lingua Galega (ES)
Association of German Language Crime Writers – Syndikat e.V. (DEU, CH, A)
German Writers’ Union – Verband deutscher Schriftstellerinnen und Schriftsteller, VS Hessen (DEU)
Hellenic Authors’ Society – ΕΤΑΙΡΕΙΑ ΣΥΓΓΡΑΦΕΩΝ (EL)
Irish Writers’ Union – Comhar Na Scríbhneoirí (IE)
Latvian Writers Union – Latvijas Rakstnieku savienība LRS (LV)
Association of Writers of Maltese – L-Akkademja tal-Malti (MT)
Slovene Writers’ Association – Društvo Slovenskih Pisateljev (SI)
Spanish Writers’ Association – Asociación Colegial de Escritores (ES)
Unia Literacka – Literary Union Poland (PL)
Portuguese Authors Society – Sociedade Portuguesa de Autores SPA (PT)
Sanasto – The Finnish Authors’ Copyright Society (FI)
IG Autoren + IG Übersetzer (Translators’ Association Austria) in cooperation with PEN Austria (A)
STRADE – the Literary Translators‘ Association, Italy (IT)
Rodeo d’Ame, France (FR)

Celebrate with us the new DAY OF EUROPEAN AUTHORS on 27 March

2 June 2023, Berlin: Welcome Reception of the European Writers’ Council (EWC)