As part of our new series spotlighting the Norwich and UEA publishing scene, we have been speaking to Strangers Press, an independent publisher specialising in translation. Smaller publishing companies, like Strangers Press, are vital to the book industry. They take risks on diverse voices, forging cultural connections and enriching the literary community here in Norwich. What better embodies the spirit of culture and community than translated fiction?

Strangers Press was set up in 2016, with the aim of publishing translation and international writing in “innovative or creative ways.” Nathan Hamilton, co-founder of Strangers Press, said that “from the beginning” the company has been “particularly interested in the idea of translation as a form of cultural exchange—that cultures learn things about each other, in multiple ways, through the process. We seek to publish in ways that celebrates that with, for example, dual language cover designs and a foregrounding of the translator.”

Hamilton also talked of the importance of Strangers Press in the backdrop of politics and rising fears of diversity. Strangers Press “was also meant as a celebration of a more positive, mutually curious attitude to different peoples and cultures in response to surges of British xenophobia and political paranoia around borders,” particularly because of Brexit campaigning and its fallout, and other related social and ethical crises. In this way, it becomes “a kind of consoling acknowledgement of a feeling of ‘shared foreignness’” that many of us are experiencing due to recent ideological shifts. “So, in that sense, it was a political impulse as much as it was creative.”

Hamilton also discussed the origin of their name. It comes from “The Strangers of the 16th century: a group of economic migrants from the Spanish Netherlands invited to help boost the nation’s textile industry at the time—highlighting the possibility, even hundreds of years ago, of more positive attitudes towards immigration than are commonly being espoused now, often as a distraction from, or an excuse for, other systemic failings.” Therefore, Strangers Press’ chapbooks are “small creative gestures towards something better,” highlighting the positivity of international voices and what they can bring to British readers.

Strangers Press has recently released a new series of Japanese fiction called KANATA. Made up of five chapbooks, the collection is an introspective exploration of human connection and a testament to the power of translation. Meaning “far out” and “beyond”, the title reflects the collection’s commitment to guiding readers across both cultural and emotional boundaries. The name also gestures to the expansive ambition of the project, made tangible through the collaborative efforts that made KANATA possible.

Kate Griffin, Associate Programme Director for the National Centre for Writing, was another key component in bringing the vibrancy of translated literature to Norwich. She commented that “the National Centre for Writing, the British Centre for Literary Translation (BCLT) and Strangers Press have been working with The Yanai Initiative at UCLA and Waseda University for over five years to support the translation of contemporary Japanese literature into English.

“The brilliant KANATA chapbooks with Strangers Press mark the culmination of this programme, offering literary translators an opportunity for publication. We hope that the translators in the chapbook series will go on to find work with other UK publishers, to help meet the demand for translation of new writing from Japan.” This demonstrates the wider work Strangers Press is doing, particularly in advancing the careers of emerging translators.

Griffin went on to say that “it’s not a one-way street though, as we have benefitted enormously from the involvement of the literary translators. Knowledgeable about what’s coming out in Japan, they helped us identify authors and stories that we might not otherwise come across. The writers in the KANATA series offer an alternative to other Japanese books being published now, with different voices and styles of writing, often very funny. Hopefully, publishers will go on to translate full-length works by these wonderful authors.”

The return to Japanese fiction is also a full circle moment for Strangers Press. Their first published series, called Keshiki, was also devised of Japanese translated fiction. Kate discussed how it was “the showcase publication for another long-term partnership project between NCW, BCLT and Strangers Press to support Japanese literature in translation. At the time, Japanese literature wasn’t very widely translated into English, apart from Haruki Murakami, and we were trying to change that. Since then, Japanese literature has had a huge surge in popularity, and it’s very pleasing to see our bookshops full of contemporary Japanese writers in English translation.”

KANATA builds on years of collaboration and a shared belief in the importance of translated literature. Strangers Press is doing far more than producing visually engaging chapbooks: they are creating a space where international voices can flourish and where up-and-coming translators can kickstart their careers. The translators have also helped promote the series, including the Meet the World event, KANATA: new voices from Japan, which is available to view via the NCW website. Additionally, you can explore the rest of our series, featuring an article on the design of the chapbooks and interviews with two of the translators of KANATA. All this goes to show that translated fiction sits at the heart of our campus here at UEA. It is a constant reminder that literature thrives when it crosses borders, a truth Strangers Press embodies as it continues to reshape the landscape of translated fiction.

Image credit: Glen Robinson and Rebecca Robinson (also known as Studio GRRR)