CEI Young Writers Award 2026 – Call for Application
CEI Young Writers Award 2026 – Call for Application
Call for Applications 2026
Overview
The CEI Young Writers Award is presented by the Central European Initiative (CEI) and the Slovenian Writers’ Association (SWA) within the framework of the Vilenica International Literary Festival.
The purpose of the Award is to encourage younger generations of authors and support the dissemination of their literary works through translations into other languages of CEI Member States. The Award provides for a translation into Slovenian[1] and a translation into another language of any CEI Member State chosen by the applicant. The possibility of additional translations will be considered in future editions of the Award.
The Award
The CEI Young Writers Award consists of a monetary prize and other non-financial benefits:
- A cash prize of EUR 5,000, covering the full costs of translating the submitted work and translating an excerpt of the submitted work into a language of a CEI Member State jointly selected by the author and the publisher, taking into account the specific characteristics of the work. The translation will be prepared in cooperation with the domestic publisher supporting the author’s application. The Award includes copyright-related expenses.
- Translation of the submitted work into Slovenian and its publication in the literary series edited by the SWA within the framework of the Vilenica Festival in 2027. The Award covers copyright expenses related to the Slovenian translation.
- Participation of the Award winner in the 2026 Vilenica International Literary Festival organised by the SWA.
- Cooperation and support from the CEI and the SWA in seeking a publisher for the potential publication of the translated work.
Eligibility
Authors under the age of 40 (born after 1986, i.e. on or after 1 January 1987) from the following CEI Member States are eligible to apply: Albania, Belarus,[2] Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine.
Applicants must have published at least one book. The work submitted for translation must be a literary work (all genres and themes are eligible). Applications must be supported by a national publisher through which the author is applying.
Application Procedure
Applications must include the following mandatory attachments:
- Completed application form.
- Applicant’s CV in English (maximum 1,800 characters without spaces).
- Copy of the applicant’s identity card or passport showing date and place of birth and citizenship.
- Applicant’s bibliography in English (maximum 3,600 characters without spaces).
- Scan of the original signed recommendation letter in English, written by the applicant’s national publisher, including a presentation of the applicant and the proposed work (4,000–8,000 characters without spaces).
- Excerpt from the proposed work in the original language of a CEI Member State and in English (maximum 100 lines of POETRY or 7,000–9,000 characters including spaces for PROSE).
- Incomplete applications will not be considered.
Applications should be sent to:
Application Deadline
Applications must be submitted no later than 1 July 2026 (11:59 p.m. Central European Summer Time).
Evaluation and Award Procedure
- An international jury will evaluate all applications received by 1 July 2026.
- Applications will be assessed according to the following criteria:
- 30% (3 points) for the bibliography,
- 20% (2 points) for the recommendation letter presenting the applicant and the proposed work,
- 50% (5 points) for the excerpt from the work in the original language of a CEI Member State and its English translation.
- Applicants will be informed of the jury’s decision no later than 1 August 2026.
- The Award ceremony will take place within the framework of the Vilenica Festival.
- The Award will be paid in two instalments: the first instalment (EUR 2,500) upon presentation of the Award, and the second instalment (EUR 2,500) upon completion of the translation and submission of updated information regarding contacts with potential publishers.
- The Award winner and their domestic publisher must provide a sample translation of an excerpt from the awarded work by 30 November 2026 at the latest. The excerpt must be translated into a language of a CEI Member State selected by the author and publisher according to the specific nature of the work. Translation costs are covered by the awarded funds.
- The Award winner must submit a written report to [email protected] by May 2027.
For any questions, please contact:
Organisers
Central European Initiative (CEI)
The Central European Initiative (CEI) is a regional intergovernmental forum that promotes European integration and sustainable development through cooperation among its Member States, the European Union, international and regional organisations, as well as public and private institutions and non-governmental organisations. As a platform for political dialogue, the CEI has developed a strong operational and results-oriented approach to regional cooperation. It combines multilateral diplomacy with the management of funds, programmes and projects, acting both as donor and beneficiary. The CEI Executive Secretariat, headquartered in Trieste, manages the Initiative’s daily activities and oversees project preparation and implementation. In December 2011, the CEI was granted Observer Status at the United Nations General Assembly.
Slovenian Writers’ Association (SWA)
The Slovenian Writers’ Association (SWA) develops and implements contemporary public literary programmes. Through its wide range of activities, it is the most active literary organisation and the central hub of literary life in Slovenia. Its role as a key provider of public literary programmes is recognised by the Slovenian Book Agency, which actively supports and regularly funds its activities. The Association traces its origins to 1872, when Slovenian writers first began organising themselves, and it has borne its current name since 1968. It has been led by many distinguished Slovenian authors.
The SWA promotes creative freedom, works to improve the status of Slovenian literature and writers, and brings together authors from across the Slovenian cultural space regardless of current political borders. Always critical and creative, it has made an important contribution to developments in Slovenia’s social and cultural life. The Association played a particularly active role during Slovenia’s independence process and the formation of the modern state. It maintains regular contacts with writers worldwide and implements internationally recognised literary programmes.
Vilenica International Literary Festival
The Vilenica International Literary Festival brings together poets, novelists, playwrights, essayists, translators, publishers, editors and literary critics from Central Europe and beyond. It is organised by the Slovenian Writers’ Association in cooperation with the Vilenica Cultural Association of Sežana.
Since the first Vilenica Festival in 1986, the highlight of the event has been the presentation of the Vilenica International Literary Prize, awarded by the SWA to Central European authors for outstanding achievements in literature and essay writing. Previous laureates include Fulvio Tomizza, Peter Handke, Péter Esterházy, Jan Skácel, Tomas Venclova, Zbigniew Herbert, Milan Kundera, Libuše Moníková, Josip Osti, Adolf Muschg, Adam Zagajewski, Pavel Vilikovský, Péter Nádas, Erica Pedretti, Slavko Mihalić, Jaan Kaplinski, Ana Blandiana, Mirko Kovač, Brigitte Kronauer, Karl-Markus Gauss, Ilma Rakusa, Miodrag Pavlović, Goran Stefanovski, Andrzej Stasiuk, Claudio Magris, Dževad Karahasan, Mircea Cărtărescu, David Albahari, Olga Tokarczuk, László Krasznahorkai, Jáchym Topol, Dubravka Ugrešić, Yurii Andrukhovych, Ilija Trojanow, Dragan Velikić, Mila Haugová, Josef Winkler, Amanda Aizpuriete, Ottó Tolnai, Miljenko Jergović and Georgi Gospodinov.
The CEI Vilenica Collection includes works by authors who have received the CEI Residency Award since 2006. The purpose of both the Award and the Collection is to introduce readers to new and exciting voices in European literature while strengthening cross-border literary cooperation and promotion.
[1] If the awarded author is from Slovenia, the Award provides for a translation into English or into another language of a CEI Member State chosen by the applicant.
[2] Belarus’s membership in the Initiative is currently suspended.