Creative Europe
Desk UK
for Culture

‘Schwob – A European Gateway to the Best Unknown Books’ gathers knowledge about forgotten modern classics, creates a European
library of such books for readers and publishers, and promotes its visibility and the publication of the translated titles by means of online tools,
live events, personal networking, visitor programmes, a media presence and promotional campaigns. The project starts on 1 May 2013 and
continues until 30 April 2015. The partners are literature foundations based in the Netherlands, Spain, Finland, Poland, the United Kingdom
and Belgium, and SeuA from France.
In every language there are beautiful books that are utterly unknown abroad. A Schwob title is a modern literary classic that can travel both
through time and between languages. Like a truffle, it is delicious but requires considerable effort to find.
The partners will approach their international network of translators, authors, publishers to collect modern classics that are part of the
European heritage with the aim of building up a library of forgotten twentieth-century masterpieces.
More than sixty publishers and translators will be invited to attend the visitor programmes organized by Schwob. In this way the partners will
be creating a dynamic of exchange between professionals, thereby drawing in significant additional expertise in the field of European literary
heritage and promotion.
Publishers will be approached personally with tailored advice on titles that fit their respective lists. Schwob aims to sell a total of fifteen titles
within a period of two years.
Bookshops, libraries and literary venues will bring their expertise and cooperate in the promotion of titles. Twenty-five authors and translators
will act as ambassadors in five countries at public events.
The selected titles will be promoted on a website with sample translations and on a mobile app for tablets and smartphones. The project as a
whole will be promoted via social media, in newspapers and on the radio.