Founded in 1998 in order to make specialized psychological texts available in English, Other Press began to publish fiction as well in 2005 with Swiss-German writer Peter Stamm’s Unformed Landscape, which demonstrated how novels can provide as much—and sometimes more—insight into the human mind and experience as nonfiction. Although it now focuses on a mix of literary and upmarket fiction and nonfiction aimed at a trade rather than professional or academic audience, the press continues to reflect publisher Judith Gurewich’s background in psychoanalysis, seeking to promote exceptionally well-written works that teach us about ourselves and speak to pressing current issues such as racial, gender, and class inequality, and the protection of the environment. In a spirit of sharing the very best books regardless of original language, and thereby opening readers’ eyes to new, diverse points of view, we publish a majority of translated titles.
Having grown up in multiple countries, I have always been acutely aware of the value of being exposed to a variety of cultures, and therefore studied languages (primarily French and Japanese), pursued a career in publishing translations. This combination of experience with fiction and serious nonfiction has enabled me to work effectively across Other Press’s list, to expand the range of translations we offer. In addition to making established authors who are critically acclaimed in their own countries—such as France’s Prix Goncourt winners Éric Vuillard, Nicolas Mathieu, and Hervé Le Tellier—known to American readers, I am looking to rediscover classic works of literature that may have been overlooked, and support up-and-coming writers with unique voices.
Other Press hopes to acquire more Korean literature—we received a very positive response to Shin Kyung-sook’s I’ll Be Right There, and Kwon Yeo-sun’s forthcoming Lemon is already generating a lot of excitement and attention for its keen treatment of class, gender, and relationships. I believe the Online Publishers Roundtable will be an excellent opportunity to get to know Korean publishers and agents, learn more about the current literary scene in Korea, and better identify potential titles to translate into English. As a small, independent publisher, it will also be valuable to introduce Other Press and explain the types of titles we’re most interested in and how we would promote them in the US.
