Writing Lives: Turning a Passion into a Profession
6th EU-China International Literary Festival
Speakers: Chiara Gamberale (Italy), Xu Xiaobin (China), Cheng Ying (China)
Time: Sunday, December 19. 6pm Beijing Time
The Italian writer Chiara Gamberale will take part in the 6th edition of the EU-China International Literary Festival (which will take place online) on December 19 at 18:00, joining Chinese authors Xu Xiaobin and Chen Ying in a conversation to discuss their careers, their early love for literature, and how they managed to turn their passion into highly successful literary careers.
Chiara Gamberale was born in 1977 in Rome. She made her debut at a very young age with A thin life (Una vita sottile, 1998) which was followed by, among others, The lights in the houses of others (Le luci nelle case degli altri, 2010), For ten minutes (Per dieci minuti, 2013), and Something (Qualcosa, 2017). Her latest book is The Paternal Womb (Il grembo paterno, October 2021). Her books have been translated in sixteen countries. She is the author and host of television and radio programs and of the podcast Gli slegati. She collaborates with various newspapers and has conceived and directed the “Procida Racconta” Festival.
Gamberale turned her passion for writing into her profession early on and feels this is in part due to the deep relationship between her life and the themes she explores in her writing: families, childhood, relationships, and what she describes as “the eternal misunderstanding between men and women”.
Chen Ying is a professor at Sichuan International Studies University. She mainly studies linguistics, modern and contemporary literature and translation. She is also a well-known translator in China for Italian literature, and participated in the translation of Chiara Gamberale’s Qualcosa.
Xu Xiaobin is a celebrated writer, national first-class screenwriter, painter, and paper-cutting artist. She has won several national and international awards. Her book Feathered Serpent was the first Chinese work included in the international publishing plan of Simon & Schuster. Her works have been translated into dozens of languages.
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From November 27 to December 19 the 6th edition of the EU-China International Literary Festival will ideally bring leading writers from all across the European Union to China, in a celebration of books, writers and readers. European and Chinese writers will gather online to display their combined wealth of literary talents, discuss their craft, and share ideas and experiences.
EU-China Literary Festival is the place where European authors enter into a creative dialogue with their Chinese counterparts; this year’s edition is dedicated to the diversity and creativity of women writers across the EU and China.