Please introduce yourself in two or three sentences.
Odile Kennel – somehow always in-between, yet smack in the middle of the language field, where I meanwhile (!) actually make my living. By ‘language field’ I mean my own writing, translations, event moderation, mentoring, advising, participating in juries and much more.
What career experience do you have in your field of consultation?
I’ve been active as a freelancer for 23 years, initially as an event organizer, then as an author and translator. I’m experienced with large and small publishers; with grant applications (sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t); with reading and evaluating grant applications (as a jury member); in mentoring and advising; in the bureaucratic pitfalls that come along with freelancing; as well as, of course, in editing my own and other peoples’ writing and translations; in translating above all poetry (and getting it out there), but also other text forms; in reading and performing texts.
What are typical questions that participants might ask you in a consultation session?
How do I break into the (legendary) literary establishment? Where and how can I apply for grants? What kinds of grants are even available? I have a manuscript; what are my options for finding a publisher? I found an author I would like to translate; what next? What literary institutions and groups exist in the city? What basic things do I need to keep in mind as a self-employed person? I’m open to questions of all kinds concerning freelancing and will answer them to the best of my knowledge and beliefs.
What are some of your professional achievements?
Numerous grants and prizes (see https://www.literaturport.de/lexikon/odile-kennel/). In 2022 I received the Paul Scheerbart Prize for my poetry translations; in 2023 my book Lust was shortlisted for the BücherFrauen’s Christine Prize. A list of my publications is also available on literaturport.
What languages do you offer consultation sessions in?
German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, English.
Where can you be found in the internet/on social media?
@solidenelke (Instagram)
Facebook (username is my actual name)
https://odilekennel.blogspot.com/ (posts on this blog are sporadic)
What piece of advice would you offer anyone interested in working in your professional field?
Keep at it. Stay true to yourself. Don’t get discouraged, and don’t think, ‘There’s no point anyway.’ But also avoid thinking, ‘Now I’ve made it.’ Keep writing. Don’t sell yourself short for the sake of getting jobs. It lacks solidarity, but is also bad for your sense of self-worth. Seek out criticism from your peers (in groups, workshops). Network, be committed.
What were your greatest challenges in the early years of your career?
I always had various parallel careers…There were long dry spells, also financially speaking, and times when I had to take on whatever came my way. I don’t have to do that anymore, but my everyday still consists of working on very diverse projects simultaneously and, accordingly, always having to ‘switch gears’. My greatest challenge was probably not only to trust in my texts but also to become a public person, to stand onstage, to (inter)act in public (I’m still learning).