Kurodahan Press Translation Prize

The Kurodahan Press Translation Prize, run from 2008 to 2020, was awarded for translation excellence of a selected Japanese short story into English. The winning translations were almost always published in the Kurodahan Press Speculative Japan anthology

The Translation Prize will not be held in 2021, or in the future.



The winner of the 2020 Kurodahan Press Translation Prize is Sally Etienne of the UK. My congratulations on a truly outstanding job. The runner-up, with the second highest score, was Jordan Taylor, an American living in the UK.
The post-contest package, including the test piece and all the submissions that we have received permission to post, can be downloaded <here>. This is a 6MB file with over 300 pages, so don’t press PRINT without due consideration!
The story was “冬のアブラゼミ” by 安土 萌. The story can be found in 物語のルミナリエ, an excellent anthology that is now unfortunately out of print.


The winner of the 2019 Prize is Kenneth Weld of Florida, USA. The complete package, including test piece, instructions, and translations of people who gave us permission to post them, is available for download [here].
The test piece for the 2019 Kurodahan Press Translation Prize was “AIR” by Sena Hideaki, the author of Parasite Eve and numerous other works. We urge you to order a copy of author’s book containing this story, not only to thank Sena-san for cooperating with this year’s Prize, but also to enjoy a great collection of stories!


The winner of the 2018 Prize is Yan Yijun of Singapore. The complete package, including test piece, instructions, and translations of people who gave us permission to post them, is available for download [here].
The test piece for the 2018 Kurodahan Press Translation Prize was パラソル by 井上 雅彦. We urge you to buy the author’s book and enjoy all his stories: 夜会. We have published this author in the past, and one of his stories was selected as the contest piece for 2014.


The winner of the 2017 Prize is Kaley Kriminger of the United States of America. The complete package, including test piece,
instructions, and translations of people who gave us permission to post them, is available for download [here].

The source story won the ゆきのまち幻想文学賞, and was published in the 23rd collection of ゆきのまち short stories. Information on the ゆきのまち通信 and the ゆきのまち幻想文学賞 can be found [here].


The winner of the 2016 Prize is Lawrence E. Turner, of Chikugo, Japan. The complete package, including test piece, instructions, and translations of people who gave us permission to post them, is available [here].

The book containing the story, たそがれ by 鈴木三重吉, is available at Amazon Japan.


The winner of the 2015 Prize is Nick John of Australia. The complete package, including test piece, instructions, and translations of people who gave us permission to post them, is available [here].

The book containing the story, 雀谷, is out of print, but available at Amazon Japan, and contains a number of delightful pieces.


The winner of the 2014 Prize is Iain Arthy of Canada. We plan on publishing his translation in Speculative Japan 4, tentatively scheduled for publication in late 2015.
The complete package, including test piece, instructions, and translations of people who gave us permission to post them, is available [here].

The book containing the story, 残されていた文字, is available at Amazon Japan, and out of respect to the author I urge you to pick up a copy (not to mention, it’s a fun read, too!).


The winner of the 2013 Prize is Milo Barisof of the United States. We plan on publishing his translation in Speculative Japan 4, tentatively scheduled for publication in late 2015.
The contest package, including the source material 「断章」 by 皆川博子 and all the submissions we have been authorized to distribute, is available for download as a PDF file <here>.
The source book is not currently in print, but is available second-hand, including at Amazon Japan: http://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/4331606759/


The winner of the 2011 Prize is Angus Turvill of Newcastle on Tyne, England. His translation was published in Speculative Japan Volume 3.
The contest package is available for download as a ZIP file <here>, but as a courtesy to the author and publisher we request that interested parties please purchase the book (異形37 伯爵の血族 紅ノ章), which is available at bookstores in Japan including Amazon Japan.


The winner of the 2010 Prize is Michael S. Ignatov, a resident of Arizona, USA. His translation was published in Speculative Japan Volume 3.
The contest package (excluding the source material, which was 忠告 by 恩田陸, but including all the submissions we have been authorized to distribute) is available for download as a ZIP file <here>.
Note that because the story is in print, you are requested to purchase the book (虚構機関—年刊日本SF傑作選), which is available at most bookstores in Japan including Amazon Japan.


The winner of the 2009 Prize is Dink Tanaka, currently residing in New York City. His translation was published in Speculative Japan Volume 2.
The contest package (excluding the source material, but including all the submissions we have been authorized to distribute) is available for download as a ZIP file <here>.
Note that because the story is in print, you are requested to purchase the book (ファンタジア), which is available at most bookstores including Amazon Japan.


The winner of the 2008 Prize is Nancy Ross, currently residing in Hiroshima prefecture. Her translation was published in Volume 1 of the Kaiki anthology.
The contest package (including the source material and all the submissions we have been authorized to distribute) is available for download as a ZIP file <here>.

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Kurodahan Press

Kurodahan Press
2305-9 Yunomae Machi
Kuma-gun, Kumamoto
868-0600 JAPAN