Wikipedia

Karin Schimke

Karin Schimke (born 1968) is a South African writer. She has won awards for her poetry and literary translations. She works as a writer and editor.

Karin Schimke
Born1968 (age 55–56)
NationalitySouth African
Alma materUniversity of Pretoria, University of Stellenbosch (1991)
Occupation(s)Writer and editor, poet, translator
Notable workBare and Breaking (2012), Navigate (2017), The Karen Book of Rules (2020)
ChildrenOliver Keohane, Julia Keohane
Awards
  • Ingrid Jonker Prize
  • Sol Plaatje Translation Award
  • SALA

Early life

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Karin Schimke was born in1968 in Pretoria, South Africa to a German father and Afrikaans mother. She attended Clapham High School in Queenswood before going on to study languages at the University of Pretoria. She obtained a postgraduate degree in Journalism from the University of Stellenbosch and started her writing career in 1991, working as a bilingual news reporter at Die Eikestadnuus, an award-winning community newspaper in Stellenbosch. She started working full-time as a reporter for The Argus the following year. She spent two years working at The Star in Johannesburg but has spent most of her adult life in Cape Town.

Career

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Writing

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Schimke worked at some of South Africa's largest newspapers including The Argus, The Star and The Cape Times, as a political reporter, before going freelance in 2000.[1] She returned to The Cape Times for five years as the freelance books page editor from 2010 to 2015.

Schimke has contributed to a broad range of newspapers and magazines including Mail & Guardian, Daily Maverick.,[2] The Sunday Times,[3] Marie Claire, Visi,[4] Elle, Financial Mail, Business Day, African Decisions, The Argus, The Star, The Cape Times, Rapport, Fair Lady,[5] Real Simple, High Life and Psychologies. She was a humour columnist for Femina magazine, as well as for Parent24[6]

In 2006, Schimke co-authored the bestselling, Fabulously 40 and beyond: coming into your power and embracing change,[7] with Margie Orford and her latest book, The Karen Book of Rules (NB Publishers)[8] with comedy writer Karen Jeynes,[9] was released in September 2020.[10]

Poetry

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Schimke's debut poetry collection, Bare & Breaking (Modjaji Books),[11] was published in 2012. The collection won the Ingrid Jonker Prize in 2014.[12] Her second volume, Navigate (Modjaji Books), was published in 2017.[13]

She has performed her own poetry at the Woordfees, Badilisha Poetry X-Change,[14] the Klein Karoo Nasionale Kunstefee and poetry-on-the-road in Bremen,[15] Germany, in various podcasts and in radio interviews. Her work has been published in New Coin, New Contrast, Stanzas and Carapace[16] and has been featured in Paris Lit Up magazine, Atlanta Review, Mslexia, as well as a collection of poetry from South Africa translated into German, called Ankunft eines weiteren Tages,[17] published by Afrika Wunderhorn.[18]

Translations

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In 2019, Schimke, together with Leon de Kock, won the 2019 Sol Plaatje Translation Award[19] for Flame in the Snow, the English translation of Vlam in die Sneeu, a collection of love letters written in the 1960s between novelist André Brink and poet Ingrid Jonker.[20] She regularly translates the work of the well-known Afrikaans thriller writer Irma Venter.

Editor

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Schimke edited Open[21] (Oshun, Struik, 2008) a collection of women's erotic writing by some of South Africa's top female writers. She has edited the work of well-known South African authors like Martin Steyn,[22] Chanette Paul,[23] Dov Fedler[24] and Bronwyn Davids[25]

Writing coach

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Schimke is a writing coach,[26] developmental editor, course designer and mentor.[citation needed]

Awards and honours

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Selected works

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Poetry

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  • Bare & Breaking (Modjaji Books 2012): ISBN 978-1-920397-97-5
  • Navigate (Modjaji Books 2017): ISBN 978-1-928215-26-4.

Non-fiction books

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Journalist

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‘We are all petrified.’ An interview with Robert A. Hamblin. Daily Maverick June 2021[27]

Editor

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  • Open: An Erotic Anthology by South African Women Writers (Oshun 2008). ISBN 1770075720

Contributor

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Translation

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References

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  1. ^ "About Karin Schimke | Karin Schimke". Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  2. ^ Schimke, Karin (14 May 2020). "MAVERICK CITIZEN: FRIDAY ACTIVIST: Glenda Gray: the woman heading up South Africa's sub-team of Covid-19 pandemic research advisors". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  3. ^ "Comics are an emerging art form in South Africa". TimesLIVE. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  4. ^ "Offices for sharing". Visi. 2 April 2014. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  5. ^ "Fairlady | THE SMART READ FOR SMART WOMEN". Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  6. ^ Schimke, Karin. "Columnist Parent24".
  7. ^ "Book of the Week: Fabulously 40 and beyond | REPRESENT.CO.ZA". represent.co.za. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  8. ^ "NB Publishers | The Karen Book of Rules". Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  9. ^ "Karen Jeynes". www.sawriterscollege.co.za. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  10. ^ "Karen Jeynes". www.sawriterscollege.co.za. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  11. ^ "Bare & Breaking | Modjaji Books". Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  12. ^ at 17:14, Karina Szczurek 2014-09-26 (26 September 2014). "2014 Ingrid Jonker Prize for English Poetry". LitNet. Retrieved 31 July 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  13. ^ "'How does one take part in a national dialogue when your voice carries this baggage?' Antjie Krog interviews award-winning poet Karin Schimke". The Johannesburg Review of Books. 5 March 2018. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  14. ^ "Karin Schimke | Badilisha Poetry – Pan-African Poets". badilishapoetry.com. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  15. ^ "poetry on the road, bremen, germany". rozalie hirs. 10 June 2013. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  16. ^ "Carapace poetry magazine". carapacepoetry.co.za. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  17. ^ Schimke, Karin. Poetry Translation. ASIN 3884234250.
  18. ^ "Verlag Das Wunderhorn – Auf diesen Seiten finden Sie das gesamte lieferbare Buchprogramm unseres Verlags, das Sie hier auch bequem online bestellen können" (in German). Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  19. ^ Africa, PEN South. "Karin Schimke | PEN South Africa". Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  20. ^ "Flame in the Snow – the love letters of André Brink and Ingrid Jonker". Litnet.
  21. ^ "Open". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  22. ^ "martin steyn". www.martinsteyn.com. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  23. ^ "Chanette Paul". Chanette Paul. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  24. ^ "Dov Fedler | Africartoons". africartoons.com. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  25. ^ "An authentic South African family story". TimesLIVE. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  26. ^ "Karin Schimke on a writing workshop in Stanford". LitNet. 8 November 2016. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  27. ^ Schimke, Karin (20 June 2021). "A Queer and Crooked Memory: 'We are all petrified.' An interview with Robert Hamblin". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
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