The Verband deutscher Schriftstellerinnen und Schriftsteller (Association of German Writers) represents the interests of professional authors and writers in Germany and is part of the service sector trade union
ver.di
(''Verdi'' (stylized as ''ver.di''; vÉÊdiË; German: ''United Services Trade Union'') is a German trade union based in Berlin, Germany. It was established on 19 March 2001 as the result of a merger of five individual unions and is a memb ...
(former
Printing and Paper Union). The VS, based in Berlin, was founded on 8 June 1969 with the support of
GĂŒnter Grass
GĂŒnter Wilhelm Grass (born GraĂ; ; 16 October 1927 â 13 April 2015) was a German novelist, poet, playwright, illustrator, graphic artist, sculptor, and recipient of the 1999 Nobel Prize in Literature.
He was born in the Free City of Da ...
,
Heinrich Böll
Heinrich Theodor Böll (; 21 December 1917 â 16 July 1985) was a German writer. Considered one of Germany's foremost post-World War II writers, Böll is a recipient of the Georg BĂŒchner Prize (1967) and the Nobel Prize for Literature (1972).
...
and
Martin Walser
Martin Walser (; born 24 March 1927) is a German writer.
Life
Walser was born in Wasserburg am Bodensee, on Lake Constance. His parents were coal merchants, and they also kept an inn next to the train station in Wasserburg. He described the e ...
as a merger of the "Bundesvereinigung der deutschen SchriftstellerverbĂ€nde"", the "Verband deutscher Ăbersetzer" and the "Verband deutscher Kritiker" in Cologne. After a membership vote in October 2015, the association changed its original self-designation "Association of German Writers" to "association of German Writers".
Organisational structure
With 3600 members, it is the largest federal association for authors and translators in Germany. It is divided into 15 regional associations (Lower Saxony and Bremen form a joint regional association) and the ''foreign group''. The otherwise independent , VdĂ, is equivalent to a state association with its own executive committee and its own representation on the federal executive committee.
All full-time and part-time German-language authors, translators and all foreign-language writers living in the territory of the Federal Republic of Germany can become members. In the independent federal branch "Translators", persons can also be members who translate "from German or into German" regardless of their place of residence; furthermore, a status as candidate is possible.
In addition to its trade union tasks, the VS organises literary events, especially at district level, but also at the regular regional group meetings.
Furthermore, the VS is involved nationwide with projects on literature and politics, also in cooperation with other institutions such as
Amnesty International
Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
.
The most recent project was launched by the Federal Executive Committee in 2012. Under the motto "WORTE gegen RECHT", the VS is stepping up its nationwide activities against racism and Nazis with readings, poster campaigns and other events.
Trade union services
The VS negotiates, among other things, Normvertrag with the
Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels
Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels (English: ''German Publishers and Booksellers Association'') is a trade association of the German publishing industry, based in Frankfurt. It was founded in Frankfurt in 1948, and merged in 1991 with a simil ...
- most recently on 23 -January 2014 inter alia with regulations on
e-book
An ebook (short for electronic book), also known as an e-book or eBook, is a book publication made available in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, readable on the flat-panel display of computers or other electronic devices. Alt ...
rights -, gives recommendations on fee agreements with publishers and offers its members additional services such as free legal advice and legal protection via representation by the association. The association is also one of the main initiator associations of the (Ak Fairlag).
In addition to its trade union tasks, the VS organises literary events, especially at district level, but also at the regular regional group meetings.
Furthermore, the VS is involved nationwide with projects on literature and politics, also in cooperation with other institutions such as
Amnesty International
Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
.
The most recent project was launched by the Federal Executive Committee in 2012. Under the motto "WORTE gegen RECHTS", the VS is stepping up its nationwide activities against racism and Nazis with readings, poster campaigns and other events.
Federal Chairperson of the VS
*
Dieter Lattmann (1969â1974)
*
Horst Bingel (1974â1976)
*
Carl Amery (1976â1977)
*
Bernt Engelmann (1977â1983)
* Hans Peter Bleuel (1984â1987)
*
Anna Jonas (1987â1988)
** 1988/89 unoccupied (provisional board)
*
Uwe Friesel (1989â1994)
*
Erich Loest
Erich Loest (; 24 February 1926 â 12 September 2013) was a German writer born in Mittweida, Saxony. He also wrote under the pseudonyms Hans Walldorf, Bernd Diksen and Waldemar NaĂ.
Life and career
He was a conscript soldier in World War II a ...
(1994â1997)
*
Fred Breinersdorfer
Fred Breinersdorfer (born 6 December 1946 in Mannheim) is a German screenwriter, producer and film director.
Life
Fred Breinersdorfer, born 1946 in Mannheim, Germany, studied law and sociology from the universities in Mainz and TĂŒbingen and ...
(1997â2005)
*
Imre Török (2005â2015)
*
Eva Leipprand (2015â2019)
*
Lena Falkenhagen (since 16 February 2019)
References
External links
*
Homepage des VdĂ online unter ''literaturuebersetzer.de''.
* Dirk von KĂŒgelgen (VS) with Josef Winiger (translator) (
VdĂ) and Helga Pfetsch (VdĂ)
''50 Jahre VS â Eine âZeitreiseâ zum ...'' PDF 2019 auf Website des VdĂ, online unter ''literaturuebersetzer.de''.
{{portal bar, Trade unions, Literature, Germany
German writers' organisations
German literature
Trade unions in Germany
1969 establishments in West Germany