They're holding the Tage der deutschsprachigen Literatur ('Days of German literature') in Klagenfurt, with the centerpiece of the Bachmann Preis (where authors read their texts out loud and are judged on stage (and on live TV)).
There's been some to-do this year about the prize possibly being discontinued because of a lack of funds, but that seems extremely unlikely to me -- this is a big draw and a big deal, and they'll find the money.
The list of previous winners suggests that, despite the format, it's something to be taken seriously: the first winner was no less than Gert Jonke, and they've done pretty well in the years since, too. (Of course, there have been some controversial moments too -- recall Urs Allemann's controversial text (and title)).
At her love german books weblog Katy Derbyshire wrote about Gearing up for the Bachmann Prize, and she'll be tweeting (and, I presume, writing another post or two) about the proceedings; unfortunately this year again there aren't English translations of the competing texts at the official site.
The list of previous winners suggests that, despite the format, it's something to be taken seriously: the first winner was no less than Gert Jonke, and they've done pretty well in the years since, too. (Of course, there have been some controversial moments too -- recall Urs Allemann's controversial text (and title)).
At her love german books weblog Katy Derbyshire wrote about Gearing up for the Bachmann Prize, and she'll be tweeting (and, I presume, writing another post or two) about the proceedings; unfortunately this year again there aren't English translations of the competing texts at the official site.