Siân Mackie is a translator of Scandinavian literature into English.
They were born in Scotland and now live on the south coast of England. They have an MA in Scandinavian Studies and an MSc in Literary Translation as a Creative Practice from the University of Edinburgh. They have translated a wide range of works, from young adult and children’s literature—including Bjarne Reuter’s Elise and the Second-hand Dog, which was nominated for the 2019 CILIP Carnegie Medal, and Ingunn Thon’s A Postcard to Ollis, which was nominated for the same prize for 2021—to thrillers and non-fiction.
They were selected for the National Centre for Writing Emerging Translator Mentorship in 2014, through which they were mentored by Don Bartlett. They also love translating for the theatre and have participated in theatre company Foreign Affairs’ mentoring programme for translators and the Royal Court International Residency for Emerging Playwrights.
Translated by Siân Mackie
Marta Breen and Jenny Jordahl: Patriarkatet faller (The Fall of the Patriarchy), due 2023, HELVETIQ.
Simen Sætre and Kjetil Østli: Den nye fisken (The New Fish), due 2023, Patagonia.
Tor Ola Svennevig: Johan Fredrik Knudsen: Electrical Tattoo Artist, 2022, Magikon Forlag.
Siri Pettersen: Evna (The Might), co-translated with Paul Russell Garrett, 2022, Arctis Books.
Siri Pettersen: Råta (The Rot), co-translated with Paul Russell Garrett, 2021, Arctis Books.
Siri Pettersen: Odinsbarn (Odin's Child), co-translated with Paul Russell Garrett, 2021, Arctis Books.
Kristin Roskifte: Alle sammen teller (Everybody Counts), 2020, Wide Eyed Editions.
Ingunn Thon: Ollis (A Postcard to Ollis), 2019, Wacky Bee Books.
Geir Lundestad: The World's Most Prestigious Prize: The Inside Story of the Nobel Peace Prize, 2019, Oxford University Press.
Sigri Sandberg: Mørke (An Ode to Darkness), 2019, Sphere.
Mina Lystad: Alfred må lese høyt (Alfred and the Blue Whale), 2019, Wacky Bee Books.
Marta Breen and Jenny Jordahl: Kvinner i kamp (Women in Battle), 2018, Hot Key Books.
Odd Harald Hauge: Everest (Everest), 2017, Yatra Books.
Hanna Norberg & Leo Oterhals: Erik Breivik: Vikingen. Historien om en norsk fiskerigründer (Erik Breivik: the Viking. The Story of a Norwegian Fishing Pioneer), 2016, Kagge Forlag.
Lars Joachim Grimstad: Barna som forsvant (The Disappearing Children), co-translated with Don Bartlett, 2015, Phoenix Yard Books.