Deep Vellum

Deep Vellum is a nonprofit literary publishing house based in Dallas, Texas, founded by Will Evans in 2013. Its central mission is to bring significant literature from outside the English-speaking world to English-language readers, while also publishing innovative and experimental writing. The press operates in a part of the book industry where commercial publishers often release relatively few translated literary works, giving it a distinctive role in introducing international authors, forms, and cultural perspectives to readers in the United States and beyond. The publisher’s catalog is centered on literature in translation, including works that broaden the range of languages and literary traditions available in English. Its authors include Jon Fosse, the Norwegian writer who received the 2023 Nobel Prize in Literature. Fosse’s association with Deep Vellum illustrates the press’s role in developing English-language readership for internationally significant writers rather than limiting its program to established Anglophone authors. The company is described as the largest publisher of literature in translation in the United States. Deep Vellum has also been associated with the growth of Dallas’s literary community. Its publishing activity connects local cultural infrastructure with international literary exchange, helping position Dallas as a place for readers, writers, translators, and literary organizations. The press’s identity therefore combines nonprofit publishing, translation advocacy, literary experimentation, and community development. The organization expanded through acquisitions. In 2019 it acquired Phoneme Media, an independent Los Angeles publisher, and A Strange Object, an independent Austin publisher. These transactions broadened Deep Vellum’s publishing group and added established independent-literary lists to its activities. In 2020 it acquired Dalkey Archive Press, a McLean, Illinois-based press known for international and avant-garde literature. Dalkey Archive Press was relaunched in April 2022, extending Deep Vellum’s involvement in the publication and preservation of challenging literary work. In 2024, founder Will Evans was awarded the title of Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by France’s Ministry of Culture. The honor recognized his work, through Deep Vellum, in bringing French literature to English-reading audiences. It also reflected the press’s broader cultural role: translation is treated not simply as a commercial format but as a means of sustained exchange between literary traditions. Deep Vellum remains an independent, nonprofit-oriented publisher whose public profile is tied to translated literature, experimental writing, international authors, and the cultivation of literary culture in Dallas. Its operating model and detailed corporate ownership structure are not specified in the supplied reference material.

Deep Vellum was founded in Dallas, Texas, in 2013 by Will Evans as a nonprofit literary publisher with a strong emphasis on literature in translation. From its beginning, the press positioned translation as a central literary and cultural activity: its program seeks to make important writing from different languages and national traditions available to English-language readers, while also supporting innovative and experimental work originally written in English. The press’s development is closely connected with the literary culture of Dallas. Through publishing and related literary activity, Deep Vellum has helped strengthen the city’s literary community and connect local readers and writers with international authors and translators. Its reputation grew as it built a catalog of translated literature and became associated with authors whose work might otherwise have had limited access to the English-language market. Jon Fosse, who later received the 2023 Nobel Prize in Literature, is among the authors associated with the press. Deep Vellum expanded its institutional footprint in 2019 by acquiring two independent publishers: Phoneme Media, based in Los Angeles, and A Strange Object, based in Austin. The acquisitions brought additional independent-literary publishing activity into the Deep Vellum group and extended its reach beyond Dallas. They also reflected a strategy of bringing distinct small-press lists together while maintaining an emphasis on ambitious and internationally minded literature. In 2020, Deep Vellum acquired Dalkey Archive Press, a literary publisher based in McLean, Illinois. Dalkey Archive’s identity and catalog were associated with international, difficult, and avant-garde literature, making the acquisition consistent with Deep Vellum’s broader literary orientation. The press was relaunched in April 2022, preserving its presence within the literary publishing landscape while placing it within Deep Vellum’s expanded publishing structure. Deep Vellum’s international profile was further underscored in 2024 when Will Evans was named a Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture. The award recognized his work in bringing French literature to English-reading audiences through Deep Vellum. It represented external recognition of the publisher’s contribution to literary translation and cultural exchange. The available reference material characterizes Deep Vellum as the largest publisher of literature in translation in the United States. Its history is therefore defined less by mass-market publishing than by the sustained development of a specialist literary program: translated writing, experimental literature, international authors, and the cultivation of literary communities. Detailed information about its annual output, staffing, finances, and current corporate structure is not established by the supplied sources.

• 2024

  Will Evans is named a Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres

  [1]Deep Vellumen.wikipedia.org

  France’s Ministry of Culture honored founder Will Evans for his role in bringing French literature to English-language readers through Deep Vellum.

• 2023

  Author Jon Fosse receives the Nobel Prize in Literature

  [1]Deep Vellumen.wikipedia.org

  Jon Fosse, an author published by Deep Vellum, received the 2023 Nobel Prize in Literature.

• 2022

  Dalkey Archive Press is relaunched

  [1]Deep Vellumen.wikipedia.org

  Dalkey Archive Press was relaunched in April 2022 following its acquisition by Deep Vellum.

• 2020

  Acquisition of Dalkey Archive Press

  [1]Deep Vellumen.wikipedia.org

  Deep Vellum acquired Dalkey Archive Press, based in McLean, Illinois.

• 2019

  Acquisition of Phoneme Media and A Strange Object

  [1]Deep Vellumen.wikipedia.org

  Deep Vellum acquired Phoneme Media of Los Angeles and A Strange Object of Austin.

• 2013

  Deep Vellum is founded

  [1]Deep Vellumen.wikipedia.org

  Will Evans founded Deep Vellum in Dallas as a nonprofit literary publisher focused on translated and innovative literature.

Independent, nonprofit, translation-focused, international, and literary-experimental

• Literary publishing · 2013

  Translated literature

  Deep Vellum’s core publishing program consists of English-language editions of literature translated from other languages. The program brings international authors, literary traditions, and cultural perspectives to English-reading audiences, with a focus on serious literary work rather than mass-market publishing.

• Literary publishing · 2013

  Experimental literature

  The press publishes innovative and experimental writing, including work that challenges conventional genre, narrative, or stylistic expectations. This part of the catalog aligns Deep Vellum with the independent and avant-garde literary tradition represented by its publishing-group activities.

• Imprint or acquired publishing list · 2022

  Dalkey Archive Press list

  Following its 2020 acquisition, Deep Vellum relaunched Dalkey Archive Press in April 2022. The associated publishing list extends the group’s reach in international and challenging literary work.

• 2020

  Acquire Dalkey Archive PressM&A

  Background

  Dalkey Archive Press’s international and experimental literary orientation was compatible with Deep Vellum’s focus on translated and challenging literature.

  Action taken

  Deep Vellum acquired the McLean, Illinois-based press.

  Aftermath

  Dalkey Archive Press was relaunched in April 2022 within the expanded publishing group.

  Source

• 2019

  Acquire Phoneme Media and A Strange ObjectM&A

  Background

  Deep Vellum sought to expand its independent literary publishing activities through two acquisitions involving presses based in Los Angeles and Austin.

  Action taken

  The company acquired Phoneme Media and A Strange Object.

  Aftermath

  The acquisitions broadened the publishing group beyond its Dallas base.

  Source

1. 1Deep Vellumen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Deep Vellum official websitedeepvellum.org