Translation: How Big a Job?

nomesque · 08-09-2009, 01:21 AM

I'm wondering, has anyone gone to the trouble of getting their ebook translated into another language? If so, would you mind sharing some details? Like, how much it cost, how long it took, whether all you need is a writer who's a native speaker of the language to be translated into and a relatively good english speaker...? Are there some huge pitfalls to be wary of?

ahi · 08-09-2009, 01:36 AM

Ideally, you should find a natively bilingual *writer to do your translations. A person who is better in English than in the target language will fail to translate things naturally, and a person who is worse in English than in the target language will fail to understand (and thus correctly translate) English idioms.

Huge pitfalls? Better make sure the person is both good and reliable before you commit yourself to paying any money. And ensure that there is clarity about ownership of rights.

You should probably also get several readers (who are native language speakers of the target language) to read the final product, and point out (and explain) mistakes to you. If they can find nothing great. If they can only find nitpicky stuff that isn't objectively wrong, good. If multiple readers keep offering the same better translation than what your translation went with... uh-oh!

- Ahi

* As in somehow who writes literature at least semi-professionally.

nomesque · 08-09-2009, 02:19 AM

*nod* That all makes sense. Thanks!

HarryT · 08-09-2009, 06:50 AM

Translation rates vary with the language and the complexity of the document, but 10p per word would be typical for a translation from English into another European language. For a 30,000 word novel, you'd therefore be looking at somewhere in the vicinity of £3000 - say US$5000 - for a translation into a language such as French or German.

08-09-2009, 01:21 AM	#1
nomesque Snooty Bestselling Author Posts: 1,485 Karma: 1000000 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Ipswich, QLD, Australia Device: PRS-650	Translation: How Big a Job? I'm wondering, has anyone gone to the trouble of getting their ebook translated into another language? If so, would you mind sharing some details? Like, how much it cost, how long it took, whether all you need is a writer who's a native speaker of the language to be translated into and a relatively good english speaker...? Are there some huge pitfalls to be wary of?

08-09-2009, 01:36 AM	#2
ahi Wizard Posts: 1,790 Karma: 507333 Join Date: May 2009 Device: none	Ideally, you should find a natively bilingual writer to do your translations. A person who is better in English than in the target language will fail to translate things naturally, and a person who is worse in English than in the target language will fail to understand (and thus correctly translate) English idioms. Huge pitfalls? Better make sure the person is both good and reliable before you commit yourself to paying any money. And ensure that there is clarity about ownership of rights. You should probably also get several readers (who are native language speakers of the target language) to read the final product, and point out (and explain) mistakes to you. If they can find nothing great. If they can only find nitpicky stuff that isn't objectively wrong, good. If multiple readers keep offering the same better translation than what your translation went with... uh-oh! - Ahi As in somehow who writes literature at least semi-professionally. Last edited by ahi; 08-09-2009 at 01:38 AM.

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08-09-2009, 02:19 AM	#3
nomesque Snooty Bestselling Author Posts: 1,485 Karma: 1000000 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Ipswich, QLD, Australia Device: PRS-650	nod That all makes sense. Thanks!

08-09-2009, 06:50 AM	#4
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383099 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	Translation rates vary with the language and the complexity of the document, but 10p per word would be typical for a translation from English into another European language. For a 30,000 word novel, you'd therefore be looking at somewhere in the vicinity of £3000 - say US$5000 - for a translation into a language such as French or German.

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