Discussion How much do translators translate?

Hey everyone,
I am wondering about how much most translators/translation groups translate. Or how many releases they have each week.
I know that some, like Overlord, only has one release per week but it is extremely long, so I guess a better gauge would be how many words they translate per day or week.

~ I'm just curious since I don't have much time to read novels, so a rough estimate from anyone who knows would be fine.
Thanks!

 

Wait....Aren't you a translator?

 

Well, there is $40 per chapter for Peerless Martial God. Look at the current queueu she got though.. She gives out three chapters per week.
There's also the wuxiaworld group. Just look at how much they have on queue. I don't know how much time they actually translate though, but for ISSTH, they translate sponsored chapters a day for $80 and they hand out a free chapter everyday. The money is also probably divided into the number of staff on that project.

Anyways, I don't have any idea since I don't translate.

And yeah, Satan is right. Aren't you a translator?

 

Well, I do know that Against the Gods have around 2700 words (after translated) each, and Alyschu's team translate around one chapter per day, sometimes even two or three. So, do your math, around 20000 words per week or something.

 

It all depends; for example, if they have school or not, and how much homework they have. The least that I've seen a translator spit out 1 chapter per week.

 

I just want to correct my earlier statement regarding PMG. She's a slave for the weekends (10 chapters translated IIRC) said so herself lol . I don't know for her other schedules though.

So, basically, she hands out 13 chapters a week depending on the queue/sponsored chapters. For ISSTH, it's 14 chapters a week. 7 free and 7 queue. I don't know for ATG, MGA because I kinda see them as inconsistent.

 

Lol. Yes. I am the one translating Douluo Dalu II.
I was just wondering how my speed compared to the rest of the community. I don't get to read as much since translation takes a while so it's hard for me to figure it out.

I try to do 1-2 release a day but a single part is only around 1200 words so I guess I'm not translating as much as others. Since I'm doing it in my free time, I don't have the time to translate much more and I don't want to charge people money for something I do out of interest. Turning it into a job would be too daunting and I would probably quit after a while.

That said, it also feels pretty bad to charge people when it only takes like an hour per release. Making $80 off it like most sites out there feels like taking advantage. That added to people who only release chapters once a day if they get sponsored is crazy... They would make more money per hour than a doctor or lawyer. At that point, I feel like people paying can just buy an actual translation software or service for $2-3 a page or less.

 

I don't know when the system started since I just started reading LN recently. As someone already stated in here, it depends on the free time and translator's interest like you. For example, the translator for Desolate Era said that he'll only translate one free chapter a week, but still get sposored chapter a day because he got busy. I don't know his initial schedule before the change of sponsored chapters.

Well, it all falls down to your motivation really. Others are motivated by money. Others are motivated by passion. Others are motivated by interest. Others will even protect their interest because they're the first one to translate or something like that. It really is discouraging though but that is reality.

 

That's horrible... Turning passions and interests to monetary incentives.
I hope to never become like that...

 

The translator of Desolate Era does 3 standard chapters a week. Coiling dragon does 2 a day pretty much, (But he does accept donations.) ATG is usually 3 a week? + donations... Most usual places do either 1 a day or 3 a week, or once a week if the chapters are long enough.
Coiling dragon is the only unusual one as the translator is nuts. -shrug- (Yea sorry ren but your nuts brah.)
While the donations thing is pretty horrible to a extent, I'm okay with it just because with the amount of novels that get dropped.. :/ atleast these have a chance to be finished.. but then we got people who try to take advantage of it.

 

Oh. Sorry if I wasn't clear. I don't think donations are bad. I'm considering setting one up myself so I can upgrade the site and have some automated functions.
It's only when people start making money from it like a job, on a regular basis that feels really depressing.

 

Oh, so someone living as a professional translator.. yea that could prob get depressing for a person.. especially if its not something they like to do.

 

well it may be that people are taking advantage of the readers by sponsors or so but i feel that what Lachiel said is right cause at least these novels arent dropped
i have seen many people losing motivation after translating around 100-150 chapters as they started translating for fun but then it becomes a little hard to maintain regular updates cause of losing interest or lack of time and also there are people who started badmouthing the translator for not keeping schedule
eg recently pika translation dropped the Close combat mage for the same reason (although taffy girl picked it up )
so i really dont think that sponsors are bad but the only thing is that as you said 80$ for a single chapter can be said as too much
also people am even ready to pay 80$ dollars a chap if like PMC they clear the queue like she did (Damn last weekend she translated 14 chap in 2 days "godly fingers" and she translates around 3 chap a day regular so if atg was like that i will be in heaven )
imagine the real author knowing how much a single translated chap of his is going for i bet he will stop writing to translate the whole book to sell it on amazon for who knows how much
also there are a lot of translators whose day job is to translate documents so they dont think of sponsors for chap as anything bad
all in all sponsors are not as bad until its to a limited level and they provide service equal to the money taken

 

Lol. The entire story I'm translating can be bought for $20 USD. That is 26 volumes of 622 chapters total for $20 USD.

 

I'm a leech as such I won't give the translators a hard time about it if I notice at all, but I thought about when I would be offended by translators profiting from their translations if it were my work. I think that there should be a minimum of 3 free chapters a week before a translator starts doing sponsored chapters or roughly 6-9k words, something like that. At that point in my mind it becomes less about paying for the authors work and more about paying for the translators time.

 

I personally don't mind the donate for bonus chapters thing that many places have going. I think it all about how you value your time, translating takes time, and most of these places.are putting them out, at least a few chapters a week, for no cost. If a few fans want to know more, what happens next, and are willing to pay to know more, who are we to stop them? It also gives the translators pretty good incentive to continuing translating, I mean, 80$ for a work, for what Setras does in but an hour, is 80$ an hour. Pretty good rate, if I say so myself. More than what you'd get in most salary jobs, better than what you'd get in most translator jobs. Pretty good incentive. And people are willing to pay too.

Personally a chapter a day makes the Nyankos happy, any more than that and the translator is spoiling me!

 

Ah okay. I guess I'm thinking it from the point of view of the author. Honestly, I would be pissed if someone made money than me from my ideas. I can also see potential copyright problems along with getting sued if they ever desired to do this. Not sure how that would work or if it's possible though.

 

Thats the eternal threat of being a fan translator, the letter from the publishing company to stop or be sued. But in a way, fan translations help the author, by creating a bigger audience, publishing houses can decide, yes, this series will be popular, will sell well, and translate them to english for sale, giving the author greater revenue. The key part of any growth strategy is to expand the target market; and through fan translations, this is done. In the end, it will benefit the original writers more. Thats my opinion at least; if the fan translations didn't happen, then Western audiences wouldn't even know half these popular titles even existed. Fan Translations have hence spread the authors names and works around an created a larger market for the authors and their representatives to exploit.

 

For me it's the other way around, the donors are willing to donate so a translator could translate more. As long as there is a market, the translators won't run out of money to translate on their queue.

$80/hr is a bit excessive for one person. If it's divided depending on the contributions, then I won't say anything. As someone have stated already, it's like a doctor or lawyer rate. I just hope other translators won't be inspired by that kind of practice and make the $80 as a benchmark.

 

They seem to be making the bench mark on the # of words average in each chapter. and by how long it would take them to translate. I see some doing 25-60 per release, and they say it will be within 24hr's. but the way I've been seeing it is their que just keeps racking up. Peerless martial god is 40 dollars per chapter, and the poor girl has a 14 que atm, the highest I've seen is 25~ or so. So in the end while shes making money shes legit doing it almost as a job now. No bashing on her, just sometimes, people get way underestimate the interest in a novel and end up slaving away.