Resource Looking for a website to use as a first-time translator

Discussion in 'Translator's Corner' started by luoxinle, Sep 19, 2021.

  1. luoxinle

    luoxinle Book Club Founder

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    I'm thinking about trying translation for the first time, but I'm not sure where to post the translated content. It's my first time, so I want something easy to use. I'd also be willing to partner with someone who wants to read the book I'm translating and would be willing to manage the website part.

    This is the novel I'm considering picking up:
    Top-notch Masquerading as Cannon Fodder Female Companion
    by Dawnesque
    恍若晨曦

    It's crazy long, so no guarantees I'll translate the whole thing, but I'm enjoying it so far, so I'd like to give it a try.
     
  2. UnGrave

    UnGrave ななひ~^^

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    Honestly, making a quick wordpress or blogspot page works pretty well. At least that way you can see some stats on how your translation is doing and whatnot. That is, if you don't care about monetization and you're just doing it for fun.
     
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  3. Random.poet

    Random.poet Powered by Coffee

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    When unsure u can always join a group that already has a site set up, join as a translator and leave the website management to them. :hmm:
    I mean, u can also benefit from meeting experienced people in the group before branching out on your own.
    Like website know how and translating tips...
     
  4. luoxinle

    luoxinle Book Club Founder

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    I'm hesitant to join a group because I want more control over what I choose to translate (and how frequently) and because I'm worried my quality won't be up to their expectations. My spoken Chinese is much better than my written Chinese, so I rely on MTL for a first draft and to get pronunciations for things that I know the meaning of but can't read (pro-tip: google translate will read things out loud for you). I've done some amateur subtitling before, but this is my first time translating, and I'm just looking for a relaxing hobby, not a second job.

    Also, unrelated, but is that your cat? So cute!
     
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  5. Random.poet

    Random.poet Powered by Coffee

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    Quality wise, there are people that could help like editors and other translator. If you are interested, drop me a dm. My team is looking for new translator right now and u are free to take on any project u wish to do:blobjoy:
    Sorry, its not my cat. I dont own one, but i love cats lol
     
  6. miscalculation2

    miscalculation2 Active Member

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    If you don't want to / don't have the time to set up a Wordpress website (stuff like buying a domain name, using Filezilla, working out server hosting etc.) you can always use a website builder like Weebly. The whole point of a website builder is to simplify the process, so it should be straightforward. If all you want is some basic platform to post your translations to, it should do the job.

    Pros
    - Complete control on what you want to post
    - Drag-and-drop page building

    Cons
    - Very poor flexibility
    - Fixed set of features
    - You have to pay. Obviously.
     
  7. dimsumdimsum

    dimsumdimsum Well-Known Member

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    Heya! I have a wix site where I also do rookie translations, I can totally admin you and you can feel free to post there!! I'm planning on rebranding it so it's like a site for rookie's to upload their work!! Just shoot me a dm on here or discord (dloomz#5470) if you're interested!!
     
  8. Akira-Chan

    Akira-Chan Member

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    Maintaining a Blogger site is easier than a WordPress site in my opinion. Oh well, I was never good at technical stuff anyways—
     
  9. ShyHeaux

    ShyHeaux Active Member

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    Hi! I'm a new translator as well and I found Wordpress (.org and not .com) to be easier to make plus Blogger doesn't allow custom templates. The options for custom templates were important to me because I wanted a simple, minimalist blog and couldn't find that layout within Blogger.

    Wordpress does require you to purchase web hosting. I was able to buy my domain from GoDaddy for two years for only $0.99 with a coupon and web hosting for $2.99 a month with NameCheap. But I also didn't want ads on my site because the amount trackers those ads expose the users when they visit the site. (One of my favorite translator's website had a total of 75 trackers!) If you need help figuring it all out or have questions, feel free to send me a message.

    You can take a look at my website for reference to see what I mean.
     
  10. SleepyHypnos

    SleepyHypnos Member

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    Join a group who doesn't require you to update once a week. There are plenty tl group who're like that I could suggest you few tl groups. (Or the one above me who are suggesting their site, they look neat)

    But if you aren't planning to monetize your translation, I suggest make your own. :blobcozy:
     
  11. Mei_kishimoto

    Mei_kishimoto Member

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    Hi, I don't know if you are still searching, in the Spanish fandom there is a page called H & ALI where you can upload your novels as an independent translator. You can look for information on their facebook page, the only problem is how I mentioned it in Spanish.

    If you are looking to monetize your translation then I recommend you make your own website
     
  12. asryiiiirt659

    asryiiiirt659 Member

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    If making your own website is cumbersome to you, try joining a translating group. There are several translating groups which not only provide you with translation and editing help but also gives you complete freedom on your projects. They help you host your translations and you get paid as per the page views. You also get a bigger share of readers as these websites already have an established reader base.

    Since you're translating in chinese, how about joining groups like foxoholic or secondlifetranslations?
    I'm sorry I can't recommend you a lot of sites since I don't read cn novels much and have limited knowledge of most groups. If you want to know more about such groups, you can make a post on the translator's corner.
     
  13. readerz

    readerz Madam Jin

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    Actually, some people just post their translations on google docs. You just need to submit the links on NU and you're good to go.
     
  14. luoxinle

    luoxinle Book Club Founder

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    Hello, everyone, thank you all so much for your help and offers of help! I dropped the novel because I discovered someone who doesn't use NU is already translating it, and because it wasn't as good as I was hoping (that author is pretty hit or miss for me). I will touch back in when I've found another novel I'm interested in translating.

    Here's a link to my request for suggestions: https://forum.novelupdates.com/threads/a-novel-to-translate.136940/
     
  15. asdkanjdaks

    asdkanjdaks Member

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    One very simple choice would be Patreon with your translations published as posts.
    The downside for this is that you won't be able to get ad revenue but it is probably the simplest choice if you don't want to bother with setting up a website and everything.