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Translating visual novels


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Hello, people I'm new here on the forums and was curious on volunteering to translate visual novels. I've noticed that some projects on the websites have been dropped and sadly I wished they hadn't. Now I want to pick up on those project and revive them but unfortunately I don't know how. So I was wondering if someone can teach me how to translate visual novels if they have the time that is. Though I won't always be available since I go to school and will be only doing on my free time. So if anyone can spare some of their time and teach me the basics of translating that would be great. Thank you and much appreciated,  

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Hello, people I'm new here on the forums and was curious on volunteering to translate visual novels. I've noticed that some projects on the websites have been dropped and sadly I wished they hadn't. Now I want to pick up on those project and revive them but unfortunately I don't know how. So I was wondering if someone can teach me how to translate visual novels if they have the time that is. Though I won't always be available since I go to school and will be only doing on my free time. So if anyone can spare some of their time and teach me the basics of translating that would be great. Thank you and much appreciated,  

 

I used to think like you too. I'm hope you have enough will (and skill) to finish it.

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https://forums.fuwanovel.net/index.php?/topic/939-fan-translator-skills-registration/ <-- check here

 

Or find a project you like, and apply for it with what you are capable of doing.

Hey thanks for sending me this link but unfortunately I already knew about it. What I'm trying to ask is how to translate a VN as in I don't know how to translate at all. I looked it up on google on how and I kept seeing hacking, programming, etc and frankly I had no idea what I was reading. I know some programming but not a lot. I was asking for any experienced people that have translated before and could teach me how to do it. Though thank you for sending me the link I will be sure to register. 

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Do you know Japanese? If "no" -> learn Japanese. If "yes" -> do you know it well? This is absolutely vital for being a translator (well, English is important too, but your posts suggest you are familiar with it). Sorry if this was too obvious, but a lot of people actually overlook this part, so I mentioned it just in case.

 

Now, just pick a title you are interested in. If it's something that was dropped, try contacting someone from the previous team (preferably the team leader and/or the hacker), and get the partially translated scripts from them. If you want to start a new project, find a hacker first (maybe someone from the thread mentioned earlier) - he/she will deal with all technical details, so you don't need any special programming skills.

 

What you should get in the end either way, is the text extracted from the VN, in the editable format. Now, you "just" have to edit that text file, translate all Japanese lines and replace them with English ones. Then, you send it back to the hacker, he/she does the necessary programming magic, and creates the patch.

You will probably want to recruit an editor or two as well, to check the translated files and make sure they are well written (it's a must if you aren't a native English speaker and/or don't have good writing skills). If there's some text on the pictures, you will also need an image editor, to replace it with a translated version.

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I'm not sure if you're referring to how to *translate* visual novels, or just learning about how a fan translation project works in general. . . but if it's the former, then Pabloc is right. You need a lot of knowledge about the language in order to translate properly, in a way that does not make editors spill blood and such. 

 

If you're interested in learning about how the whole fan translation project works, i believe you should hop in to an IRC channel of the project and ask them there, it'd be easier for them to show you stuff if they're willing to :D 

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