The settings that make a good novel translation
A human translator asks these questions before starting. Here, you answer them once, and each answer becomes an instruction followed throughout the book.
The same passage, four levels of fidelity
« Il pleut des cordes », dit Tom en scrutant la lande détrempée.
| As close as possible | “It is raining ropes,” said Tom, scrutinizing the soaked moor. |
|---|---|
| Faithful | “It's pouring,” said Tom, peering out at the sodden moor. |
| Fluent | “It's bucketing down,” Tom muttered, his eyes on the waterlogged moor. |
| Adaptation | “It's raining cats and dogs,” Tom grumbled, staring at the drowned moor. |
Fidelity or fluency
How far the translation may depart from the original sentence to sound natural.
- As close as possible — Structure and words followed as closely as the language allows. For technical or legal texts.
- Faithful default — The meaning, tone and rhythm of the original, in natural language. The standard of a good literary translation.
- Fluent — Readability first: sentences are freely recomposed, without losing any meaning.
- Adaptation — Expressions, references and humor carried over as if the book had been written in the target language. The plot never changes.
Language level
The register of the narration; dialogue stays true to each character.
- Like the original default
- Formal
- Everyday
- Colloquial
Names of characters and places
Keep “Jean-Baptiste” or adapt it to “John”…
- Keep default
- Adapt to the target language
Formal and informal “you”
English does not distinguish between “tu” and “vous”; French, Spanish and German do.
- Mirroring the original
- Following target-language usage default
Units and currencies
Miles or kilometers, pounds or kilos.
- Keep default
- Convert
Cultural references
A TV show, a local holiday, a brand that a foreign reader does not know.
- Keep default
- Explain discreetly in the sentence
- Adapt (paid option)
Wordplay and rhymes
- Recreate an equivalent effect default
- Translate the literal meaning
Dialogue typography
« » quotes, dashes, „…“: every language has its own rules.
- Target-language conventions default
- Like the original
Profanity
- Same intensity default
- Tone down slightly
Genre of the book
The genre guides the translator's vocabulary, rhythm and priorities.
- Novel default
- Crime, thriller
- Romance
- Fantasy, science fiction
- Children's
- Young adult
- Historical fiction
- Essay
- Self-help
- Biography, memoir
- Practical, technical
- Poetry
- Theater
Readership
- Adults default
- Teenagers
- Children
Regional variant
American or British English, Spanish from Spain or Latin America…
- English : American English, British English
- Spanish : Spanish (Spain), Latin American Spanish, Mexican Spanish
- Portuguese : Brazilian Portuguese, European Portuguese
- French : French (France), French (Quebec), French (Belgium), French (Switzerland)
- German : German (Germany), German (Austria), German (Switzerland)
- Dutch : Dutch (Netherlands), Dutch (Belgium)
- Chinese : Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese
Required glossary
One line per term: Terre du Milieu = Middle-earth. It will be applied everywhere, and checked.
Free-form instructions
Anything a translator should know: a character's tone, context, intended audience…
Cultural adaptation · Second review
Untranslatable references are replaced with equivalents that play the same role.
A second agent reads as a native reader, on top of the accuracy check.