While lettering often goes unnoticed by the general manga-reading audience, translations for series—especially popular shonen manga—are heavily scrutinized. And with good reason: how else will one know a spiky-haired protagonist’s convictions, a joke’s punchline, or the mechanics of a complex power system if the words are as opaque as apple cider?
In step with io9’s previous feature speaking to manga letterers about the ins and outs of the profession, we spoke with professional translators Stephen Paul (One Piece, Akane-banashi, Vinland Saga), David Evelyn (Undead Unluck, Gokurakugai, City Hunter), and Casey Loe (Spy x Family, Kill Blue, Shiba Inu Rooms) about localizing some of manga’s best series as well as how they combat discourse over their translations.
Manga Translators are Freelancers, Too
As the name denotes, a manga translator is in charge of localizing the language of a manga from its native tongue into a different one. In this case, translators change the Japanese text of weekly and monthly published manga series into English. By and large, manga translators work on the same schedule as letterers about a month in advance. While rates depend on the publisher, weekly schedules are often being developed technology that will allow them to save money on future translation by cutting out human employees.
While many of the solutions translators suggested echo Paul, Loe, and Evelyn’s sentiments, Loe went a step further to suggest a way that Japanese publishers can make the job easier for everyone.
“One simple change the Japanese side of the manga industry could implement that would make everyone’s life easier is to simply roll back the schedule so manga creators are submitting their work two or three weeks before it gets published,” Loe said. “That would allow everyone on the localization line to schedule their work efficiently and do a better job with it.”
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