So I'm not the only one having a hard time reading this. The translation doesn't flow right.

If this is what a TL looks like before proofreading then I've been greatly underestimating the amount of work proofreaders do. That's more than I can handle.

"Proofreader" is a complete misnomer and as one myself it always irked me a little, since it undersells the work being done as merely checking for typos or the like. "Editor" would be a much more appropriate credit for any scanlation I've worked on, and I typically spend 5-10 hours working on getting a translated chapter into a presentable state.

last edited at May 2, 2022 4:26AM

If this is what a TL looks like before proofreading then I've been greatly underestimating the amount of work proofreaders do. That's more than I can handle.

"Proofreader" is a complete misnomer and as one myself it always irked me a little, since it undersells the work being done as merely checking for typos or the like. "Editor" would be a much more appropriate credit for any scanlation I've worked on, and I typically spend 5-10 hours working on getting a translated chapter into a presentable state.

In fansubbing, that certainly is the work of an editor, but for some reason scanlation has decided to use that title only for image editing, which used to confuse me to no end a first.

"conventions" are what they are, but in the end, every scan group decides what each position is and what it means, lol, it's not like there is a committee overseeing this somewhere :) personally, i consider typesetting (TS) to be the position that spends a few hours putting the translated script into a finished state. IMO, and a good PR will also do some QC and TL check.

Shop talk! Love it.

and I typically spend 5-10 hours working on getting a translated chapter into a presentable state.

Preach it. (Also, you're technically a copyeditor, we just don't use that term in scanlation. The QCer is the proofreader.)

personally, i consider typesetting (TS) to be the position that spends a few hours putting the translated script into a finished state. IMO, and a good PR will also do some QC and TL check.

Yeah, I generally have a different process for every group and different levels of copyediting or proofreading depending on the release at hand. I can't say I've ever worked with a TS who was also very schooled in grammar and native-sounding written English and could use the typesetting as an opportunity for a script review, but if the TS is also the translator it would be totally fine. If they're not the translator, that would be some serious creative control taken away from the translator, who usually has the final say on anything that isn't straight up an error and is the one who approves script changes. (very important for preventing worker alienation.) But it can definitely be hell needing to make 50+ edits post-typesetting when it takes until QC to do a proper review

I know it's standard for a PR to do TL checks, but I've found that to almost always bog down a translation review with opinions. And it compromises the the PR's role as a reader advocate by making them an artist/original script advocate instead, usually increasing stiff or bland or wordy text. However, it's always worthwhile when you have a new translator. I need to do some more scanlation, I think I'm getting withdrawals.

Sorry for getting so far off topic. To tie it all in, I guess I'd say that like sensei, sometimes I also get a little beary when I get sad. Straight up turn into a bear.

last edited at May 2, 2022 9:29PM

But I don't get how just anyone could be a proof reader. Because I feel like I would have to know what they're saying in Japanese in order to fix what is being said in English?

I'll be a bit harsher than previous commenters - the translation is pretty bad, sorry about that but this is my opinion after reading it. I don't buy that the lack of a proofreader is the reason, this feels like the whole sentences would have to be rewritten so things make sense.

What about it didn't make sense? It was pretty simple and easy to understand what was being put forward. Sure the English was poor but it takes no effort at all to understand what was being translated imo.

I mean, I would probably understand what is happening just with pictures and without text so it's a low bar to clear. What I mean by "making sense" is that the whole thing is just torture to read.
... but even then, that whole bit on the page 16 with "why don't I listen to anything" just makes no sense to me. Why are they talking about "listening"? A student listening to a teacher maybe, but I don't get what does it mean in context.

last edited at May 3, 2022 9:16PM

The rooftop moments really takes me back in my HS years. Fallin in love with my teacher tho i didn't say what i wanted to her. Wished I did

Thanks for this Wasabi Rou! Brings back Nostalgic memories.

Oh my god, this is the most unintelligible one yet.
Windyfall, please get a proof reader.

Honestly compared to many other manga I've read with extremely incoherent translation that mistaken many words such as 'you' written as 'I', I'll say this translation is not bad. At least it's understandable and I don't need to retranslate what it actually meant in my head.

Okay now the story, I really feel bad for the other teacher, she got no chance with our mc lol. Mc is also way too passive I'll say, the teen will likely fall outta love and mc still wouldn't do anything

But I don't get how just anyone could be a proof reader. Because I feel like I would have to know what they're saying in Japanese in order to fix what is being said in English?

You're right that it's generally not just anyone that can be a proofreader, but I don't think knowing Japanese is a prerequisite because proofreading isn't about fixing the accuracy of a translation. At least, I don't know any Japanese and do just fine. The proofreader's job is to make sure the dialogue/scripts/english is correct in terms of grammar, and they act as a reader stand-in to make sure the text flows well, the meaning presented is clearly, and that it sounds natural for the target language. For Japanese, this often means querying repetitive or vague text, wordy dialogue, and retained Japanese punctuation (Japanese uses punctuation differently than English, so it doesn't always carry over exactly), and offering alternatives. The idea for a proofreader is that the text was perfectly readable in Japanese to Japanese readers, so the English should be just as readable to an English-reading audience.

I'll be a bit harsher than previous commenters - the translation is pretty bad, sorry about that but this is my opinion after reading it. I don't buy that the lack of a proofreader is the reason, this feels like the whole sentences would have to be rewritten so things make sense.

What about it didn't make sense? It was pretty simple and easy to understand what was being put forward. Sure the English was poor but it takes no effort at all to understand what was being translated imo.

I mean, I would probably understand what is happening just with pictures and without text so it's a low bar to clear. What I mean by "making sense" is that the whole thing is just torture to read.
... but even then, that whole bit on the page 16 with "why don't I listen to anything" just makes no sense to me. Why are they talking about "listening"? A student listening to a teacher maybe, but I don't get what does it mean in context.

Looks like a mistranslation. The verb 聞く (kiku) means both "to listen/hear" and "to ask (a question)". It seems like the teacher was probably wondering why her student hadn't asked her about an answer to her confession. Just replace "listen" with "ask" in the lines that have it to make it make a little more sense.

The idea for a proofreader is that the text was perfectly readable in Japanese to Japanese readers, so the English should be just as readable to an English-reading audience.

This is what I've seen referred to as "equivalent experience" in the Japanese>English translation industry, and it's probably the most important guideline for a translator to follow. The goal of translation is not to convert all of the words in the source text to words in the target language, it's to provide an experience to readers of the translated text that's equal to the experience of native readers of the original.

last edited at Jul 23, 2022 5:25PM