One of these days, I will translate my own novel
By: Salem Jin Joo Kim
Tags: Writing, Translation, Language Learning, Learning A Language, Writing Tips

One of these days, I will translate my own novel

Reading an article about the relationship between ken Liu and the guy for whom he translated, Liu ciuxin, I was struck by how above and beyond ken Liu went. He didn’t like the translation done by the previous person, and offered to do it better. That’s the kind of person who rarely exists in this world anymore.

Translation work is notoriously technical and difficult. Apparently Ted Chiang still works his day job as a technical writer, for reasons we shall never know. Maybe he likes it for the way it maybe grounds him. Maybe translation work is the same.

Someone who really affected me greatly was when I was in hospital. Technically it was hospital but it was more like rehab because almost everyone there was an ice addict or an alcoholic. Talk about going on sick and coming out sicker! You’d go in for anorexia or something (not me) and come out with an ice addiction. But whilst there for schizoaffective disorder, I happened to meet another Korean girl who, as well as being extremely depressed, was quietly translating her own freaking novel.

I paid for a translator after I wrote my novel because my Korean sucks. She was writing in both Korean and English, even though her English was not that fantastic. Talk about brave! She wrote a very – in my opinion – communist type book – with a protagonist who always seemed to have the rich against her. Not really my type of book, but impressive nonetheless. I wish it had been a less commercial type book, a little less kill-the-rich, because then I would have gladly read it without feeling like I was about to be killed. Not that I am rich, just relatively so. But the quietness with which she wrote – when it wasn’t her job nor her ambition to do so – was just mind blowing.

I’ve been reading the translation of my book recently. My Korean is proficient enough to read diary of a wimpy kid (which has pictures) but not enough to read my own damn book, which is written for teens and adults. But I’ve been trying to, and am pretty impressed with the translators work. Imagine if your translator wrote something totally different to what you were trying to say and you had no idea! If you were JK Rowling you’d find out straight away but the average wattpad writer and hustler, you’d never know. I really want to get my work translated into Chinese and then translate my own work too, but firstly maybe I’ll get totally tricked – and serves me right for being a rich bugger – and secondly it’s so mind numbing.

But one of these days I’m going to give it a bash. There’s nothing as seriously luxurious as wasting your time doing something which may never see the light of day, for the pure pleasure of doing it. Because reading my translated version of my wattpad book, it occurs to me what a beautiful language my mother tongue is. If only I were more proficient at it. In the story, these two ex-friends meet up at a reunion and joke around about the seven year itch. I never knew before that Korean has a phrase for seven year itch! It’s been really transformative getting to know my own culture, as one who grew up mostly on the west. For any other ‘immigrant kid’ I strongly recommend getting your writing – whether that’s a novel or article or technical writing or resume – translated into your mother tongue. You might not want to read a book in another language if it’s too difficult but everyone wants to read their own writing in another language.

What I’ve noticed about my translators work (who I met on fiver) was that he made the banter between the protagonist and the old friend informal. Whilst it’s true that they’re being flirtatious, a little, given that they’re talking about the seven year itch and so on and so forth, I would have made it more formal – if i had been non lazy enough to translate my own work – because she’s definitely just joking – and also networking – and loyal to her husband. But it’s the fault of the writer – me – if that doesn’t come across in English. In Korean, the use of the informal is especially flirtatious.

I also noticed that my translator referred to the mother very rudely, not kindly, but again that’s the fault of the writer – me – if it didn’t come across that for all their arguments, mother and daughter do love each other.

For anyone learning a second language and with a little spare cash, I strongly suggest paying for translations of your own work. It’s pricey and some might say wasteful, but it’s the fastest way to learn. When it’s personal, you’re more motivated to read it.

I’m now more motivated to try my own hand at translating, but I think I’ve still got a long ways to go.