Poetic English Novel into Japanese -- 2
Budget: $8 – $15 USD
I need a seasoned literary translator to render a 1980 Penguin Modern Classics novel into Japanese while holding fast to its archaic cadence. The English original moves with a measured, almost Elizabethan lilt, yet it is packed with vivid late-20th-century imagery; I want Japanese readers who grew up on the same era’s fiction to feel that exact texture on every page.
My top priority is the descriptive detail—every color, scent and turn of landscape must arrive intact—so I’m looking for someone who can weave those images into Japanese without flattening their nuance. At the same time, please keep the antique flavour: archaisms, inverted syntax or classical verb endings are welcome where they naturally echo the source rhythm.
Deliverables
• Full Japanese manuscript in Word format, mirroring the English pagination for ease of reference
• Translator’s marginal notes on wordplay, archaic choices and any unavoidable shifts in meaning
• A short afterword (≈1,000 words) outlining stylistic decisions and sources consulted
I’ll start by reviewing a translated sample of the opening five pages; once we agree on tone and level of archaism, you can proceed with the full text. Feel free to mention past literary projects, dictionaries or corpus tools you rely on—anything that shows you can balance poetry with precision.
My top priority is the descriptive detail—every color, scent and turn of landscape must arrive intact—so I’m looking for someone who can weave those images into Japanese without flattening their nuance. At the same time, please keep the antique flavour: archaisms, inverted syntax or classical verb endings are welcome where they naturally echo the source rhythm.
Deliverables
• Full Japanese manuscript in Word format, mirroring the English pagination for ease of reference
• Translator’s marginal notes on wordplay, archaic choices and any unavoidable shifts in meaning
• A short afterword (≈1,000 words) outlining stylistic decisions and sources consulted
I’ll start by reviewing a translated sample of the opening five pages; once we agree on tone and level of archaism, you can proceed with the full text. Feel free to mention past literary projects, dictionaries or corpus tools you rely on—anything that shows you can balance poetry with precision.