I understand that quite a few people might be interested in aiding in this project. Here are some ways to do that.
Get the word out
The first way you can help out with the project is to simply get the word out about it. Tell people; get them interested. Have them read the official translations. The main reason Boogiepop hasn't been getting very many official translations is exposure. So expose it to people. Show everyone why this series deserves to be in the public conscious.
Buy the novels
Of course, Seven Seas isn't going to translate more novels if no one buys them. So buy them. I get some people don't have the money to purchase a lot of books. But the current omnibuses are, like, 15$ each on Amazon. Their almost criminally cheap. The more money people spend on them, the closer we get to a new translation.
Helping out with the Translation Effort
Finally, if you think you have the time and skill set to help out, you could always help us directly. Currently, we are open to expanding our translation team to put out more content faster. With more people, we can even work on some of the spinoffs, like Beat's Discipline and Repent Walpurgis.
Of course, we're not going to just take anyone. We want our translations to be as smooth and quality as possible, so, in order to join our team, we'll need some sort or proof that you can meet the standards we're looking for. And that's where the application process comes in.
The Application Process
Anyone that wants to aid in the translation effort will have to apply for a position on the team. We're going to limit the size of our team to as much as we can handle, so keep in mind that we are accepting the best applicants out of those who apply. Any other people will have to wait until we decide to accept more.
How the process works, is that each position will have to provide a sample of their ability through a sort of test. These tests change from position to position, so detailed instructions will be given in the materials for each position.
Those positions are:
Translator
Transcriber
Image re-drawer
Translator is obvious. This positions creates the base translations that we work off of. The emphasis here is on accuracy and preserving meaning through raw text and TL notes. Knowledge of Japanese is a given, but cultural knowledge and the ability to leave good notes is just as important.
Transcribers are the people that turn what the translators give them into something much more coherent and easier to read while maintaining as much meaning and accuracy as possible. This position requires a great deal of knowledge about the English language.
The re-drawer position is just like what re-drawers for manga translations do. They take any images we want to translate and re-draw them to remove the original Japanese text. This isn't a strictly necessary position, but I think it goes a long way to making a more readable translation. It just makes things look better too. Anyone who is currently or has worked on manga redrawing in the past is welcome.
Once you've chosen a position to apply for, download the zip file associated with the position below, and follow the instructions within. You can send the completed files to me at: Bistai949@gmail.com or PM me on Discord at Bistai#9513
Translator Application:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1j4a2v1qQzN6MiPkla8Ep2ixr_vYl_Fxq/view?usp=sharing
Transcriber Application:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1IPDk-MyhhJ43m9HgeIKHo3oy9VgVpuFG/view?usp=sharing
Redrawer Application:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1S8gzNnFJjgR7yIIYfPCUhSmWd0LfRc2U/view?usp=sharing
On the Subject of Donations
To be 100% clear, we are not selling these translations. Donations are not required to read our translations, and no one should ever feel obligated to donate to us. If you want to support the series, buy the official releases. Donating to us is not a replacement for buying the official releases.
That being said, we do accept donations. We want to keep working on this for as long and often as possible, and donations would help with that. I don’t have a lot of money, so keeping the website running is all I can do on my own funds.
So, what would we do with the donations?
First, We’d use it to fund various parts of the project. That includes the website, buying the novels to translate, buying good fonts (although there are a lot of good free ones too), buying supplementary material to help, and so on. Donations can help with all sorts of things to make these translations even better.
After all of those expenses, we’d use the money for our own purposes. Know that donating to and supporting the site also, in turn supports us directly. Some of us are college students that are barely getting by. Any amount of money would help us tremendously.
So, feel free to donate, or don’t. Either way, this site will always remain free for people to come in, browse, and read the translations we have available.