Thursday, July 25, 2013

SPS main story done, what next?

November 13, 2011. Five months after I was done with my brief review on Sayonara Piano Sonata, I was giving serious consideration to whether I should translate what is, in my opinion, a pretty amazing LN. My translations are shit, and I knew jack shit about music other than my brief stint in the school band during my middle school days.

But after that horrible chapter 13 (Eroica) in volume 1, everything seems to be smooth sailing after that. Sort of. The musical terms and Sugii Hikari's metaphors are still a pain in the ass to deal with though. And the translation remains shit. Futari wa Pretty Anon's SPS manga translations gave the title quite a bit of notice, so I guess the we kind of got some free publicity as a result. Not to forget, free publicity from Baka Tsuki as well.

One and a half years later, the main series is finally completed. Pretty decent timing, considering I have quite a bit of distractions in my hand. Things are not getting any faster though, with Dota 2 and perhaps my first work waiting for me. I welcome any comments, feedbacks or constructive criticisms you guys may have for the series. But pardon my grammar, really. I am just horrible with them. And my English grades are not exactly stellar.

Now to Encore Pieces. There are five stories in the volume, but to me, only first and last chapters are the only ones that really matter. I don't mind doing all, and I don't mind doing those two only either. It sort of depends on whether you guys want me to finish SPS completely or to have me move on to a new title asap. Again, feel free to comment on this. I'll probably make my decision after I am done with "sonate pour deux". 

Before I end it off for SPS, I'll like to thank those who've helped me out with SPS before, especially when it comes to the edits. They are the ones who makes the translations sucks less, so props to them. Thanks goes to, but not limited to, Alice, Drkmerc, Kiydon, Yebanis, and of course, our two new editors Asololo and Trarc. They'll be much more active as Kiydon gets on track with Mismarca.



Depending on the situations, Encore Pieces will probably take me anywhere from three months to a year to clear. I guess with only a volume left for me to work on, it's time I think about what I'll be doing next. There's still quite a bit of flame left in me, so I guess I'll work on another title or something? Here's some titles I have in mind. Nothing concrete yet. Personally, I'll only work on titles that are not yet ported to the anime as a medium, and I won't touch anything that's touched by others. I guess it's more of my aim to give deserving LNs more exposure to the English community. I'm pretty pleased to see how much attention Hyouketsu Kyoukai has received, though it's kind of a shame I'm no longer do it. But sinemerald's doing an excellent job with it, so I guess it's all for the better. And hopefully, I've done my part with SPS as well.

Here are a few titles I have in mind. Do inform me if any of the titles are already translated by someone out there.

Gakusei Shoujo
One of the two leading contenders I have in mind as of now. It sort of make sense to do this, since it's a music title which features the son of Naomi and Mafuyu. One problem I foresee is that readers (and perhaps even me) may get tired of a second music-related title, though the fantasy themes may mitigate that issue a little. Other things which makes it slightly less appealing for me are the musical terminologies and again, Sugii Hikaru's metaphors. A strong plus going in its favour is the fact that it's unlikely for the LN to get an anime, and I can get my hands on the official CH translations as I am purchasing the novels.

Shinonome Yuuko series
The other leading contender. I enjoyed it immensely based on the first volume alone, and the series scores well on the LN charts. It's a decently realistic romance title, and it just somehow reminds me of Biblia Koshodo for some unknown reason (probably the female protags). Should be much easier to translate compared to Gakusei Shoujo, which is a plus. Also planning to get the official CN translations. A huge factor going against it is the fact that I can't get my hands on the raws other than <東雲侑子は全ての小説をあいしつづける>. That's the (currently) last volume of the series. Not good. I'll appreciate it if anyone can direct me to the source for the raws for the first two volumes.

Fukanzen Shinkei Kikan Ilis
LN of my waifu. I'm on the balance with this one. Since I'm no longer working on Hyouketsu Kyoukai, I am not too sure if I want to do this. Moreover, this series is enjoyable only to a more "niche" group of audiences. I'm unsure of whether the series will be appealing to readers who has not read or do not enjoy Hyouketsu Kyoukai.

Dress na Boku ga Tangotonaki Katagata no Kateikyoushi-sama na Kudan
The mouthy title from Nomura Mizuki featuring a crossdressing MC. Personally, it's the most interesting series I've read from her. I am not a fan of Bungaku Shoujo, though Hikaru ga Chikyuu is pretty decent. Not a main contender due to one reason only - there's currently no official CN translations for this title. Can be a pretty scary prospect judging from what happened to Onii-ai initially.

MiX!
Yet another title with a crossdressing MC. It's a story about the MC who joined the gynmastics club due to some circumstances. Nice title, but not too sure about the appeal of a cute trap in the eyes of the typical readers.

Kakikake no Love Letter
One-shot from Yamaguchi Noboru, the author who did Zero no Tsukaima. I've never read ZnT before, but the impression I have from this one-shot is very different from my impression of ZnT based on the few anime episodes I've watched. It's a romance title talking about the relationship of a couple as they graduate high school and the main character enrols into a university. Pretty nice one-shot, but it's a one-shot.



That's all I have in mind for now. Not too sure if I'll entertain any requests, since I won't really work on any title unless I've read it before and am sure I'll enjoy translating it. Again, feel free to voice out which title you guys are more interested in, and I may then them into consideration.

That's all for now.

42 comments:

  1. Reading this post, I wanna thank you for your hard work over the years translating SPS. Personally, I felt that the translations were pretty alright. Regarding Encore Pieces, in my opinion, I feel that just writing one/two stories really doesn't do it justice, leaving out details and cool events that happened. As a viewer, I'd like it if you could do all the stories, to give the blackbird one final flight in the sky (ok, that's cheesy, but I wanted to make this meaningful somehow).

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  2. Sumeragi VI;s comment for this..Encore pieces,I completely agree with you..specially ch1 but i'd like u to do them all...it'll give a more 'fulfilling' taste that way...and after that,my vote goes to illis,
    the connections this has with tasogare and eden....yea,.definitely illis ¬(=3=)~
    btw.............gakusei shoujo features their son??and its fantasy???

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  3. first of all, i would like to thank you and the editing people for translating the series Sayonara Piano Sonata and would like to read all the five stories of the final volume. i know im agreedy person^^
    also i hope you will translat the Shinonome Yuuko series in the future case it looks very intersting and fun to read from the summary at the manga update site.

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  4. Man, thank you very much for SPS translation, it's much appreciated, I hope you translate encore or if not possible, a summary!

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  5. Job well done mate (even though I haven't actually started reading SPS yet ^^"). I think most people would prefer that you do all of the stories rather than just two of them, since it has more of a feeling of true completeness.

    As for your next project, I was thinking maybe you could do Love Letter followed by Gakusei Shoujo? Doing Love Letter first would be a nice break from having to deal with the music theme and those metaphors you dread, and seeing as it's a oneshot, it shouldn't take an especially horrible amount of time (hopefully).

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  6. Thank you so much for translating Sayonara Piano Sonata! A very enjoyable, very well-written story. Probably my second-favorite series of all time.
    I would like to see at least the first and last chapters of Encore translated, but if possible the entire volume would be nice, too.

    As for your next project, I would say either Gakusei Shoujo or Shinonome

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  7. thank you for translating Sayonara Piano Sonata, my first ever read LN. well, i'm not from chinese/japanese community so its really a given that i'm not that exposed to LNs. but after i read your work on SPS, i really liked it and my love for LNs grew and i am now reading other LNs. i never knew i could love novels as i hate full-text page. haha.. btw, i hope you would translate the encore pieces.. plss :) and for your next project, i think its better if you do love letter as it is an one-shot, it could be a break for you maybe.. hehe

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  8. a big thanks for translating this series, you and the editors have done a splendid job. i would personally like to see you translate the entire 5th volume,you can then either do kakikake or gakusei shoujo your choice. can you do brief summaries to other LNs that you've read ?

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  9. I am rooting on gakusei shojou. Music theme never bored me and its like a sequel from sps

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  10. I believe Gakusei Shoujo would be the best choice. I read a lot of translated light novels, and SPS is one of the more unique ones due to its writing and genre. While I understand your qualms about the difficulty of jargon and metaphors, it is also what makes your translation effort impressive and its results charming.

    I will still love and appreciate your work regardless of what choice you make though.

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  11. One again I'll say thank you for all the translation done until now.
    especially to SPS.

    I am myself a fan of crossover story so naturally I'll vote for Gakusei Shoujo
    but rembering/reading the preview form last year of this series I am not really fond of it.
    so for now My vote is

    1st Shinonome Yuuko series
    2nd Fukanzen Shinsei Kikan Ilis
    3rd Gakusei Shoujo

    and a one shot like Kakikake no Love Letter is good choice too between series.

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  12. I'd prefer you to finish encore, all of the chapters if possible. Next, I pick Ilis or Love Letter or Gakusei Shoujo.

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  13. Thanks for translating SPS, i really enjoy reading it. Therefore, i'd love to see SPS encore get a full translation.
    About your next work, i'd like to vote for Shinonome Yuuko series, or maybe Gakusei Shoujo since it's SPS sequece(?) though i'm really fond of fantasy genre.

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  14. Thanks so much for translating SPS which was a very refreshing LN to read, especially since it involved music. Personally, I would like you to do all stories in Encore since it wouldn't feel complete if you didn't do so. My choices would be:
    Shinonome Yuuko
    Gakusei Shoujo

    After finding the manga version of Shinonome, I have been very interested in the story plot and I hope you will translate it next. Again, thanks so much for the work on SPS.

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  15. thank you very much for translating SPS, without you I couldn't keep track with Sugii Hikaru's work
    anyway I voted for Gakusei Shoujo and full translation of Encore Piece!

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  16. Have to thank you for all your hard work in translating SPS. I definitely enjoyed reading this LN. Since I've become a fan of this piece, I would ask that all the encore chapters be translated.. but perhaps translate the first and last chapters first and leave the middle ones last?

    Since SPS was a pretty awesome choice, I trust that any of the other contenders for your next project will be just as good - so no preference here :D

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  17. Translate Shinonome Yuuko series!!
    Don't mind about SPS though since you decide what you'll do to Encore
    Continue doing translations !!!

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    Replies
    1. btw, thanks for translating SPS
      enjoyed reading Nao's shitty denseness

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    2. was that a compliment or an insult.......or...or...a complisult??????
      does that mean the 'enjoyed reading' part was the compliment and the 'denseness' was the insult...or the nyaather way around?

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    3. The denseness was about Naomi, the main character...

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  18. Many thanks for translating SPS. I've enjoyed the series as well as your translations very much. For the sake of completeness, I'd love it if you decided to finish all of the Encore pieces.
    As for what to do next, my vote would be either Gakusei Shoujo or Love Letter.
    Again, thank you (and the editors!) for your hard work up to now.

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  19. Many many thanks for translating SPS, I've been waiting for this series to be fully translated.

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  20. Thank you so much for your translation of SPS! I would love to see the entire Encore Pieces translated, but I would also not mind if you started with the first and last stories. :)

    As for what comes next, I would love to read Gakusei Shoujo. That sounds fantastic! The Shinonome Yuuko series also sounds good. (Heck, they all sound good! LOL)

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  21. You did a wonderful job at SPS, hands down. It took long, yeah, but it was worth the wait, so thanks very much :)
    For the Encore Pieces, it might take longer, but I think that reading all of them would feel 'complete'. It'd be kind of a shame to have read the entire SPS series with the exception of 3 side stories :P With that, though, good luck and thanks again :D
    For the next ones, Kakikake no Love letter would probably be nice (I dunno why, but I think that a oneshot romance would be a good read. And maybe a nice tribute to Yamaguchi, too). After that, One of the two leading contenders, whichever one's more convenient for you :D
    In any case, thank you again!


    btw, I thought SPS 4 had 19 chapters? something missing? and will you be translating the afterword? :)

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  22. Thank you so much for translating SPS. It was a brilliant work and I really enjoyed reading every single chapter. No matter how dense Naomi was.
    I would love to read all the Encore Pieces! That way it would really feel complete. :D

    And for your next project, I really hope you will pick Gakusei Shoujo. I went back and re-read your earlier review/summary post on it and I was smitten again. I love classical music and the characters all seem so funny! xD My second choice would be Fukanzen Shinkei Kikan Ilis :) Because Ilis is so adorable~

    Thanks again!

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  23. Thank you for SPS! I found your translation good enough to be enjoyed, and for grammar, I didn't mind that much since Japanese/Chinese->English translations suck hard when are literal translation anyways.

    I haven't read all of those options but as for the ones I read/am reading:

    Yuuko series: Thanks to your review, I purchased the first volume, and I liked pretty much the story (and the MC was aceptable too), so I strongly recommend it.

    Dress na boku...: Though I haven't read that much, the way our MC handles those kids is pretty fun, and I liked the backgroud too, but I wouldn't recommend tl-ing it.

    Kakikake no Love Letter: No idea honestly, but it seems like a good one (goona look for it when I have some time).

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  24. Shinonome Yuuko, Gakusei Shoujo, Fukanzen and Kakikake... (Karikake... seems nice but... one-shot... D:)
    I guess:
    Fukanzen>Shononome>Gakusei>Karikake

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  25. I would like to say to you: большое спасибо. It was may be not a one hell of a ride, but an enjoying reading.
    About your next translation... Well, Shinonome Yuuko series looks like the best choice for me, cause there are not so many romance genre light novels translated to English out there.
    Oh, and one more thing - I would really like if you'll write some sort of a summary or an afterthought about Koymimonogatari (I'm a big fan of Nisio's works, but beside my native language I know only nglish, so I(and not only me, but a lot of my frinds) will be really glad if you'll do it).

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  26. So, it's finally finished, huh? It's been a really great ride. Thank you very much for the quality translations, mate. Really, your translations are of excellent quality. No question about that :)

    As for the next Series. I'm going to go with
    1. Gakusei Shoujo - Mainly because it's kind of a sequel to SPS. And I also like the setting. I love music. Oh, and, the art was brilliant.

    2. Shinonome Youko Sereis - Read the manga, and loved it from the 1st chapter.

    Wouldn't it be easier if you started a poll, by the way.

    P.s: I would've liked to read Hikaru ga Chikyuu, as well. Too bad it doeasn't have oficial Chinese translations. Well, Teh_Ping at Baka-Tsuki is already translating it anyway, though, at a very slow pace.

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    Replies
    1. It's officially published in Chinese, but I won't touch it since Teh_Ping's working on it.

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    2. i dont think u should do hikaru ,ping might be slow at it [for now,he also has gundam,magdala de nemure too >.< ] but he is 'very' interested in it.[i have nop idea what those heretics are upto -facepalms-]
      in anycase....seems illis will be ending went volume?

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  27. Thank you for your hard work on SPS. It was great reading :) !

    As for Encore – do what you are interested in. If you don't feel especially motivated to translate side stories, skip those entirely or translate them after core pieces. Seeing all of them translated would be nice, but, realistically speaking, full translation of plot arc is better than interrupted translation of some side stories. SPS is awesome; even if you loose motivation and skip small part of it, someone would certainly pick up the rest.

    Regarding new titles: can't really choose any of listed. It is too sad, that you against cooperative translations, seeing sinemerald ceasing Hyouketsu translation in favor of Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance.

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  28. Thanks for SPS, and I would prefer all the encore stories done... Maybe I'm just greedy.

    As for next project probably Gakusei Shoujo would be my first pick.

    Alternatively, I'm kinda just translating Kamisama no inai Nichiyoubi until someone asks to take it off me. If you wanna do that :D although the anime began running this season so I doubt it

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  29. Thanks for all the hard work on SPS! Your translations were awesome, and I loved it.

    My vote is for finishing the SPS Encore stories and then moving on to Gakusei Shoujo. I can't get enough of musical stories as it is, and the link to SPS will make it really cool.

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  30. sps encore please!!! then for next Fukanzen Shinkei Kikan Ilis please!!!!! thank you for sps.

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  31. I really really appreciate your hard work on SPS, thank you very much!

    Regarding the encore pieces, I think it would be better to translate all of them as it would give a better sense of understanding between events that happen throughout the story, no matter how minor they are in terms of affecting the plot.

    And for your next project, my vote goes to Gakusei Shoujo as this would provide a straight sequel to our beloved SPS and hopefully expand just a bit more on the story of Naomi and Mafuyu. And as a reader, I personally enjoy music-themed stories as I'm quite a musician myself and I find stories revolving around music quite few and far between. If this novel is as heavily music-influenced as SPS, then there's no doubt that I'd enjoy it very much.

    I hope you continue your hard work and effort in translating these amazing novels, again thank you very much!

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  32. On behalf of everyone else that know this wonderful series from me, I'd like to express my gratitude for your translation, thank you so much for the time you've spent for this series

    as for the next series, I prefer one that already completed over ongoing.

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  33. Thanks for even stepping in to actually translate these LNs that you've worked on, like SPS. Personally, my vote goes to:
    - Translating the entire SPS Encore (I'd say it's worth the wait for a complete set of SPS)
    - Gakusei Shoujo (Naomi and Mafuyu's child? loosely linked sequel ftw. Like I mentioned above, I like complete sets. Also, Iris/Ilis and Shinonome Yuuko already has their manga adaptations scanlated at the very least.)

    Although, perhaps you might want to consider putting up a poll to help in the consideration? Though it can be easily rigged as well =/

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    Replies
    1. Ever since that single one time when I made a poll on this blog and had to deal with retards who don't understand how a poll is just one of the many yardsticks I use to make decisions, I've decided to screw polls and save myself the trouble.

      Delete
  34. Thanks for SPS. I really like it. It was interesting (especially music terms)

    And for next project, I would say Shinonome Yuuko because I read manga and it seems interesting.

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  35. Thanks for translate Sayonara Piano Sonata, and please translate till the end

    If I understans correctly, and you are suggesting new translations, in my opinion the most interesting (of this list) are "Fukanzen Shinkei Kikan Ilis" and "Dress na Boku ga Tangotonaki Katagata no Kateikyoushi-sama na Kudan"


    Good luck

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  36. Um...not sure if you'll read this, but I was looking over this post with future installments, and I gotta say, Gakusei Shoujo sounds interesting as a spin off with Nao and Mayufu's child. I hope that gets worked in somehow. But for now, this is good. Mix! also looks interesting too, so I hope that gets translated at some point.

    For me, list goes like this for the top 3:
    1. Shinonome Yuuko
    2. MiX!
    3. Gakusei Shoujo

    When I read that Nao and Mafuyu's kid is in the novel, I was drawn to it, but seeing how you translated #1 so far, I'll read that. I mean, following up with #3 from SPS is good, but honestly, it is nice to have a change of pace to another title. Perhaps you'll translate Gakusei Shoujo at some point in the future? but now is a good diverging point. I also hope that MiX! gets translated soon, cause the premise looks promising. Anyways, best of luck.

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