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Book translation rate?
Thread poster: jamesfowler
Nathalie Ohana
Nathalie Ohana  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 20:50
English to French
Book translation Mar 10, 2011

I have translated a book last year for a small publishing company in Paris. When I quoted I took in consideration the time factor (the book - Pharmacracy - was written by doctor and philosopher Thomas Szasz, so it was quite a difficult text) as well as the opportunity this was giving me.
I charged 2500€ for the whole book. It took me weeks to translate. Translation jobs for agencies or direct clients are definitely paying much better.
But it opened the publishing market for me and ... See more
I have translated a book last year for a small publishing company in Paris. When I quoted I took in consideration the time factor (the book - Pharmacracy - was written by doctor and philosopher Thomas Szasz, so it was quite a difficult text) as well as the opportunity this was giving me.
I charged 2500€ for the whole book. It took me weeks to translate. Translation jobs for agencies or direct clients are definitely paying much better.
But it opened the publishing market for me and I am currently in contact with two other companies for the translation of two books.
These are things to take into consideration.
In any case, it is exciting and a great opportunity to learn a lot. ▲ Collapse
 
Susannah DALE
Susannah DALE  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 02:50
French to English
+ ...
Reliable client, how much to charge? May 5, 2015

Hello,

I would like to revive this topic because so many of you have given helpful advice on the original query.

I often translate articles for a large French university and there is absolutely no problem with payment from them. Now they have offered me a book to translate (non-fiction) on a subject that I have worked on before. It's not easy, but not impossible either. It will be published by Routledge. I am in direct contact with the author and can ask questions if t... See more
Hello,

I would like to revive this topic because so many of you have given helpful advice on the original query.

I often translate articles for a large French university and there is absolutely no problem with payment from them. Now they have offered me a book to translate (non-fiction) on a subject that I have worked on before. It's not easy, but not impossible either. It will be published by Routledge. I am in direct contact with the author and can ask questions if there is something I don't understand.

I usually charge them EUR 0,12 for articles etc. Should I apply the same rate? The book is 110,000 words. This comes to EUR 13,200 for around six months' work. I work mornings only and try to translate 1000 words a day. It seems like a lot for a single invoice, but they may well agree.

I have asked about a contract and advance payment and they are going to get back to me.
As I said, there won't be any problem getting paid.

If anyone has any thoughts please do share them!

Best wishes,

S. ▲ Collapse
 
Gabriele Demuth
Gabriele Demuth  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 01:50
English to German
Be careful with contracts! May 5, 2015

jamesfowler wrote:
Would you suggest writing a contract in order to guarantee payment?


[/quote]

Should you consider signing a contract I would have it checked over to make sure you are not overlooking any silly clauses.

I once signed a contract lightly, assuming it was well intended, only to discover that there were a couple of clauses in there that basically stated that the publisher didn't have to pay me if they don't have the money!!

[Edited at 2015-05-05 12:02 GMT]
 
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