How to publish a translation of an art book in Russia
In 2010, Google’s algorithms determined that almost 130 million unique editions of books were published in the world. Only a small amount of these books has been translated into Russian only in disgrace.
But you can not just take and translate the work that you liked. After all, it will be a violation of copyright.
Therefore, in this article we will analyze what needs to be done in order to legally translate a book from any language into Russian and officially publish it in Russia.
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The main rule is that you do not need to translate a book, story or even an article if you do not have a document that gives you the right to do so.
Negotiations with the copyright holder - a very unpredictable stage. Little-known authors can provide translation rights for a symbolic amount of several hundred dollars or a percentage of sales (most often from 5 to 15%), even if you have no translator experience.
The authors of the middle echelon and their litagents are quite skeptical about the novice translators. However, with the proper level of enthusiasm and perseverance of the right to transfer can be obtained. Often, litagents ask translators for a sample of the translation, which is then passed on to specialists. If the quality is high, then the chances of obtaining rights increase.
Top authors also work at the level of contracts between publishers, who are given exclusive rights to translate and publish a work. It is almost impossible for a “from the outside” specialist to stick in there.
If the copyright term has expired, you can take up the translation immediately. You can publish it online. For example, on the site Liters in the section Samizdat. Or you need to look for a publisher who will undertake the publication.
According to Art. 1260 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the translator has exclusive copyright to translate:
The author of the work cannot revoke the right to translate, which is documented. But at the same time, nothing prevents him from issuing the right to transfer the book to another person or to several persons.
That is, you can enter into contracts with publishers about publishing a translation and receive profit from it, but you can not forbid the author to issue permits for other translations.
There is also the concept of an exclusive right to translate and publish works. But only major publishers work with them. For example, the right to an exclusive publication of a series of books about Harry Potter by JK Rowling in the Russian Federation has the Machaon Publishing House. And this means that no other publishers in Russia have the right to translate or publish these books - this is illegal and punishable.
Publishers do not work with promises, so in order to agree on the publication of the translation of the book, you need to work a little.
Here is a necessary minimum, which practically all publishing houses from “outside” translators require:
The decision will depend on several factors. First, the publisher will appreciate the prospect of publishing a book on the Russian market. Most chances of any previously not translated works of more or less well-known writers. Secondly, the publisher will appreciate the quality of the translation and its correspondence to the original. Therefore, the translation should be of the highest quality.
When materials are ready, you can apply for publication. Publishing sites usually have a section “For new authors” or a similar one, which describes the rules for submitting an application.
Important! The application must be sent not to the general mail, but to the mail of the department for work with foreign literature (or similar). If you cannot find contacts or there is no such department in the publishing house, the easiest way is to call the manager of the specified contacts and ask who exactly you should contact regarding the publication of the translation.
In most cases you will need to give the following information:
You also need to briefly describe what you want. Like, translate the book and publish it. If you already have a successful translation experience, this is also worth pointing out - it will increase your chances for a positive response.
If you agreed with the author of the work that you would also act as an agent, then you need to specify this separately, because in this case the publisher will need to sign an additional set of documents with you.
As for fees for translation, there are several options for work:
If you want to invest in the publication, then note that the minimum circulation, which will allow you to recoup the costs, is at least 3000 copies. And then - the more circulation and sales, the greater the income.
There are risks when working with the publishing house - unfortunately, they cannot be avoided.
Sometimes it happens that the publishing house manages to interest the work, but they choose another translator. The only way to avoid this is to translate the first chapter of the book as well as possible.
It also happens that the publisher subsequently concludes a direct agreement with the author or his literary agent, bypassing you as an intermediary. This is an example of bad faith, but this also happens.
If you are trying to translate the work not for financial gain, but for the love of art, then the permission of the copyright holder for the translation is sufficient (although in some cases it is possible even without it).
In European and American legislation there is the concept of "fair use". For example, the translation of articles and books for educational purposes, which does not imply a profit. But there are no similar rules in the Russian legislation, so it’s safer to get permission to translate anyway.
Today there are a sufficient number of online bookstores in which you can place a translation of foreign literature, including free of charge. However, experience says that in this way it is possible to publish only books that are already in the public domain — the authors are not too supportive of the possibility of publishing translations of their books free of charge.
Read good books and improve your English with EnglishDom.
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Get 2 months of premium subscriptions for all EnglishDom courses as a gift .
Take them right now on the link
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Install the Google Chrome extension, translate English words on the Internet and add them to the study in the Ed Words application
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Consolidate conversational skills and find friends in conversational clubs.
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But you can not just take and translate the work that you liked. After all, it will be a violation of copyright.
Therefore, in this article we will analyze what needs to be done in order to legally translate a book from any language into Russian and officially publish it in Russia.
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Copyright Features
The main rule is that you do not need to translate a book, story or even an article if you do not have a document that gives you the right to do so.
According to paragraph 1, Art. 1259 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation: "The objects of copyright are works of science, literature and art, regardless of the merits and purpose of the work, as well as the method of its expression."The exclusive rights to the work belong to the author or copyright holder, to whom the author has transferred the rights. According to the Bern Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, the term of protection is the entire life of the author and fifty years after his death. However, in most countries, the term of copyright protection is 70 years, including in the Russian Federation. So there are 3 possible options:
- If the author of the work is alive, then you need to contact him directly, or with the owners of exclusive rights to his works. With the help of the Internet you can quickly find information about the contacts of the author or his literary agent. It is enough to drive in the search "Author's name + literary agent". Next - write a letter indicating that you want to take up the translation of a particular work.
- If the author of the work died less than 70 years ago, then you need to look for legal successors. The easiest way to do this is through a publishing house that publishes the works of the author at home. Looking for contacts, writing a letter and waiting for an answer.
- If the author died more than 70 years ago, the work becomes public domain and its copyright is revoked. This means that permission is not required for its translation and publication.
What you need to know before starting to translate a book
- Is there an official translation of the book into Russian? Oddly enough, in a burst of enthusiasm, some forget about it. In this case, you need to search not by title, but in the bibliography of the writer, because the title of the book can be adapted.
- Are the rights to translate the work into Russian? It happens that the rights have already been transferred, but the book has not yet been translated or published. In this case, it remains to wait for the transfer and regret that it was not possible to do it yourself.
- List of publishers who can offer the publication of the work. Often, negotiations with the copyright holder end with the phrase: "When you find a publisher that publishes a book, then we will issue an agreement on the transfer of rights to transfer." So, negotiations with publishers need to start at the “I want to make a translation” stage. About this below.
Negotiations with the copyright holder - a very unpredictable stage. Little-known authors can provide translation rights for a symbolic amount of several hundred dollars or a percentage of sales (most often from 5 to 15%), even if you have no translator experience.
The authors of the middle echelon and their litagents are quite skeptical about the novice translators. However, with the proper level of enthusiasm and perseverance of the right to transfer can be obtained. Often, litagents ask translators for a sample of the translation, which is then passed on to specialists. If the quality is high, then the chances of obtaining rights increase.
Top authors also work at the level of contracts between publishers, who are given exclusive rights to translate and publish a work. It is almost impossible for a “from the outside” specialist to stick in there.
If the copyright term has expired, you can take up the translation immediately. You can publish it online. For example, on the site Liters in the section Samizdat. Or you need to look for a publisher who will undertake the publication.
Translator rights - it is important to know
According to Art. 1260 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the translator has exclusive copyright to translate:
The copyright of a translator, compiler, and other author of a derivative or composite work is protected as rights to independent copyright objects, regardless of the protection of the rights of authors of works on which the derivative or composite work is based.In essence, the translation is considered an independent work, so the author of the translation can dispose of it at his own discretion. Naturally, if not previously concluded agreements on the transfer of rights to this transfer.
The author of the work cannot revoke the right to translate, which is documented. But at the same time, nothing prevents him from issuing the right to transfer the book to another person or to several persons.
That is, you can enter into contracts with publishers about publishing a translation and receive profit from it, but you can not forbid the author to issue permits for other translations.
There is also the concept of an exclusive right to translate and publish works. But only major publishers work with them. For example, the right to an exclusive publication of a series of books about Harry Potter by JK Rowling in the Russian Federation has the Machaon Publishing House. And this means that no other publishers in Russia have the right to translate or publish these books - this is illegal and punishable.
How to negotiate with the publisher
Publishers do not work with promises, so in order to agree on the publication of the translation of the book, you need to work a little.
Here is a necessary minimum, which practically all publishing houses from “outside” translators require:
- Abstract of the book
- Synopsis book
- Translation of the first chapter
The decision will depend on several factors. First, the publisher will appreciate the prospect of publishing a book on the Russian market. Most chances of any previously not translated works of more or less well-known writers. Secondly, the publisher will appreciate the quality of the translation and its correspondence to the original. Therefore, the translation should be of the highest quality.
When materials are ready, you can apply for publication. Publishing sites usually have a section “For new authors” or a similar one, which describes the rules for submitting an application.
Important! The application must be sent not to the general mail, but to the mail of the department for work with foreign literature (or similar). If you cannot find contacts or there is no such department in the publishing house, the easiest way is to call the manager of the specified contacts and ask who exactly you should contact regarding the publication of the translation.
In most cases you will need to give the following information:
- title of the book;
- data of the author;
- source language and target language;
- information about the original publications, the availability of awards and awards (if any);
- information on the rights to transfer (is in the public domain or received permission to transfer).
You also need to briefly describe what you want. Like, translate the book and publish it. If you already have a successful translation experience, this is also worth pointing out - it will increase your chances for a positive response.
If you agreed with the author of the work that you would also act as an agent, then you need to specify this separately, because in this case the publisher will need to sign an additional set of documents with you.
As for fees for translation, there are several options for work:
- Most often, the translator receives a pre-determined fee and transfers the rights to use the translation to the publisher. Essentially, the publisher buys the translation. It is impossible to determine the success of the work in advance, so the fee will depend on the intended popularity of the book and on your ability to negotiate.
- The rate for agent services is usually 10% of the profits. Therefore, if you want to act in the interests of the author as an agent in the Russian market, your level of payment will depend on the circulation and total profit.
- You can also take care of financial issues for the publication of the book. In this case, the profit will be about 25% of the revenue (on average, 50% goes to retail chains, 10% to the author, and 15% to the publisher).
If you want to invest in the publication, then note that the minimum circulation, which will allow you to recoup the costs, is at least 3000 copies. And then - the more circulation and sales, the greater the income.
There are risks when working with the publishing house - unfortunately, they cannot be avoided.
Sometimes it happens that the publishing house manages to interest the work, but they choose another translator. The only way to avoid this is to translate the first chapter of the book as well as possible.
It also happens that the publisher subsequently concludes a direct agreement with the author or his literary agent, bypassing you as an intermediary. This is an example of bad faith, but this also happens.
Translation is not for financial gain
If you are trying to translate the work not for financial gain, but for the love of art, then the permission of the copyright holder for the translation is sufficient (although in some cases it is possible even without it).
In European and American legislation there is the concept of "fair use". For example, the translation of articles and books for educational purposes, which does not imply a profit. But there are no similar rules in the Russian legislation, so it’s safer to get permission to translate anyway.
Today there are a sufficient number of online bookstores in which you can place a translation of foreign literature, including free of charge. However, experience says that in this way it is possible to publish only books that are already in the public domain — the authors are not too supportive of the possibility of publishing translations of their books free of charge.
Read good books and improve your English with EnglishDom.
EnglishDom.com is an online school that inspires learning English through innovation and human concern.
Only for Habr's readers - the first lesson with a teacher on Skype for free ! And when you purchase from 10 classes, specify the promotional code habrabook_skype and get another 2 lessons as a gift. The bonus is valid until 05/31/19.
Get 2 months of premium subscriptions for all EnglishDom courses as a gift .
Take them right now on the link
Our products:
Learn English words in the ED Words mobile app
Learn English from A to Z in the ED Courses mobile app
Install the Google Chrome extension, translate English words on the Internet and add them to the study in the Ed Words application
Learn English in the form of an online simulator
Consolidate conversational skills and find friends in conversational clubs.
Watch the video lifehacks about English on the YouTube-channel EnglishDom
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/447954/
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