Quantum Devil Saga: Avatar Tuner (my novel translation!)
So, over the past weekend, I was finally able to announce what my most recent project has been over the past few months. Due for release this summer is my translation of Japanese SF/F author Yu Godai's Quantum Devil Saga: Avatar Tuner, Vol. 1, published through Bento Books.
For those of you who might be familiar with the Digital Devil Saga series released on PS2 almost a decade ago, these books are related to those games. Except rather than being a novelization of a video game, instead, Quantum Devil Saga is the original creator's work, sort of her original vision for what the story would have been if it hadn't been bound by the constraints of a video game. The end result is something that fans of the games should definitely enjoy and find familiar, while also standing on its own and not reading like someone copied down a video game into prose form.
If you're not familiar with the series, here's my quick capsule synopsis: there's a sort of post-apocalyptic world called the Junkyard, where various tribes are all vying for control. When people from one tribe are killed, they're reincarnated as someone without allegiance to any particular tribe, and are fair game for recruitment. Whichever tribe is able to take control of the whole Junkyard shall be allowed to enter the paradise of Nirvana. However, things have been at a standstill for some time, and so the powers that be decide to shake things up a bit by...changing the rules, let's say.
So, if you're into weird, surreal sci-fi with elements of body horror, Hindu themes, and a fair bit of violence on top of that, this is the book for you! (If that sounds like an odd combination, it is, but it somehow works, kind of like a Monte Cristo sandwich, only with horrifying transformations and Vedic mythology).
The folks over at the Cathedral of Shadows podcast (dedicated to Shin Megami Tensei in all its bizarre forms) did an interview with me last week, where I talk about the process of translating this novel, and a lot about freelance translating and Japanese/English localization in general. If translation is a subject that interests you, or that you'd want to learn more about, I suggest giving the podcast a listen, even if the book itself doesn't sound like it's up your alley.
This has been a really fun project to work on (I'm still finishing up the last 1% or so!), in addition to being a very rewarding experience. A lot of people seem to be really looking forward to this release, including a lot of folks who clearly thought it was never going to happen, so I'm happy to break the good news!
Cathedral of Shadows episode link: http://youtu.be/Cm45-WIXuYk
Bento Books website: http://bentobooks.wpengine.com/
For those of you who might be familiar with the Digital Devil Saga series released on PS2 almost a decade ago, these books are related to those games. Except rather than being a novelization of a video game, instead, Quantum Devil Saga is the original creator's work, sort of her original vision for what the story would have been if it hadn't been bound by the constraints of a video game. The end result is something that fans of the games should definitely enjoy and find familiar, while also standing on its own and not reading like someone copied down a video game into prose form.
If you're not familiar with the series, here's my quick capsule synopsis: there's a sort of post-apocalyptic world called the Junkyard, where various tribes are all vying for control. When people from one tribe are killed, they're reincarnated as someone without allegiance to any particular tribe, and are fair game for recruitment. Whichever tribe is able to take control of the whole Junkyard shall be allowed to enter the paradise of Nirvana. However, things have been at a standstill for some time, and so the powers that be decide to shake things up a bit by...changing the rules, let's say.
So, if you're into weird, surreal sci-fi with elements of body horror, Hindu themes, and a fair bit of violence on top of that, this is the book for you! (If that sounds like an odd combination, it is, but it somehow works, kind of like a Monte Cristo sandwich, only with horrifying transformations and Vedic mythology).
The folks over at the Cathedral of Shadows podcast (dedicated to Shin Megami Tensei in all its bizarre forms) did an interview with me last week, where I talk about the process of translating this novel, and a lot about freelance translating and Japanese/English localization in general. If translation is a subject that interests you, or that you'd want to learn more about, I suggest giving the podcast a listen, even if the book itself doesn't sound like it's up your alley.
This has been a really fun project to work on (I'm still finishing up the last 1% or so!), in addition to being a very rewarding experience. A lot of people seem to be really looking forward to this release, including a lot of folks who clearly thought it was never going to happen, so I'm happy to break the good news!
Cathedral of Shadows episode link: http://youtu.be/Cm45-WIXuYk
Bento Books website: http://bentobooks.wpengine.com/