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baihe_mediaHey all!
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As previously mentioned, I plan on doubling down and revising it once more. And then some future plans I have myself related to this book is probably finish writing the fic that I've been rolling around in my mind ever since summer this year. Yes the exact line of thought is that I kinda started it so I need to make food as well, and it will be nice to get back to writing. I can't specifically name any other future plans because the baihe fandom in general seems to be at one of those turning points with licenses and stuff, so... yeah it's hard to say.
However, I'm sure will not shut up about this work in general probably to my dying day. The author, Yi Zhan Ye Deng, has also hinted at the fact that there might be an audio drama production of this work coming out sometime in the unknown future (next year?) so if it does I will definitely be hyped for that as well (fingers crossed, it seems like the baihe audio drama circle has been having it tough recently and the last time I was on Yi Zhan Ye Deng's weibo I remember they said something about it being pushed back)
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I actually completely started this translation project on a whim. I also unfortunately have had a habit of gutting projects in the past (translation, writing, whatever) so there was a bit of, I guess I'll try to finish it but no promises for myself. I simply needed to find something to do because my writer's block was causing me a lot of grief. Looking back, I'm very glad I stuck it out, since this is now the first translation I've ever completed. A lot of days it was me, and my ipad doing the tl with my screen split between jj and google docs. I'm also unironically very greatful for the online dictionary I use. I think on some levels I kind of killed my social life doing this project, but I think it was very worth it.
Translating itself I think was the hardest part. I didn't have a precise philosophy, per say, but the goal was to pull readers in with the prose and the subtle feelings, the same thing that the book did for me in Chinese. For some of the text I had to look up modern poetry and literature references. Obviously, Yi Zhan Ye Deng used some of the Chinese published titles for things which were originally not in Chinese, so while doing those I tried to be aware that I'm retranslating a Chinese translation. Some days it was a struggle getting chapters done because the chapter length was signifcantly longer than normal (a 6k character chapter vs. a 3k character chapter). It might also be a surprise that I actually didn't go in complete order while I was translating because, well, the order seemed very slow sometimes (in a slow burn book? wow, a concept lol). While translating I also kind of noticed some habits that the author has themselves, like their overuse of the character xiao (to smile, giggle, laugh), blinked, gazing at each other... the repetition is much more noticeable in English so I had to take some liberties in tweaking the wording such that there wasn't too much repetition.
Yi Zhan Ye Deng's prose is very flowy in general, though, so I think that it was a really nice experience. Hopefully their skill with prose also came through in the translation. I think that modern setting is a very obvious comfort zone for me since I've had the most practice with it and I'm on the Chinese side of the internet a lot, so I've gotten used to it. I wish I could be more eloquent about how I translated it but this is all that comes to mind for now. There's also this mini-reflection that I wrote when I had first finished all of the drafts, but hadn't yet edited them.
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As of yesterday, all 70 chapters of If I Could Mail You A Book (67 + 3 extras) have been uploaded, and it is now a complete translation!
It needs a thorough beating in terms of revisions, and I need to fix the formatting for some of the earlier chapters because I only settled on consistent formatting about a quarter of the way through. The revision should take till about the end of the year.
A very big thanks to everyone who supported it while it was updating, and welcome to everyone who wanted to wait for it to be completed to read it!
A special shoutout to auspice (@/riverofspring) for keeping me sane throughout, and thank you to @/douqi for consistently signal boosting it on twitter!
Once again, here are the important links:
chapter 1
Okay, now for a bunch of reflections and ramblings:
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I think in some ways, saying that I love this book is an understatement. For me, I think it's very hard to find a piece of fiction that I can find strength from during two very different periods: the time I first read this book about 3 years ago and this year when I've translated it. It's difficult to say what type of strength I've come out with each time, but I think that it's very similar to a line in the poem the title of the book is quoting: "These beautiful things seemingly pulling me towards the road towards spring". There are so many things I've resonated with both times as well. Liang Xinhe is so mature. I still don't understand how she manages to engage with life so much maturity and yet still is compelling and lively, not a stiff board of a person. I understand Ning Xi's writers' block, her social anxiety and the creative anxiety, because I've precisely been there. Together, they seem to just fit into each other's lives so easily, and it makes me want to better myself as well. I will miss this book a lot.____
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As previously mentioned, I plan on doubling down and revising it once more. And then some future plans I have myself related to this book is probably finish writing the fic that I've been rolling around in my mind ever since summer this year. Yes the exact line of thought is that I kinda started it so I need to make food as well, and it will be nice to get back to writing. I can't specifically name any other future plans because the baihe fandom in general seems to be at one of those turning points with licenses and stuff, so... yeah it's hard to say.
However, I'm sure will not shut up about this work in general probably to my dying day. The author, Yi Zhan Ye Deng, has also hinted at the fact that there might be an audio drama production of this work coming out sometime in the unknown future (next year?) so if it does I will definitely be hyped for that as well (fingers crossed, it seems like the baihe audio drama circle has been having it tough recently and the last time I was on Yi Zhan Ye Deng's weibo I remember they said something about it being pushed back)
____
I actually completely started this translation project on a whim. I also unfortunately have had a habit of gutting projects in the past (translation, writing, whatever) so there was a bit of, I guess I'll try to finish it but no promises for myself. I simply needed to find something to do because my writer's block was causing me a lot of grief. Looking back, I'm very glad I stuck it out, since this is now the first translation I've ever completed. A lot of days it was me, and my ipad doing the tl with my screen split between jj and google docs. I'm also unironically very greatful for the online dictionary I use. I think on some levels I kind of killed my social life doing this project, but I think it was very worth it.
Translating itself I think was the hardest part. I didn't have a precise philosophy, per say, but the goal was to pull readers in with the prose and the subtle feelings, the same thing that the book did for me in Chinese. For some of the text I had to look up modern poetry and literature references. Obviously, Yi Zhan Ye Deng used some of the Chinese published titles for things which were originally not in Chinese, so while doing those I tried to be aware that I'm retranslating a Chinese translation. Some days it was a struggle getting chapters done because the chapter length was signifcantly longer than normal (a 6k character chapter vs. a 3k character chapter). It might also be a surprise that I actually didn't go in complete order while I was translating because, well, the order seemed very slow sometimes (in a slow burn book? wow, a concept lol). While translating I also kind of noticed some habits that the author has themselves, like their overuse of the character xiao (to smile, giggle, laugh), blinked, gazing at each other... the repetition is much more noticeable in English so I had to take some liberties in tweaking the wording such that there wasn't too much repetition.
Yi Zhan Ye Deng's prose is very flowy in general, though, so I think that it was a really nice experience. Hopefully their skill with prose also came through in the translation. I think that modern setting is a very obvious comfort zone for me since I've had the most practice with it and I'm on the Chinese side of the internet a lot, so I've gotten used to it. I wish I could be more eloquent about how I translated it but this is all that comes to mind for now. There's also this mini-reflection that I wrote when I had first finished all of the drafts, but hadn't yet edited them.
____
Modern baihe is very overlooked in the international scene that it makes me sad thinking about it. I suppose that both descriptors that make up the genre (modern and baihe) are the debuffs that have caused this phenomenon. This came as a total surprise because the vast majority of works within baihe (especially on jjwxc) are modern novels. It makes sense for baihe: historical setting is a highly misogynistic setting in general, which could be very uncomfortable. It takes a good author to either (1): make the setting work and develop great characters who are able to give the reader hope in the setting, or (2): alter the setting/create an alternate timeline such that there's equality. Both require a good understanding of worldbuilding and character development to achieve, so it's easier to set novels in the present, where female characters have the freedom to do a lot more. Plus, the modern era is really when wlw started coming into the limelight, so it makes sense.
However, I think for most of the international fandom, who got into cnovels with like the more flashy and novel genres of like historical, xianxia or whatnot, modern life (especially perhaps the depiction of life in modern China, which is a complicated can of worms) might not be as appealing. However, there are just a lot of gems in modern baihe like If I Could Mail You A Book that are so worth reading. I think that my choice was partly influenced by that as well.
However, I think for most of the international fandom, who got into cnovels with like the more flashy and novel genres of like historical, xianxia or whatnot, modern life (especially perhaps the depiction of life in modern China, which is a complicated can of worms) might not be as appealing. However, there are just a lot of gems in modern baihe like If I Could Mail You A Book that are so worth reading. I think that my choice was partly influenced by that as well.
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Personal future plans:
I have definitively settled on another project and am currently chipping away at it. I won't give too much of it away right now because I want to make sure that I'm not affected by anything, but the keywords are historical, enemies-to-lovers, and tension. For those who want a preview, this is the singular tweet that I've made about it. As per my habits that I've developed with If I Could Mail You A Book, I will at least stockpile 1/5 of the chapter count so that I can feel comfortable keeping a somewhat consistent update schedule. I think it can be expected at the start of next year, but just in case things go horribly wrong with my life I'll put the tentative start date around spring 2025. This is just so that I have the motivation of a soft deadline and am also not killing myself with a hobby.
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One last note from me: For those wondering about an epub version, the truth is I'm not sure yet. Firstly, I personally have no experience in dealing with them/how to make one. Another thing about it is actually the fact that it implies that it'd have to be pretty 'official' and 'cleaned up', but I actually have a lot of personal notes on each chapter of the translation I have on my website. Out of a bit of selfishness I personally wish that people could acknowledge that and interact with me on my website instead, so currently I'm not sure about it at all and don't plan to make one immediately. I guess I could sway one way or another in the future. Thank you all for understanding.
no subject
Date: 2024-10-20 07:48 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-10-20 11:33 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-10-21 04:52 am (UTC)It makes sense for baihe: historical setting is a highly misogynistic setting in general, which could be very uncomfortable.
That's an interesting thought. How abut futuristic/sci-fi settings? Is that more popular than historical/xianxia/wuxia?
A reason why people prefer epubs is for accessibility (can tweak display settings to make it work for them, plus can be put into ereader), but I get that you want direct interaction on your site. If you do end up wanting to make an epub, I know at least one member of
edited to add: sending good vibes for next project! enemies-to-lovers is always delicious~
no subject
Date: 2024-10-21 05:55 am (UTC)Oh I completely forgot to cross-post on cnovels! You can definitely do the honors then~ (and yes to fedi too!)
How abut futuristic/sci-fi settings? Is that more popular than historical/xianxia/wuxia?
Good question! By my observation, hard sci-fi is definitely considered unpopular. I would know because I've been in the mood for it lately and have been digging in the pits for something interesting but I feel like there's so few.
The main issue for saying whether futuristic is more popular, though, is that on jjwxc, A/B/O setting novels are (mostly) filed under the large futuristic subgenre (幻想未来), while the rest mostly go into modern. So I guess if you go by jjwxc's genre tagging, futuristic would definitely be more popular only by account of the amount of A/B/O populating the tag. However, given my observation of western fandom A/B/O would definitely not be considered futuristic; by default it would be something like 'alternate universe modern', which makes it difficult to determine?
Excluding A/B/O from the futuristic tag, I think that historical and futuristic might have around the same amount of popularity in baihe-land, that being...not so much compared to modern. In my mind at least for now, though, historical definitely has more standout works because I think a lot of authors would be more comfortable writing about something that is strictly their culture (especially if they like history researching aspect), while sci-fi is just hard. I think that this distribution also mirrors other types of c-media like dramas and films.
Out of all of the historical leaning subgenres, xianxia is definitely the most popular; my guess is that it's freer and can be more handwave-y and forgiving on the worldbuidling? And then wuxia and historical are rare just because wuxia can get very complicated and then for historical, Chinese history itself is hard. Honestly I maybe should do some meta digging on this haha.
Yeah I'll leave the epub issue for now, but I'll keep the offer in mind, thanks~
no subject
Date: 2024-10-21 07:05 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-10-22 05:36 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-10-22 12:42 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-10-22 05:36 pm (UTC)