Charlene Edge has NOT authorized translations of her books and blog posts
The following was first published on my website's blog on 8/15/2025.
Greetings. Today I must share this IMPORTANT NEWS:
If you come across a Spanish translation of any part
of my memoir, Undertow,
or of my other book, From
the Porch to the Page, or any of my blog posts, I want you to know I
have NOT authorized it.
You may know that I am not only the
author but I am also the publisher of both of my books. I own New Wings Press,
LLC which published them. As the publisher, I've not given permission for
anyone to generate any translations of my work into Spanish, or into any other
language. And I do not plan to do so.
Translating, which involves
reproducing, an author's published work without permission from the publisher
is a big NO-NO. As a reminder, here's the rule which appears in my books:
“No part of this book may be
reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or
mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information storage and
retrieval system—except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review
to be printed in a magazine, newspaper, or on the Web—without permission in
writing from the publisher at New Wings Press, LLC.”
Did something happen?
Yes. Recently someone sent me an
email with an attached file containing his Spanish translation of Chapter One
of my book, Undertow. He hoped I'd hire him to translate the whole book.
The problem was that I had NOT given him permission to translate that
chapter. I pointed that out to him. I reminded him of the rule above. I
asked him not to give away or sell that chapter to anyone. And I asked him not
to translate any more of my work. He replied in an email that he understood.
What he did not say is that he'd comply with my wishes. I sure hope he
does.
Granted, if that email was from a
human being and not generated by AI, the person writing it may have had good
intentions. He seemed to want to make my story, which reveals insider knowledge
about The Way International, ™ available to Way followers who only speak
Spanish. He wanted me to hire him to translate my entire book. I declined.
My publishing situation
If I did want to publish a
translation of Undertow in any language, that decision would mean I'd be
publishing another book, with all the costs and all the work that involves. I
am not interested in doing that.
The field of U.S. copyright law is
important. If you're in need of a good source on the topic, a reference book
I've used is The Copyright Permission and Libel Handbook: A Step-by-Step
Guide for Writers, Editors, and Publishers. by Lloyd J. Jassin and Steven C.
Schechter.
By the way, the people who hire
translators to translate books are the publishers of the books, not the authors
of the books. For self-publishers like me, the same person fills both positions.
Thanks for reading!
Your writer on the wing,
Charlene
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