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Should UK authors re-edit books for a US audience?
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I doubt if little things like that are responsible for the performance of books in general.I'd have thought that readers on both sides of the pond are used to that sort of thing.
No and I also think that people who complain about the difference in spellings are ridiculous.
I did, just to be courteous, and it really doesn't take an awful lot of work.I edited for the US market from feedback received, which is very important to me.
One hour at most, to change spellings and quotation marks.
A self-published author should be ready to target his/her audience at much as possible.
If there was a great deal of interest in a French version, for example, I would pay for a translation.
No. I expect a British novel to be written in English (or Scots, Doric etc depending on location) and an American one in American. It adds to the setting and feel of the story.
I don't believe so no. I wouldn't expect a US author to re-write stuff for me. Anyway, we invented English!
NO!Omg.
NO!!!!!!
It's so damn RUDE and IGNORANT to expect an author to re-write THEIR book for YOU!!
Like Rosemary, if a novel in set in America, I expect American English and vice versa.
I think we have to be stout in defence of our honour and stick to our clours!
Louise-Lesley (Elle) wrote: "Like Rosemary, if a novel in set in America, I expect American English and vice versa."
Bit difficult that if it's set in a middle earth type setting lol
LOL very true, but if that is the case or any other random setting then write whatever fits from an authors perspective.sometimes american english, sometimes british english, something a random language :P
Harrison wrote: "Louise-Lesley (Elle) wrote: "Like Rosemary, if a novel in set in America, I expect American English and vice versa."
Bit difficult that if it's set in a middle earth type setting lol"
True! But actually Tolkein managed it exceedingly well - as he was so erudite and so versed in so many mediaeval/ middle english type languages I feel he was well equipped to create the languages and world that he did. Others who have emulated him have been far less successful. There are so many poor "Tolkien-lite" stories out there!
Never read Tolkein, and don't plan too.But it's an authors choice at the end of the day.
What really frosts my arse are people who don't realise that two things can be completely different yet both be correct.And don't take the time to learn that.
Sheer bloody arrogance.
Head up the arse syndrome.
This is a topic I feel very strongly about, can you tell?
So do I Patti. However my beef isn't that people want one or the other but won't accept either (well, yeah, it is that too) it's that they'll mix US and British spelling in the same book. Colour and neighbors. That's so mid-atlantic you could drown!
So the take away message seems to be that U.K. readers don't mind when words are "spelt" differently in a book by a writer in the U.S. Yes?But...when E.L. James has a character who lives in Seattle, Washington use words like "pram" and "marquee" (most of her U.S. readers, I'd bet, have no idea that's a large event tent in the U.K.), it does grate.
The Hunger Games was translated into English for the UK edition (it went all trousers and metres, not just the spelling). Which is fair enough, since although it was set in America, it wasn't "America".But then I listened to the audiobook version (or at least, some of it), and that was the American edition, in American, with an (awful) American narrator. And *boy* did that grate!
Tim A wrote: "The Hunger Games was translated into English for the UK edition (it went all trousers and metres, not just the spelling). Which is fair enough, since although it was set in America, it wasn't "Amer..."Touché
The issue isn't with the tolerant and erudite readers(who can cope with properly spelt UK books) but the majority of readers, who are neither. And largely live in the US. (That isn't anti american. There's just a hell of a lot more of them.)
I agree with pretty much everyone. The language should be based on the setting of the book, and that includes time periods not just countries.But if they author wants to "translate" it that's all well and good but I wouldn't expect it and certainly don't slate authors who don't. However, I imagine we probably understand American-isms better than Americans would understand all British-isms with most TV programs and films being American
Nope! I get lots of fan mail from US readers who actually thanked me for keeping the books UK spelling. They like to learn different meanings of words too. :-)
M wrote: "Nope! I get lots of fan mail from US readers who actually thanked me for keeping the books UK spelling. They like to learn different meanings of words too. :-)"See???????
I wrote a story about magical crisp packets. All my editor did was include a glossary at the front for the US audience to tell them that UK crisp packets meant chip packets for them. And a spud was a slang word for a potato. I've had no complaints from US readers and the glossary probably wasn't even necessary in hindsight, but it was a much better option than changing every crisp to chip.
I never put a glossary in my books. I have American editors and we have fun sending emails back and forth trying to keep the words appropriate. ie fanny in US is backside but we all know what it means in the UK! lol
We try and work out meanings that will be acceptable on both sides of the pond. I love my new editors! :-)
How do you translate fannying around? (It's one of my hobbies!)
While you're fannying around Ignite I tend to fart about...Just realising now how daft that is.
Should UK authors re-edit books for a US audience? No.
If they are writing about British people in Britain then why use Americanisms?
If they are writing about British people visiting/moving to America - well I wouldn't turn American and immediately understand baseball, the American school/college system etc and I would still think of pavements, car-boots etc rather than the American equivalent.
The same applies to the American authors writing "Regency style novels" - it really puts me off finding that style of book sprinkled with American traditions and customs that had no place in Regency England. I read a couple and now know which ones to avoid.
Ignite wrote: "How do you translate fannying around? (It's one of my hobbies!)"ooo Matron! :-)
Wink wink, nudge nudge! ;)
I wondered whether to do a "Swear words starred out" version of my crime novels after someone deducted a star from two reviews because of bad language.But I wouldn't do color and colour etc.
Strewth, I would never make swearing or English/American a reason for decided on or deducting stars from a review. It's the strength of the story, the believability of the characters and the quality of the writing every time for me.
My characters curse, as do most people. Readers who are offended by that kind of language wouldn't appreciate the book's sex scenes either! Are we now supposed to slap ratings on our books for language, violence and sex like movies are required to do in the US so squeamish readers aren't corrupted?
I certainly hope it never comes to that, Harriet.
It was .com reviews, and I really appreciated them, but it had me worried. Was it Jasper Carrot who remarked upon a conversation with an American acquaintance where the American said, "Aw sh*t, I just stood in some doggy do-doos."One thing to bear in mind is that the differences between an American audience and a British one go deeper than just language. The national psyche is different. Those Americans who enjoy, for example, English detective stories, probably glory in the Englishness, or Scottishness (why aren't there many Welsh detectives?), just as some English readers love cowboy stories because if their Western flavour.
I think I would need to edit my books for the English audience, considering they don't seem to sell at all on this side of the pond, but doing quite well over there :) Even though I wrote them in Queen's English and the only concession I made for US readers was changing the quotation marks style...
Well Linda, I could say a cheeky thing or two about the Welsh....but I'll refrain. For now. ;)I will be cheeky and say if the speech marks style means that much to a reader, they're not engrossed enough in the words.
Patti (Migrating Coconut) wrote: "I will be cheeky and say if the speech marks style means that much to a reader, they're not engrossed..."
That point did occur to me as well :-))
My advice to UK writers as an American: write in exactly your way, including spelling, syntax, idiom, etc. We Americans find your writing style charming - at least, I do. And, as far as I can tell, I'm a quintessential American (or, at very least, New Yorker).
Do you change the language and spelling in your books for publication in the US?
Do US authors re-edit their books for the UK?
I have no idea and hope some of you do.
Harriet