**IMPORTANT** We’re weeding through some bots in the Forum, so if you want to join, you’ll need to be approved. You can make things easier for yourself by emailing me @ ephemeral.essence@gmail.com with your username and just a little letter so that I know you’re not a troll. Put “Enchanting Whispers” as your title, please. After that, I’ll approve your membership.
Releases:
Skip Beat: Ren versus Reino. Prepare for warm fuzzies at the end. *Dedicated to Lindsey, our wonderful editor. Happy Birthday, darling!
Crimson Hero: A cute extra story that continues from the extra story in volume 10.
Smash 1: Our heroes begin to train for a new tournament. Many thanks to CoD for working with us! Please remember to respect Enchantment’s and CoD’s release policies.
Everything You Wanted to Know About Recruitment AKA The Monster Recruitment Post
Quite frankly, we need staff in order to produce more chapters. More staff = more releases = faster releases. So, today I’ll go a little more in depth about open positions and what we’re looking for.
Photoshop Editors
Scanlation runs on Editors, no joke. Photoshop Editors do the labor of cleaning the raw scans and typesetting the English translations onto the image. NOT to be confused with Proofreaders who proofread scripts. You may request to work on a specific project, if you wish. There are a couple requirements:
- Must have an editing program, such as Adobe Photoshop (versions 7 and up is preferred).
- Must be knowledgeable in your main editing program.
- Must be able to edit at least one chapter per two weeks.
Previous experience is preferred, but not required. I am willing to take a bit of time to coach a new Editor if you show potential, but it will be up to you to put in the work. Enchantment has several challenging projects, and we expect Editors to edit in SFX. Basic skills such as typesetting, levelling, and cleaning are a must. More advanced skills such as cloning and redrawing will be expected from you as well. For new Editors who wish to try their hand:
- http://www.unblessed.net/guide/main.html Read it. Memorize it. Live by it. You will not find a better editing guide.
- Read manga from HQ scanlation groups to get a good grasp of proper white/black level contrasts as well as the neat sizes and shapes of the text (text should never overcrowd the bubble and should be rounded to shape of the bubble while having as few broken words as possible). It’s always a plus to admire well-done scanlation works.
Quality Checkers
This is a hard position to describe, but a very crucial one. Quality Check is the last stage of scanlation, so the QCer is in charge of fixing any mistakes and sprucing up the chapter to be the best it can be before saving it to images. Thus, the QCer has the dual job of a Proofreader and an Editor; though the job is not as strenuous as editing, you need to be committed to every chapter.
Basically, ask yourself this: Are you a perfectionist? Are you particular about High-Quality releases? Do you have a keen eye for detail? If so, consider Quality Check:
- You must have an editing program, such as Photoshop (versions 7 and up is preferred).
- You MUST have prior Photoshop manga-editing experience and be knowledgeable in your main editing program. While you shouldn’t need to utilize many advanced abilities, you should know how to fix editing errors and have the abilities to clean a page. You should DEFINITELY have a good understanding of leveling and typesetting. If you do not yet have this experience, consider applying for Editor first and then working your way up to QCer.
- Proofreading experience is preferred but not required. However, the candidate must have keen eye for spelling and grammar, and be confident in their mastery of the English language. (It helps if you know a little Chinese or Japanese, too.)
- If applying for a specific project, must be well-acquainted with the characters and able to look up “flashback” text for consistency. Consistency is the name of the game–and QCers are responsible for uniformity throughout a project.
Japanese Translators
Japanese translators should be fluent in both Japanese and English; you should also have an understanding of Japanese idioms or explain text that may be confusing in a way that the Proofreaders can understand. We are looking for the full deal, which includes all text, SFX, small text, and extras/omakes (author’s columns are optional). Translations can be typed neatly in a document (Word or Note) in a way that is easy to read and identify. We are actively seeking translators, especially for the following project(s):
- Aozora Pop
- Yamamoto Zenjirou to Moushimasu
- If you are interested in a project not listed here or one on our Future list (located in the Forum), please apply and we’ll make arrangements. It is easy for us to get new projects.
Scanners
We need scanners to provide us with Japanese or Chinese RAW scans. RAWs must be at least 900px width per single page, as flat as possible (be prepared to sacrifice the binding or take the book apart), of at least 300dpi. It’s OK if you don’t have prior experience; we can offer some advice to newbies.
We are currently looking for RAW in the following series:
- Aozora Pop [tanks only!] (Chinese or Japanese RAW) – volumes 3 and up
- Yamamoto Zenjiorou [tanks only!] (Japanese RAW) – looking for volume 4!
- New Projects (Chinese or Japanese RAW)
*Tanks refer to “tankobons,” or the actual book-version (and not magazine scans).
You can apply for a position by filling out a form here.
