A Literary Life Starting from the First Year of High School

Chapter 112 International Planning (Two Chapters Combined)

At 9:40 a.m. on Saturday, Lin Shubai and Chen Yuanshan sat by the window at the "Half-Day Leisure" coffee shop.

Chen Yuanshan was wearing a dark blue suit jacket with a white shirt underneath, which was a first for Lin Shubai. This old editor usually wore a gray jacket with everyone.

At 9:58, the door to the coffee shop was pushed open.

Alan Carter was shorter than Lin Shubai had imagined, probably around 1.7 meters tall.

Allen's gaze swept across the store, landing on Lin Shubai, before he walked over.

"Lin Shubai?" His Chinese had a heavy accent, but he pronounced each word clearly.

Lin Shubai stood up and extended his hand. "Hello, Mr. Allen."

Allen shook hands with him, then turned to Chen Yuanshan.

"Are you Teacher Chen? Lin Shubai mentioned you to me, saying you were his mentor."

Chen Yuanshan stood up, shook hands with him, and said, "You're too kind. I'm his editor."

The three people sat down. "You're smaller than you look in the photos."

Lin Shubai was taken aback. "You've seen my photo?"

"There are photos of your book signing online. When I read 'The Little Prince,' I imagined the author to be a middle-aged man, the kind who is gentle and a little lonely."

Allen continued, "I'm fifty-one years old, and I've been a literary agent for twenty-three years. I've read thousands of books and met hundreds of authors, but when I read *The Little Prince*, I realized one thing—I wasn't reading a book; I was being 'read' by a book. It read out things I had forgotten within me."

Chen Yuanshan then spoke up, "Mr. Allen, you just said you were 'read by a book,' that's an interesting statement. Could you elaborate?"

Allen thought for a moment, "There's a line in *The Little Prince*: 'All grown-ups were once children, but few remember it.' When I read that line, I remembered waking up in the middle of the night in my London apartment when I was thirty-five, staring at the ceiling, and feeling like I'd become a stranger to myself."

"Mr. Allen, how would you like to cooperate?" Lin Shubai felt that if he didn't interrupt these two, they would keep bragging for ages, and even the thickest skin would feel a little embarrassed.

Allen's eyes lit up. "You're a straightforward person, and I like straightforward people. Our working style is simple—"

I will act as your overseas agent, handling the publication of your work in all languages ​​except mainland China. I will help you find the best translators, the most suitable publishers, and negotiate the best contract terms.

"What about the commission?"

"Fifteen percent, that's the industry standard."

Lin Shubai nodded. He didn't intend to keep arguing about commissions. What he was concerned about was whether Allen could really open up those markets.

"Mr. Allen, which market do you plan to start with?"

"The English-speaking market, Britain and the United States." Allen pulled a stack of papers from a brown paper bag, placed them on the table, and pushed them over. "This is Julia Green's draft translation, the first three chapters of The Little Prince. Take a look."

Lin Shubai picked up the stack of papers, turned to the first page, and read, "Once when I was four years old, I was awake..."

magnificent picture in a book, called True Stories from Nature, about the

primeval forest...

He read two paragraphs, and the quality of the translation was better than he had expected; it was almost identical to the original.

Chen Yuanshan took it, looked at it for about two minutes, and then put it down. "This translation is acceptable."

"Julia is the best Chinese-to-English translator I have ever worked with. She is not the kind of academic who can only translate literally. She knows how to make English readers feel the emotions of the original text. After she finishes translating, I will find a native language editor to polish the text."

After they finished reading the draft translation, Allen began to talk about his "international plans".

"Let me start with the general framework. My plan is divided into three phases."

"In the first phase, the English-language market, the UK and the US will proceed first, but the UK will go first because British readers are more receptive to translated works than American readers, and the influence of book review media is more concentrated in the UK. A book that receives good reviews in the UK will be much easier to enter the US market."

Lin Shubai quickly processed this logic in his mind. His understanding of the European and American markets was limited to the general concept of "English-speaking countries." Allen's distinction made him realize that although Britain and the United States are the same language market, their cultural barriers and communication paths are completely different.

"In the UK, I've narrowed it down to three publishers: Faber & Faber, which has excellent literary taste but is rather conservative in its terms for newcomers."

Bloomsbury has a keen business sense and strong marketing skills.

PushkinPress, specializing in translated literature, is a small but reputable firm. Of the three options, I'd say Pushkin is the most likely to act first—they've always been looking for translated works with long-term sales potential, and *The Little Prince* isn't the kind of bestseller that only lasts a season; it has the potential to become a perennial bestseller.

Chen Yuanshan interjected, "You plan to contact three companies at the same time?"

"No, I'll show the complete translation to Pushkin first and give them a month of exclusive review period. If they don't want it, I'll turn to two other companies. The exclusive review period will put more pressure on them—good things have an expiration date." After Allen finished speaking, he glanced at Lin Shubai, as if to confirm whether he had kept up with the pace.

Lin Shubai nodded. Allen's approach was essentially about creating scarcity; it wasn't just about finding publishers for him, but about raising his price.

Allen continued, "We'll wait for things to look promising in the UK before moving on to the American market. American publishers are very superstitious about the 'it's already published in the UK' label. If 'The Little Prince' can secure a decent publisher in the UK, I can get at least three or four companies bidding in the US."

"In the second phase, we will target other language markets in Europe, namely French, German, Spanish, and Italian. The combined purchasing power of these four markets is no less than that of the English market. My strategy is to use the English translation as the base text and then translate it into other languages. This will ensure the consistency of translation quality and make it easier to control the progress. The French version is especially important. The core of The Little Prince’s story has a natural affinity with French culture. I am confident that I can find a French publisher within a year."

"In the third phase, other Asian markets, including Japanese, Korean, Thai, and Vietnamese, have relatively low royalties but quick licensing, and their acceptance of original Chinese works is rising. My suggestion is to start with the Japanese version—Japanese readers have almost no resistance to philosophical fairy tales like 'The Little Prince,' and market feedback is usually quick."

"Allen, I have a question." Lin Shubai pushed his coffee cup aside. "Why start with the European and American markets? Japan and South Korea are closer to China and share cultural similarities, so readers should find them easier to accept. Why not start with Asia first?"

Allen picked up his coffee and took a sip. "Your question is excellent, and it hits the nail on the head: why not Asia, but Europe and America? There are three reasons."

"First, brand prestige. An author's international standing largely depends on which market first recognizes him. If your book first gains a foothold in the English-speaking market, because the English-speaking market is the commanding height of the global book market, the book review media in New York and London determine the world's literary discourse power. A book that receives praise in the UK or the US will have its own halo when it enters any other market. This is a leverage effect—using the credibility of the English-speaking market to leverage the global market, and my base is in the European and American markets."

Lin Shubai quickly processed these words in his mind. The "brand height" that Allen mentioned was not an abstract concept, but a real business logic. Lin Shubai knew about the situation of the Asian market in this life. Due to the lack of many classics, the Asian market did lack a voice. The English market was at the top. Fight the most difficult battle first, and the later battles will become easier.

"Second," Allen held up his second finger, "the matching of royalties with translation costs."

He pulled a piece of paper from the brown paper bag, which showed a comparison of book prices and royalty rates in several countries. Lin Shubai glanced at it and the differences in the numbers were obvious.

"In the UK and US markets, a hardcover children's book can be priced at £12 to £15, with a royalty rate of 10% to 15%. In the Japanese market, a book of the same thickness is priced at around 1,200 to 1,500 yen, which is less than £10. In South Korea and Southeast Asia, it's even lower. What does this mean? It means that if I sell 30,000 copies in Japan, I may not earn as much as if I sold 10,000 copies in the UK."

He pushed the paper in front of Lin Shubai.

"The cost of translating 'The Little Prince'—finding a translator of Julia Green's caliber, including translation fees and post-editing, would be around five to eight thousand pounds. This cost would require selling many copies in the Japanese market to recoup, while in the British market, only a few thousand copies would suffice. From a business perspective, I should first recoup the cost in the high-priced, high-royalty market, and then use the low-cost market to grow the volume."

After listening, Lin Shubai suddenly realized a problem: Allen was not only considering this from a literary perspective, but he was planning it using the logic of a business project—cash flow, return on investment, and market priority.

Allen held up his third finger. "Third, your age."

"You are sixteen years old now, which is a very special age. For the European and American markets, a sixteen-year-old author is a news item, a story."

When a sixteen-year-old writes a work like *The Little Prince*, the media will be interested, readers will be curious, and book critics will open your book with an attitude of "How is this possible?" This window of opportunity won't last forever until you're twenty.

"At twenty-five, you're a young writer, no longer a 'child prodigy.' Your news value diminishes with each passing year. Frankly, the Western market is far more curious about 'geniuses' than the Asian market."

"So your logic is to first use age as a news angle to open up the Western market, and once the work has established itself there, then use the success in the Western market to push into the Asian market?"

Allen chuckled. "Absolutely right. The Asian market won't disappear. Publishers in Japan, South Korea, and Southeast Asia are looking for authors who have already succeeded in the West every day. That's why I put the Asian market in the second phase—not because it's unimportant, but because it's so easy to tap into. If it's easy enough, we can do it later."

"Mr. Allen, you just mentioned that the entire plan takes three to five years. Could you give me more specific timelines?"

Allen opened the form and pointed to the entries with his finger.

"In the next three months: Julia will complete the full translation of The Little Prince, and I will simultaneously contact three target publishers in the UK: Faber & Faber, Bloomsbury, and Pushkin Press. I will give Pushkin an exclusive review period because they are the most enthusiastic about translated literature."

"Three to six months: Sign a deal with a British publisher, and simultaneously initiate contact with the US market. American publishers highly value the 'already published in the UK' label; news of a UK deal will give me the upper hand in US negotiations."

"Six to twelve months: The English version will be released. Meanwhile, with the English version and the contract with the British publisher, I'll start contacting publishers in Japan and South Korea. At this point, I don't need to convince them whether the book is good or not; I just need to tell them that the English version is published by X Company and has already received positive reviews in the UK," and their reactions will be completely different.

"Within twelve to twenty-four months: French, German, Spanish, and Italian versions were successively signed. These markets use the English translation as the base text, resulting in a short translation cycle and rapid progress."

"Twenty-four months later: Looking back at other Asian markets such as Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia, these smaller markets need to wait for the success in Europe, America, and Japan to accumulate enough influence; otherwise, the royalty income may not be able to cover the costs."

After listening, Lin Shubai understood. Allen was providing a construction blueprint with clear timelines and sequences for each stage. Clearly, this person had already mentally rehearsed the process many times.

Lin Shubai put down his cup. "Allen, I have a specific question: who will bear the translation costs?"

Chen Yuanshan nodded slightly beside him—the question had hit the nail on the head.

Allen's answer was straightforward: "I'll pay for it first, and I'll cover Julia's translation fees. Once you receive your royalties, this money will be deducted from your income. If you ultimately don't sign with any publisher, this money will be on me—this is the price I'm paying for my misjudgment."

Lin Shubai considered it in his mind. This arrangement was fair to him, and could even be considered as favoring Allen. Allen took on the downside risk, while he only shared the upside gains. For a 51-year-old veteran agent to make such a promise to a 16-year-old newcomer showed that this person had a strong confidence in his judgment.

"My second question concerns the translation for the Asian market. Do you plan to use the English version as the base text, or translate directly from Chinese?"

"Translate directly from Chinese. The English version is the key to opening up the market, but it is not the source for other language versions. I will require each language publisher to use your original Chinese text as the standard in the contract. Julia will be responsible for reviewing the comparison of key paragraphs to ensure that the core semantics of each language version are consistent."

Chen Yuanshan then interjected, "Mr. Allen, there's another question. Lin Shubai is currently a high school freshman. What kind of cooperation is needed for overseas promotion? Giving interviews? Attending book fairs?"

Lin Shubai glanced gratefully at Chen Yuanshan. He hadn't thought of this question himself, but it was indeed important.

"I don't need you to show up frequently. You don't need to be involved in the early work, such as translation, finding publishers, and negotiating contracts. All you need to do is write. Once the book is published, there may be some interviews and book signings, which I will try to schedule during summer and winter vacations. As for those book fairs, it is entirely up to you whether you participate or not."

He paused, then added, "The last thing I want to do is ruin a writer's creative rhythm. You are a writer; you don't need to be bogged down by these trivial matters."

Lin Shubai relaxed completely after hearing this. Allen understood him—or rather, Allen understood writers. He wasn't the kind of agent who treated authors as commodities; he understood that writing itself required time and space.

"Allen, I think our collaboration will go smoothly, but I need to have a lawyer review the contract before signing it."

Allen smiled. "Of course. I'll draft the contract and send it to you. You can have a lawyer review it. I'll be staying in Shanghai for a while, so we can communicate anytime if there are any issues."