Baka-Tsuki:Executive Council:2016 Nominations

This page lists the nominees for the 2016-2017 BT executive council. For general details, please see this page.

Voting has concluded (June 18, 2016) in the admin forum (link).

2016-2017 Nominees

Cthaeh

Hello, I'm Cthaeh, a sometimes editor on various projects, previously Rakuin no Monshou and Index in particular; I'm also one of the current executive council members. I think it would be better if there was some new blood helping make decisions instead of me, but since we seem to be short on nominations, I'll put myself here to keep it going. I'd generally just try to keep things running as is.

zxzxzx

Hi, I'm zxzxzx. Currently a translator for High School DxD and Seikoku no Ryuu Kishi. I've only been around for about a year, but think I'd be interested in taking up a greater role and helping with decisions which may come in the future. I'd like things to continue as they currently are, but personally don't think that content should be removed just because of a DMCA, especially when it is not going to be published in English otherwise.

Cloudii

Heyo! I've been a member of Baka-Tsuki since 2013, and I'm most well-known for translating OreShura. I've also been involved with BT administration for many years and am one of the current executive council members. I consider myself a moderate in terms of translation ethics (DMCAs, donations, MTLs, etc.) and I value most capturing/getting the opinions of our community members (specifically, translators/editors). I see myself as representing the broader interests of the BT community and the people who reach out to me, and I spend a lot of effort getting to talk to people/getting to know their thoughts. My future vision for BT is a simplification of the rules/text and greater decentralization on the way BT is run. I should also add that I'm a medical school student and I'm not necessarily the most active member, but I'm very responsive in terms of email/forum PM.

KLSymph

I'm KLSymph, an active member of Baka-Tsuki since 2014. I currently manage, translate, and edit for Rakudai Kishi no Eiyuutan, and also translate/QC for Rakudai Kishi's manga adaptation as well as those of Madan no Ou to Vanadis and Sekai no Owari no Encore. I believe in the importance of detailed analysis based on structured principles, both in storytelling and in forum management, and my many years of experience in those two fields outside of Baka-Tsuki has made me either extremely effective or utterly insufferable, depending on who you ask. As a member of the Executive Council, I would act as a voice for consistently high story quality above all else. I would like Baka-Tsuki projects to aspire toward producing polished reading experiences for their intended audiences, and I would like for Baka-Tsuki to set the gold standard in light novel translations. If these goals should require a greater sense of professionalism and cause project members suffer a bit more for their craft than they're used to, that's quite fine with me.

hobogunner

Hey, I'm hobogunner. I've been around Baka-Tsuki since August 2011, so almost 3 months short of 5 years. I guess that puts me as an "older guard" member of BT. I'm mostly active on the BT FB Group + Page. I am essentially the social-media guy for Baka-Tsuki (or at least, I appointed competent people to the roles like a true middle-manager). I'm more on IRC than Baka-Tsuki as of late, I still pay attention to things but figure as the relic I am it is best for me to hold off on certain discussions until I can account for all sides. Compromise is the main thing I look for which has definitely drawn some ire. I prefer to look at the fluidity of the whole system over specific elements when going over potential changes.

zzhk

Hello, this is zzhk. I've been at Baka-Tsuki for a number of years although I only started contributing officially 4 years ago. Looking back, I've translated 17 volumes per year on average, so I'd like to think that my viewpoint has some value as a translator perspective.

I believe that Baka-Tsuki's main purpose is to promote light novels by providing a platform for translators to share their work. As such, translators are the heart and soul of the operation. Without translators, there is no Baka-Tsuki. Hence, I would say the key question is: How can we provide a hassle-free and supportive environment for dedicated translators where they can focus purely on the task of translating, participating in the management process only as much as they wish to?

What I mean by "dedicated" is that translators should aim to improve themselves continually as language learners and to hold themselves to minimum standards of quality, aware that time is always scarce and people seldom re-translate what's already done, which means that what gets released could persist for eternity as representations of the original author's work. I'd like to think that the translators B-T wishes to nurture and support are the ones with genuine love and pride in the works they share, not simply catering to the whims of the masses or demands stemming from flavors of the moment.

Naturally, there are still minimum responsibilities within the gray zone of unauthorized fan translations. I think it would make for a dangerous sense of entitlement on a slippery slope when people start deciding they can pick and choose which explicit demands of rightsholders to ignore. There are always more light novels than could ever be translated. I see no valid justification in going against the wishes and interests of those who created the content we enjoyed in the first place. As such, I believe that B-T should continue to comply with DMCA requests and distance itself from those who engage in commercial activity to profit off fan translations. B-T should not be a hotbed of piracy and illegal profit.