The first episode of The Lord of the Rings, already a hit in both Europe and America, finally hit Taiwanese theatres on January 18, amidst the anticipation of cinema aficionados. Under the direction of translator Chu, more than 200 Ring fans gathered at the Warner Village Cineplex to commemorate the 110th birthday of the fantasy literature master, J.R.R. Tolkien, the trilogy's creator. Although Mother Nature failed to deliver weather to befit the occasion, the cold temperature did little to dampen the crowd's enthusiasm.

On the night of the film's premiere, two groups held special screenings, one of which was arranged by Chu on behalf of the fans of his books. Astonishingly enough, Chu purchased each of the 300 attendees' tickets out of his own pocket. In the face of such abundant magnanimity, it hardly comes as a surprise that none of the invitees disregarded Chu's invitation. It's unnecessary to fear that Chu overextended himself through such generosity, however, as The Lord of the Rings has already earned him close to NT$10 million in royalties. Chu, moreover, is also the first Taiwanese translator to receive royalties.

Translators in Taiwan working from English into Chinese are generally paid after completion of a draft at rates of NT$0.40-$1 per Chinese character; in fact, the NT$1 rate is reserved for translators of expertise and experience. Even more disconcerting to those in the field is the fact that this rate has remained essentially unchanged for the last 20 years. Chu Hsueh-heng has not only shattered this custom, but also kindled the hopes of the despondent translation world.

Chu Hsueh-heng was born in 1975 and attended National Central University's Electrical Engineering Department. His childhood fascination with the fantasy world of video games eventually paved the way for his immersion into the realm of fantasy literature. While a second-year student at National Taiwan Normal University's attached high school, the gutsy Chu called Software World, a computer game magazine, and announced his interest in testing video games and writing evaluations of them. Seeing that he was a lucid thinker as well as a gifted writer, the magazine's editor agreed and granted him his own column, an experience that provided the background for his later translation work.

Chu admits that at the time, fantasy literature was an unfamiliar concept in Taiwan. His column failed to garner much reader attention, and was even selected in a reader poll as their least favorite. Hence it was cancelled after a year. However, an individual of talent cannot be ignored for long. Three years later, when Third Wave Publishing Company planned to release the "Dragonlance" fantasy book series, Chu was the first person they looked to for help.

No one at the time was publishing fantasy literature; moreover, Third Wave did not specialize in literature, and was unfamiliar with that branch of the market. As a result, Chu suggested that if the series sold well, he would accept royalties in lieu of the traditional payment. If the series sold poorly, he would simply treat the assignment as an unpaid leisure activity.

Little did Chu realize, he had actually devised a new system, one that has since afforded him ample opportunity to rake in royalties. Thus far, his translations have all sold well enough to bring in a good profit, including the current release of The Lord of the Rings by Linking Publishing Company. Linking purchased the rights for a Chinese edition in 1997, and entrusted the task of translation to a mainland Chinese translator. They printed 3000 copies of the new translation, but, in the end, all efforts to promote the series were in vain. It seemed impossible to arouse any interest; in fact, it took a total of three years before they finally sold all 3000 copies. At that time, when the news of the making of the Lord of the Rings movie reached Taiwan, the quick-thinking Chu immediately went to Linking to discuss retranslating the series. Chu reasoned that the initial translation was too dry to be successful. Moreover, the first translator's understanding of the fantasy genre was too limited to fully evoke the fantastic macrocosm that Tolkien depicted in his work. Chu promised that this time around he would provide a much more vivid translation.

Chu Hsueh-heng suggested that if sales failed to reach 10,000 sets (four books per set), then he would forgo payment. Linking was duly impressed by his chutzpah and left the task in his charge. A motivated worker, in addition to fulfilling his basic duties at the publishing house, Chu has gone to the extent of helping with other related services: the book's cover design, book clubs, guided reading, stocking, and online advertising. So long as it facilitates the work of distribution, Chu has been eager to help by any available means. Chu's diligence earned him the trust of the publishing house, and made them more than willing to pay him royalties rather than the traditional fee.

Chu believes that translation is a creative act that transcends merely converting the text in a line-by-line, word-by-word fashion. Needless to say, he takes his translation seriously. At the time of the book's release, he adopted the attitude that the success or failure of the work was his personal success or failure. If the set sold well, then it would be a great achievement; if it sold poorly, he, while disappointed, would be perfectly willing to go without pay.

Chu took nine months to complete the translation of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, during which time he never left the confines of his study and the gym, and lost 20 kilos. Nonetheless he feels the results have been well worth the sacrifice, especially since the book sales have cashed in on the movie's popularity. At the time of this writing, the number of copies in print has surpassed 110,000. In the meantime, Chu's royalty income has already rocketed past NT$5 million, and continues to steadily advance on the $10 million mark.

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(facing page) The translator of The Lord of the Rings, Chu Hsueh-heng (middle), is a Ring fan himself. He sought out other fans of the novel online, and later treated them to a screening of the film's premiere. (photo by Jimmy Lin)