YOUR STORY.
GERMAN VOICE.
I rebuild thrillers, fantasy and romance for German readers, so your characters sound like they were born speaking it.
See what transcreation actually looks like
Your English on the left, my German on the right. You don't need to read German to see the work: under each passage I explain, in English, the choices a word-for-word translation would have missed.
Original English
I'm swimming through syrup. Like the kind we harvest from the trees within the Droherion Dome. Jaxal and I used to go with our mothers to collect it during the cold season when we were little. Jaxal looked up to me back then, even though at just three rotations, he was already taller than I was. He still does, I just don't give him that chance.
My German
Ich schwimme durch Sirup. Durch die Sorte, die wir unter der Droherion-Kuppel aus den Bäumen zapfen. Als wir klein waren, zogen Jaxal und ich in der kalten Jahreszeit mit unseren Müttern los, um ihn zu sammeln. Damals sah Jaxal zu mir auf, obwohl er mit gerade mal drei Rotationen schon größer war als ich. Das tut er heute noch. Ich gebe ihm bloß keine Gelegenheit mehr dazu.
From Taken to Nobu (Xiveri Mates) by Elizabeth Stephens, translated into German by Daniel Sokoll.
What changed: the last English sentence became two short German ones, so her admission lands on its own. "Harvest" became the German word for tapping trees, and the childhood memory now runs as one clean sentence instead of three stacked clauses.
Authors I've Translated Into German
Why Germany
One of the biggest book markets in the world. And one of the most demanding.
Book Sales in 2024A large, stable market for fiction.Source: Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels
Book ReadersA big, reachable audience, increasingly hungry for imported thrillers, fantasy and romance.
- • Thriller & Crime
- • Fantasy & LitRPG
- • Romance & Dark Romance
German readers are unforgiving about translation. A flat one is dead on arrival, no matter how good your ads.
What I do
Most translators hand you a manuscript. I hand you a German edition that's ready to sell.
Full Transcreation
Your book rebuilt in German, not swapped word for word. Every sentence is checked against your original and decided by me, so your characters sound native, not translated.
Launch-Ready, Included
A strong translation still stalls behind a weak product page. Alongside the manuscript I can deliver a German blurb, keywords and categories for your ads, and A+ content, quoted together with the book so there are no surprises.
Series Continuity
Writing a ten-book saga? I keep a maintained glossary so the terminology in Book 1 still matches Book 10.
Rescue Editing
Did a bad translation hurt your reviews? I fix flow, tone and slang so the German edition finally reads the way you intended.
Recent work
Books now living in German
Gefangen vom König von Voraxia
by Elizabeth Stephens
Status: In translation, coming soon
I'm not the typical translator. I didn't spend my life in a library; I spent it living the kinds of stories you write. Agency-trained discipline and a long stretch deep inside subcultures most people only see in fiction. That ear for how real people actually speak is what your German edition gets.
Read my storyQuestions authors ask me
Yes. That's the whole point. I edit and decide every sentence myself against your original, matching your voice, pacing and humour rather than swapping words. Start with a sample edit from your own book and judge for yourself before you commit to anything.
Not sure German is worth it for your book?
Take the 60-second scorecardPrefer something to print and work down? Get the free PDF checklist
Current Status: Open for new projects.
Start a conversation
Tell me about your book. I'll reply personally within 24 hours.
Email me directly
Prefer a direct line before sending a full brief? For quick or sensitive questions, email me and we'll talk.
[email protected]Four addresses are mine, and no others. I send my own outreach from the two on separate domains, which is ordinary practice for keeping outreach and client mail apart, and everything at danielsokoll.com is where client work runs.
Native German Voice
Worldwide service, by email.
From first email to final file.