z Translating TOUCH Resources

On a monthly basis, TOUCH Publications receives numerous requests from around the world to translate our resources into one of the world's many written languages. If you or your organization wish to translate our work into your language for use in a local church, denomination or as a publisher, it's important that you read this document thoroughly before you submit a request for translation.

 

We are happy to extend permission to translate, publish, print and distribute to you and your organization if the translation work you wish to perform has not already been done or is not on an exclusionary list we have created to protect the relationships we have with our sister organizations. These sister organizations around the world print and publish, support and train, and minister to cell churches in their respective countries as we do from our U.S. offices for American churches.

Excluded countries and languages

We have exclusive, legally binding agreements with organizations in the following countries (the languages in our agreements are also listed):  

Each of the countries listed above has a ministry who has or is in the process of translating our work into the language noted, or producing local printed versions of our work in English for their home country to save costs on shipping. To contact them, simply click on the contact link and you will be taken to their website where their contact information can be found.  

[Note: Not all of our overseas sister organizations have translated and printed every title we publish! Should the title you wish to translate and use not be available through them today, ask them if you can partner with them to translate it and submit the translation for proofing and printing. If they have no interest or are unable to print what you wish to translate, you can ask them to apply for a translation agreement from our offices on your behalf. The sister office MUST submit the request and it cannot come directly from you.] 

Translation Requirements and Guidelines

Before you fill out and submit the translation request below, please make a note of our requirements for translation:

  • The work must be translated in such a way that it conveys an accurate portrayal of the content of the material and represents the author's style and theological beliefs. (We do, however, expect the translator to change idioms and stories into those that work best in the target culture of the translation if necessary.)
  • Two copies of the finished, printed work must be sent to our Houston offices upon completion with a report of the number of books printed and the expected time it will take to distribute the first printing.
  • An 8% royalty is to be paid to the Houston office for each copy distributed, whether sold for a profit, sold at hard cost or given away at no cost. This percentage is based on the retail sale price of the book or the retail sale price of a similar book of size and length sold in the country of origin, religious or secular.
  • Royalties are to be paid on a quarterly basis (4 times per calendar year), using the exchange rate for that day for the previous quarter's sales in US dollars. Payments can be easily made through our website in the form of a donation, followed up by an email with the sales report for the quarter.
  • Translations must list the original copyright holder's name, and all translations become the sole property of TOUCH Publications. Your translation work, however, will never be used without your permission and cooperation.
  • The translation agreement we make with you is not exclusive unless otherwise noted in our agreement. At any time, we may exercise the right to grant rights to other individuals or organizations to translate, print and distribute TOUCH Publication titles in your language of choice and country of origin.
  • Translation agreements are given for a period of one year, and auto-renew for an additional year unless one of the parties submits a request to break the agreement with at least 30 days notice of the anniversary date of the agreement.
  • A US$50 fee per title must accompany all translation agreements. This fee is non-refundable, but will be kept on account and deducted from your royalty reports. This fee will be paid through a Visa/Mastercard or Discover Card, supplied in the agreement. These fees will not be charged to your credit card if the agreement is denied.
  • All costs involved with the translation process (ie, contract labor, computer programs or computers, etc), printing, storage, advertising and distribution of the translated work are the sole responsibility of the translator.
  • Because of the number of translation requests we receive, TOUCH Publications does not supply potential translators with review copies of our resources. You will be responsible to purchase these through one of the many retail sources available.
  • TOUCH Publications does not supply translators with digital versions of our resources (Text files, graphics, diagrams, etc.) for any reason. You will be responsible for keying or scanning the text and graphics in a resource for use in computerized translation programs.
 

Why some agreements are denied

Submitting an agreement for review does not guarantee it will be approved. There are a number of criteria that are taken into consideration for a translation approval. They are as follows, but are not limited to:

  • The agreement was submitted for a language and country where a sister organization has an office and translations, or where a published edition of that resource is currently available to the secondary translator.
  • The agreement was submitted with missing information or errors.
  • The agreement was submitted with strikes through words, statements or paragraphs where the submitting person did not agree with the wording or requests outlined in the agreement.
  • The agreement was submitted with a credit card number that was invalid or could not be charged for the title fees required.
  • The agreement was submitted by a person or organization that we feel would poorly represent the author due to their standing in the local community or widely differing theological stance of our ministry and the authors we represent.
  • The agreement was submitted by a person or organization that we feel would not follow through with the translation work in a timely manner.

Many of these denial reasons protect both parties. We do everything we can to insure that solid translations are available in many languages, and that long-lasting relationships are formed with churches and missionaries abroad that want to use our materials in their local language. We also want to be good stewards of our time and your money. Since there is no refund on translation submission fees per title, we will work hard to review each submission and insure everything is in order before we charge your credit card.   If your translation agreement is denied, we will mail you a letter stating why it was denied and what must be provided (if something was missing) to re-submit the agreement for a secondary review. Please allow 6 weeks after we receive your agreement for approval or denial by mail. This will allow us enough time to review the agreement and mail a reply to you in your foreign country.  

Why does TOUCH Publications charge a title submission fee?

We're a small ministry and keep a very small staff. Each translation agreement sent to us is researched thoroughly for accuracy and existing translations in that language. We also verify that the submitting person and organization is respected locally and holds our theological beliefs. All this takes time from a salaried ministry representative.   The non-refundable fees are simply a deposit on the future royalties you will make each quarter. The fees also help us to know that you are serious about translating the work and publishing it to completion. Please note that if you do not complete the translation work, or you do not distribute enough copies to cover the fees you have paid, you cannot request a refund on these fees.  

Why are royalties required on translated books I want to give away for free?

Our ministry and many of our authors survives on the sale and royalties derived from the distribution of our resources.   Each quarter, we receive foreign royalties from our sister organizations and translators. These monies are divided between our ministry and the author whose work has been translated. The monies we retain from translation distribution is used to fund research and development for new resources, which we know will be in great demand overseas as well as in the United States. Your royalty is a tithe back to the organization and author who made the resource available and are working hard to support the cell movement worldwide.   Without the sales of our resources and the royalties we receive, TOUCH Outreach Ministries would be forced to close its doors. We do not receive funding from any other source beyond our resource sales, royalties and the few training events we hold each year.  

How to secure a translation agreement

  • Download and complete the translation agreement request form. Read it carefully and thoroughly as you will be entering into a legally binding contract with our organization.
  • The agreement must be completed in full, and contain absolutely no strike-through marks. Should we find omissions or strike through marks, the request will be denied.
  • The person in your organization that will be responsible for paying royalties and turning in reports in a timely manner must sign the document and understand the responsibility that goes along with signing the document.
  • Mail your signed, original agreement to our Houston, Texas offices for review and allow 6 weeks for notification of approval or denial. No electronic or copied versions will be accepted. Our address is located at the bottom of the Agreement.
  • If you receive approval, a copy of the signed contract with a TOUCH Publication signature will accompany the approval letter. When you receive a copy of your signed agreement from us, you are free to begin translating the work and publish it.

We look forward to partnering with you in building the Kingdom through your translation work! 

Translation Agreement (pdf format)

If you have additional questions after reading this page and the translation agreement,
email the president of TOUCH Publications.