The translators have completed their work to produce the first editions of new translations of The Urantia Book in German, Lithuanian, and Portuguese. Further, stocks of the Spanish and Russian translations are running out, and we need to print new editions. Urantia Foundation now needs to commit the resources--staff and volunteer time as well as monetary resources--necessary to format, proofread, and set these books into print and to lay the groundwork for international distribution.
Experience has taught us that sales of the first printing of any translation tend to be slow, for Urantia Foundation needs to develop relationships with local distributors and bookstores and reach out to readers and associations who will help disseminate the newly printed text. After a period of time, native speakers who read a new translation often make valuable suggestions for smoother or more accurate wording, so that revisions seem appropriate or even necessary. The second edition can thus be a revised and improved version, and it is better not to have too many copies of the first edition left that must be sold before printing the second edition.
Since production costs increase substantially if small quantities of books are printed, the Foundation has been consulting printers who may be able to combine the Lithuanian, Portuguese, and Spanish translations in the same print run, for all three will use the same size paper. But the German translation cannot be combined in this way, for it will have a small column on each page containing the English text for reference alongside the German, and this requires a wider page format.
To find the most economical ways of doing all of these printings, we work with printers in different countries and consider a variety of factors, including printing costs, currency values, storage fees, shipping and import/ export costs. Volunteer proofreaders also help reduce costs. We cannot complete these projects without your help! And as always, we deeply appreciate contributions for any and all of these projects.