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… in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes Ben Franklin, in a letter written in 1789 How can we prepare to get through the storms of life? My mother-in-law, my husband and my mom died in the last six years. While I was deeply saddened by this, I still had to take care of most administrative issues for them and keep looking to the future. I wanted to have work and clients after this was over. As freelancers, our clients disappear when we disappear. How did I keep clients through these crises? Years…
How to Have a Super First Year in the ATA: Small Resources that Add Up to Big Benefits
Welcome to the third article in the series How to Have a Super First Year in the ATA. This time, I’ll be talking about all the small resources offered by the ATA that add up to big benefits towards the end of your first year. List Yourself in the ATA Directory Make yourself findable! Direct clients and agencies alike use…
Living the Dream? How Freelance Translators Can Become Digital Nomads
Picture yourself newly-arrived on some tropical beach somewhere, or perhaps in a café in the middle of an exciting, cosmopolitan city. Laptop open in front of you, you’re adding the finishing touches to your latest translation project. As you close the file and click ‘Send’, you set off to explore this latest destination – sparing a thought, of course, for…
Seven Super Skills: Progressing in Translation
By Joseph Lambert (@jaltranslation) Reblogged from the JALTranslation blog with permission from the author (incl. the images) Today’s post sees us move from the power of translation to the process of translation and, more specifically, to a look at the demands of this process. There are a number of vital skills required to produce high quality translations and here I put…
Book review: The Business Guide for Translators
By David Friedman It is widely recognized that there are several skills you need to be successful in translation. The fundamental skills include excellent source language comprehension, superb target language writing skills, and subject matter expertise. However, business skills are also essential, especially in today’s translation market where the majority of translators are self-employed freelancers. While reading, writing, and translation…
How to Have a Super First Year in the ATA: The School Outreach Program
Welcome to the second article in the series How to Have a Super First Year in the ATA. This time, I’ll be talking about my winning experience in the School Outreach Contest. As a new ATA member in 2015, I received my first edition of The Chronicle and was intrigued by the article about Jenny Stillo, the winner of the…
Why Machine Translation Should Have a Role in Your Life. Really!
By Spence Green (@LiltHQ) Reblogged from the The Language of Translation blog with permission from the author (incl. the image) Guest author Spence Green talks about a heated topic: Machine Translation, Translation Memories and everything in between. Spence Green is a co-founder of Lilt, a provider of interactive translation systems. He has a PhD in computer science from Stanford University and a…
Tips for Newcomers to the Translation and Interpreting Professions
By Corinne McKay Reblogged from the ATA Chronicle (September 2013) with permission from the author If you asked 100 translators or interpreters to describe their first days in the industry, you would probably get 100 different answers—or at least some very entertaining stories. If you want to become an accountant or an attorney, there is a clear path ahead of you.…
Book Review: Diversification in the Language Industry
By Catherine Christaki From time to time, in the translation industry (I’m guessing in many other industries as well), there are trending topics and buzzwords that become hot topics for a period of time. A few years ago, the buzzword that all linguists were talking about was diversification: what it is, do we need it, who it’s suitable for, and…
Interpreting 101: An Interview with Student Interpreters
By Kimberley Hunt I had a chance to catch up with three interpretation students at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey (MIIS). As part of the T&I program at MIIS, interpretation classes are mandatory for the first semester to give students a taste of the profession. After that, students can continue pursuing interpretation as a career. Anna Bialostosky,…
How I Got Off to a Fast Start as a Freelance Translator
By Linda Kramer After being employed for over ten years, I longed for more freedom in my life. During my maternity leave (which here in Sweden is a whopping 18 months) I decided to take the plunge and become a freelance translator. And I’m not going to lie, it was scary. Thoughts of how I would survive without the security…