The Savvy Newcomer aims to serve newcomers to the translation and interpreting professions by publishing high-quality, peer-reviewed content on a weekly basis. We strive to provide you with the answers to the many questions you face as a new or aspiring translator or interpreter.
As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to transform industries, many translators and interpreters are asking themselves: Is there still a place for me? The answer is a resounding yes, but it comes with an important caveat. The future of translation and interpretation belongs to those who can do what machines cannot, that is, bring cultural competence, empathy, and context to language. At least, thus far. Cultural competence has always been at the heart of effective communication. It enables professionals to interpret meaning beyond words, including humor, idioms, tone, and intention within specific cultural frameworks. While AI can process vast amounts of…
Take the Message and Jump!
By Christiane Nord Abstract by Jamie Hartz and Cynthia Eby A common, but dangerous, tendency in translation is to adhere too closely to the source text and miss the mark in the target culture. In this article, Dr. Christiane Nord explains the concept of “taking the message and jumping” into the target linguaculture—which is a combination of culture and language which…
Revision and its Kin
by Jonathan Hine If you have been translating professionally for a little while, a project manager (PM) has or will ask you to revise a text that someone has translated. The PM probably will not call it “revision.” This is part of our professional practice which has more misnomers than almost anything we do. What is revision? Why isn’t it…
Promoting Your Practice in 60 Seconds or Less: Mastering the Elevator Speech
By Lillian Clementi Reblogged from ATA Chronicle with permission So I’ve made it to the networking event—I’ve even remembered to bring some business cards—and I’m starting to peek out from behind the potted plant when a friendly stranger makes eye contact and asks, “So what do you do?” Or I’ve settled into my seat at a business gathering and suddenly the moderator…
Promoting Your Practice in 60 Seconds or Less: Mastering the Elevator Speech
By Lillian Clementi Reblogged from ATA Chronicle with permission So I’ve made it to the networking event—I’ve even remembered to bring some business cards—and I’m starting to peek out from behind the potted plant when a friendly stranger makes eye contact and asks, “So what do you do?” Or I’ve settled into my seat at a business gathering and suddenly the moderator…
My ATA Conference Experience
by Veronica Sardon It has been more than a year since I acted on a very unlikely hunch and reserved a room at the 2014 ATA Conference hotel in Chicago. On the face of it, it did not make a lot of sense. Almost two years into my career as a freelance translator, which I was still doing on the…
Ramadan: A month of joy, celebration and fasting
By Hicham Zerhouni For over 1.5 billion Muslims around the world, Ramadan, the ninth month of the Muslim Calendar, is the holiest time of year. For Muslims, it marks the month when the Quran was first revealed to the Prophet Muhammed (PBUH). During Ramadan Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset for 29 or 30 days, depending on the moon sighting of…
Minutes from The Savvy Newcomer Logbook
June 15, 2015. After a few months of letting The Savvy Newcomer ship fly the flags of other bloggers, the Captain and Crew had a team meeting to rediscover the world of original content. It had been a few months since they had connected as a team, and thanks to the valiant efforts of Mate Christaki, who had valiantly kept…
Feeling lazy? A sure-fire way not to get work
By Riccardo Schiaffino Reblogged from About Translation blog with permission from the author Novice translators often get advice on how to get work and how to successfully conduct their freelance business. Several leading translators, in fact, have published books aimed at less experienced colleagues (among these books, I especially recommend those by Corinne McKay, the Jenner twins and Chris Durban). However, what if…
Feeling lazy? A sure-fire way not to get work
By Riccardo Schiaffino Reblogged from About Translation blog with permission from the author Novice translators often get advice on how to get work and how to successfully conduct their freelance business. Several leading translators, in fact, have published books aimed at less experienced colleagues (among these books, I especially recommend those by Corinne McKay, the Jenner twins and Chris Durban). However, what if…
24 Networking Tips that Actually Work
By James Clear Reblogged from ATA Chronicle with permission The idea of networking makes many people uncomfortable—or confused. It is easy to see why. When most people think about networking, it seems insincere at best—and selfish at worst. This, of course, is the complete opposite of what networking is supposed to be—friendly, useful, and genuine. It is easy for most of us…