In the course of a typical week translating anime, I might have to search for information on rainforest spiders, Pakistani names, a s Japanese TV drama, the Reformation, aerospace technology, and the daily habits of Tibetan monks. So you need to get good at finding stuff out. Not only that, but the answers need to be from reliable sources where possible.
So one of the most key things to develop as a translator is research skills. In most colleges the main campus library will hold an orientation day, often including research tips, once a semester. Many college and public libraries offer sporadic courses on research methods; you can find out and try to take one.
You can kill two birds with one stone by bringing research questions that have come up in one of your translations. However, watch out! There are ways to utilize search engines to find out esoteric things or get helpful, reliable results. There are also ways to take three hours getting completely useless results. Maybe you want to get some tips, or maybe you just want to set yourself a long list of hard questions and try to get better and better at finding the answers.
No matter which it is, the fact is good research takes practice. Remember how I said translation was about being an expert on everything ever? Well, knowing an expert on everything ever is the next best thing. Networking is the way to go for a translator. When I need to be an expert on Latin for five minutes, I call my friend who teaches Latin. When I need to know something random about flesh, fowl, or good red herring I call my dad. There are some things where all the Googling in the world is not going to deliver the goods as well as a consultation with someone who really knows the stuff.
So keep the various expertises of your friends and family in the back of your mind. They save your life, so be sure to show your appreciation. So I would read a little bit on translation theory, and then spend a little time pondering what you think and what your philosophy of translation is. I suggested some books to start with on the Translation Resources page.
This may sound like a no-brainer. For example, a literary translator needs to have a strong literary background, with in-depth knowledge of major literary works and schools of literary thought. And an anime translator absolutely must have good knowledge of anime. Finally, the cultures and histories of the relevant countries are necessary fields of knowledge for ALL translators. Yes, that includes your own. So pretty much anything you learn about in any capacity will probably come in handy eventually.
Anything the world is preoccupied with works its way into everything. So keep your eyes open. Listen to the radio on your drive to work. I always end up failing to read the newspaper, so I read TIME magazine—cover-to-cover so I get the news and the random. The more you practice brainstorming new and different language-play ideas, the more creative you are in your translation work. What are the common problems for every translator?
You always have to look for new and more innovative ways to express your thoughts. You also need to learn from more experienced language professionals to maintain the quality of your translations. That is why working as a translator is a good way to learn more about your native language and take your writing skills to a whole new level. Thus, if you decide to work in this field, you will probably spend a good chunk of your time doing research.
On machinery. You name it. Unless you specialize in one particular field, you will need to tackle a large spectrum of different texts, which will require you to look for information quickly and efficiently. And while this may seem like a daunting task, it can in fact be quite rewarding. Every new text represents a challenge and demands a new approach.
And almost every time you finish a translation, you feel like you have gotten to know the world around you just a little bit better. Cultural sensitivity is of paramount importance if one wishes to evolve into a translator that the world will trust. Translation is the written act of conveying one text in another language, which allows some time for reflection. Interpretation , on the other hand, is an on-the-spot verbal exercise where foreign listeners require an immediate understanding of the speech being given.
That is why there exists a kind of dichotomy between translation and interpretation material. Of course, both can relate to any topic, but interpreters tend to translate more factual , practical information whilst translators have to deal with more abstract , subjective or poetic literature. Interpreters can only research the area beforehand and rely on their quick thinking in the heat of the moment. Translators can also stray from the written word and specialise in audiovisual translation where they may have to produce works such as subtitles for films or transcripts for podcasts.
Of course, this dichotomy is not rigidly enforced; there is certainly overlap between the two disciplines and the materials they deal with, so rest assured that after pursuing a career in translation services you will never see a dull day! There is a combination of skills and qualifications required for a career in translation, but there is no set career path.
That said, some positions have stricter requirements than others so you may need an official course recommended by the company. There are a multitude of reasons why being a translator is a good career path, so keep reading if you want to become convinced about pursuing a job in translation Unlike most jobs, translators are typically not paid a regular wage by the hours they work per day, but rather, per project.
Projects are often long and time-consuming, requiring the translator to first research the topic and familiarise themselves with the register, the vocabulary, and perhaps the style of the author in question, meaning that the prices can be set pretty high! You will probably set the price for projects requested by calculating the price per word or hours necessary to complete them.
Of course, the salary depends on your level of superiority, but translators outsourced for the communications materials of international brands can earn a very comfortable amount indeed.
Remember, the more in-demand the languages you offer are, the higher you can charge for your services. German and Spanish are currently the highest paid languages to translate and French and Spanish translators are most common and therefore have most competition. Do you speak any of these languages? Why not search for Spanish , German , or French -speaking jobs here.
Switzerland is a particulary good place to set up your career as a translator as this line of work earns a disproportionately high salary compared with the rest of Europe. Asian languages are also a solid bet as the demand for them will only increase along with the growing strength of their respective countries' economies. Each year, the world becomes evermore globalised and interconnected.
Businesses from the four corners of the world are doing deals with each other and need to communicate. So your native language that you might have written of as 'hardly useful' will undoubtedly be needed somewhere! You do not have to worry about careers in translation becoming redundnant: translation is a relevant, reliable, and rewarding sector to enter into and remain within throughout your professional journey.
Don't like literature? That's okay - a career as a translator could still be for you! It is important not to write off translation as a tedious career where you slog away over uninteresting texts. On the contrary, pick your specialisation and you can pursue your passions , whether they be within the medical, legal, literary, scientific or any other sector!
Read the top 5 specialisations for translators here. Translators are needed by companies everywhere these days. You can choose to work in an agency , receiving tasks from a variety of sources, or you could be an in-house translator where you get to know the inner workings of one specific brand and become a master of communicating its messages and personality.
Or another option would be establishing yourself as a freelance translator. You can get some tips on how to get your solo translation career off the ground here. Every translation task is a research project in itself. The author of the original text most likely has a different background, specialisation, and general interests to you. So, in order to communicate this information in your native language so that other can understand it, you must first get your head around it.
Words often have more than one meaning, so it is vital to research the context to understand if a common word is to be understood in an usual sense. Little by little, you will become an expert in hundreds of areas, making you a more interesting person and raising that IQ! Life as a translator is never boring. You will constantly be receiving different types of texts which will require you to adapt your tone and writing style.
You will have the opportunity to play around with your language and find the most suitable method of communicating the original style.
Even in your own native language, you will never reach a point where you know every word, every saying, etc. Languages are fluid , and undergo regular mutations , meaning that translators will constantly be exposed to new methods of expressing things, enriching their vocabulary each day and expanding the way they think.
Translators will be set a project which they can accept or decline and given a due date. As long as the work is ready before it is needed, translators are relatively free to work how and when they want. If the routine isn't for you, choose your own hours that suit your lifestyle or productive hours better. This reason why being a translator is a good career is fairly self-explanatory; you have the opportunity to move abroad to your dream country where your native language is highly valued in the business world.
You can find out where your specific languages are most needed here. As a translator, you will meet wonderful people who will bring you diverse experiences or perspectives that you must translate! You will forge strong relationships with clients as once an author, or the press relations agent, or marketing creatives the list goes on!
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