After a couple of years building up experience translating for human rights organisations and charities, I decided to train and qualify as an official translator. Prior to returning to the UK, I spent a couple of years leading trekking expeditions in South America and Portuguese-speaking Africa. I also spent a lot of time working abroad both before my BA and during university holidays whilst studying for my Bachelors and Masters degrees. As a result, I built up a lot of experience in the travel and tourism industry, which has since become an area of specialism for me as a translator.
One of my major clients develops MP3 audio guides and iPhone apps for cities all around the world. I initially had to bid for my first project and I’m sure my experience within the travel sector was a major factor in influencing the company’s decision to hire me as their translator. Following the launch of guides for New York and London, I’m currently working on guides for Paris and Barcelona. I thoroughly enjoy this work as I find it creative and interesting to translate.
I cannot emphasise enough the additional benefits of travelling and working in countries where your languages are spoken. This has given me a valuable cultural insight. As I translate into English there is also a much bigger client base abroad than in the UK, as there is a higher demand for translating into, as opposed to out of, English.
As well as specialising in tourism, I’ve also built up a specialism in environmental issues and alternative energy. Again, these were areas which I worked in prior to starting out as a translator and are areas which interest me from a personal point of view. Having a natural interest in the areas you translate in is also valuable and can be equally as important as experience. Experience is something you can build up over time, whereas your general interests are more inherent. I’ve translated for green energy providers in Brazil and Portugal such as the Portuguese Solar Energy Society and Brazilian biodiesel companies, as well as for UK companies which are building up business in this area.
Working as a freelancer is very demanding and you have to factor in the time it takes to acquire contacts and extend your client base. Having previous work experience in particular sectors as well as having contacts in these areas who may be able to point you in the right direction makes a huge difference. I would advise those considering translation as a career to gain some in-house project management experience first to gain an insight into how the industry works and what clients want. I’ve worked in-house for a couple of translation companies and the experience I’ve gained has been invaluable; this has given me the opportunity to act as an intermediary between translators and clients so I have learnt to see things from both angles. I would also stress that it’s not an easy ride by any stretch of the imagination. Often when you tell people you work for yourself they are envious, but I work much longer hours than many of my friends who work for companies. Working evenings and weekends is standard when you first start out, and a lot of this time might be spent finding rather than doing work, which means it might take a few months until you start to see any kind of financial gain. Having said all that, it’s definitely been a very rewarding experience for me and I’m very happy I ditched my rucksack and decided to become a translator.
If you have any specific questions for Sarah, feel free to contact her via Twitter.
One of my major clients develops MP3 audio guides and iPhone apps for cities all around the world. I initially had to bid for my first project and I’m sure my experience within the travel sector was a major factor in influencing the company’s decision to hire me as their translator. Following the launch of guides for New York and London, I’m currently working on guides for Paris and Barcelona. I thoroughly enjoy this work as I find it creative and interesting to translate.
I cannot emphasise enough the additional benefits of travelling and working in countries where your languages are spoken. This has given me a valuable cultural insight. As I translate into English there is also a much bigger client base abroad than in the UK, as there is a higher demand for translating into, as opposed to out of, English.
As well as specialising in tourism, I’ve also built up a specialism in environmental issues and alternative energy. Again, these were areas which I worked in prior to starting out as a translator and are areas which interest me from a personal point of view. Having a natural interest in the areas you translate in is also valuable and can be equally as important as experience. Experience is something you can build up over time, whereas your general interests are more inherent. I’ve translated for green energy providers in Brazil and Portugal such as the Portuguese Solar Energy Society and Brazilian biodiesel companies, as well as for UK companies which are building up business in this area.
Working as a freelancer is very demanding and you have to factor in the time it takes to acquire contacts and extend your client base. Having previous work experience in particular sectors as well as having contacts in these areas who may be able to point you in the right direction makes a huge difference. I would advise those considering translation as a career to gain some in-house project management experience first to gain an insight into how the industry works and what clients want. I’ve worked in-house for a couple of translation companies and the experience I’ve gained has been invaluable; this has given me the opportunity to act as an intermediary between translators and clients so I have learnt to see things from both angles. I would also stress that it’s not an easy ride by any stretch of the imagination. Often when you tell people you work for yourself they are envious, but I work much longer hours than many of my friends who work for companies. Working evenings and weekends is standard when you first start out, and a lot of this time might be spent finding rather than doing work, which means it might take a few months until you start to see any kind of financial gain. Having said all that, it’s definitely been a very rewarding experience for me and I’m very happy I ditched my rucksack and decided to become a translator.
If you have any specific questions for Sarah, feel free to contact her via Twitter.