Εκδόσεις Περισκόπιο: Καταδύσεις και αναδύσεις σε θολά νερά

Ο ΣΜΕΔ καλεί όλους τους συναδέλφους στους οποίους οφείλονται χρήματα από τις εκδόσεις Περισκόπιο να έρθουν σε επαφή με τον Σύλλογο για να οργανώσουμε συλλογικά, και με κάθε νόμιμο μέσο, τη δράση μας και τις διεκδικήσεις μας.  Διαβάστε περισσότερα στον παρακάτω σύνδεσμο.

Εκδόσεις Περισκόπιο: Καταδύσεις και αναδύσεις σε θολά νερά.

Σύλλογος Μεταφραστών Επιμελητών Διορθωτών
ΜΑΥΡΙΚΙΟΥ 8 | Τ.Θ. 21028 ΑΘΗΝΑ 11410
http://www.smed.gr | syl.smed@gmail.com

 

Some thoughts on business cards

by Corinne McKay (Thoughts on Translation)

 

Despite the explosion in online and offline marketing techniques, the lowly business card remains one of the most cost-effective and widely used marketing materials in a freelance translator’s arsenal. Small, inexpensive, customizable, easy to distribute… business cards have a lot of advantages, so it’s worth looking at what makes a good (and bad) business card.

I currently have three sets of business cards: plain, fancy and bilingual:

I use each of these cards for different purposes. The plain cards (on top) are inexpensive (about $50 for 500) to produce and they have my specializations on them, so I put large stacks of them out when I attend a conference or give a presentation. The fancy cards (middle) have an image from the cover of my book; they’re more expensive to produce (about $60 for 250) because of the custom image and because I have them printed on heavy stock. I use these for direct clients and when I mail out official document translations. The bilingual cards (bottom; only the French side is shown) are the most expensive ($80 for 250) because they’re double-sided and I have them printed by a local company instead of ordering them online.

Business card designs are very personal; my tendency is to go for a look that might be termed either classic or boring, depending on your design tastes. I’ve seen a lot of cluttered, illegible business cards but I’ve also seen some non-traditional cards that really work: for example a conference interpreter whose card background is a photograph of him in the booth. Judy Jenner recently wrote a post on this card (a court interpreter’s card that doubles as a guide to the courthouse where he works) which I also thought was clever. If you like something a little on the cute side, I thought this was a neat idea; a literary translator who commissioned an illustration of herself for her business cards.

Most of all, your business cards need to convey the information that they’re meant to convey: make sure that your name and contact information are easy to find and read. Don’t load the card with extraneous information: after receiving exactly one fax last year, I dropped my fax number from my 2010 cards. Don’t make your cards too specific if the specifics might change; for example if you vary your specializations, don’t put them on your cards. And please, please don’t order the free cards that say “Order your free business cards at…” At least be willing to spend $25 on your cards so that they don’t have that imprint on them.

Διαβάστε επίσης και αυτό το ενδιαφέρον άρθρο, στο  Translation Directory.Com, σχετικά με τις επαγγελματικές κάρτες.

 

Top Ten Translators’ Blogs According To Kwintessential

Blogs have, to a certain extent, lost their potency of late. The hype surrounding the ability to pen your thoughts and share them with the world has passed. On top of this the quality of blogs being written has turned many people off as they usually come across postings of little practical use. However, there are still gems out there and Kwintessential decided to conduct some research into the translation blogosphere in order to find the top ten translators’ blogs.

Before the research commenced our team decided upon the criteria against which they would assess the blogs available. The following outline the essential factors taken into consideration when the team analysed blogs.

1. Look: the look of a blog incorporates the format of the blog, the aesthetics, the ease of navigation, length of posts, colours, use of logo, etc.
2. Content: we came across tens of blogs however when it came to content clear differences existed between them. The team were looking for content that was a) relevant, b) useful, c) varied and d) interesting
3. Frequency of posts: When the initial fact finding was carried out it was agreed that any blog that had not been updated with a post within the preceding two weeks was not going to be taken into consideration. The reasoning behind this was that if a blog was truly going to be among the top 10, it should at least be updated regularly.
4. Owner: only blogs written by translators are included. Any blog written by an agency or business was disqualified.
5. Language: only blogs in English were considered.
6. SEO: marks were also given for blogs that performed well in search engines and were easier to find.

Following a lengthy search of blogs, assessing content and comparing them against each other, the Kwintessential review panel agreed on the following blogs as the top ten for 2010. We decided not to vote for a number 1, i.e. the best, but to give acclaim to all shortlisted.

 

The Philologist

The blog is written by Werner Patels who specializes in translations from German, French and Spanish to English as well as from English, French and Spanish to German. Based in Canada, Werner keeps his blog well updated with a variety of posts ranging from feedback on the latest tools he has tried out, language issues, things happening in the news and issues facing fellow translators and interpreters.

 

Transblawg

Transblawg is updated by Margaret Marks who is a German-English legal translator. Margaret posts charming and personal posts to her blog which offer the reader a real insight into the life of a translator. A recent set of photos taken of marathon runners whilst she took fifteen minutes out of her schedule are a nice touch which offers a window into her life and surroundings. Her comments on news and events are all up-to-date and she offers simple yet important tips and slices of information that anyone interested in German – English translations would enjoy.

 

Thoughts on Translation

Corinne McKay is American Translators Association-certified French to English translator, specializing in legal, corporate communications and public health/international development translations. Her blog has already received attention by being voted the 79th most popular language blog as rated by the recent Lexiophiles contest. As a blog it is great reading for any freelance translator or even agency. Corinne offers great posts on practical and useful issues facing freelancers. From her tips on marketing to translation agencies to practicalities on juggling work and life, her blog is a must for anyone’s bookmarks.

 

Blogging with Swedish Translation Services

Tess Whitty is a freelance translator (English-Swedish), proofreader, editor, copy writer, localizer and entrepreneur. Tess’s posts are full of useful tips and advice for fellow freelancers. She clearly has a thorough understanding of business development and the need for freelancers to improve their abilities to develop and do better commercially. The blog is also a very useful read for any budding freelance translators wanting some insight into the nature of the work and how it links in with the sector as a whole.

 

Brave New Words

B.J. Epstein completed a Ph.D. in translation studies in June 2009 at Swansea University, with a dissertation on the translation of children’s literature. Now in Norwich, England she is a lecturer at the University of East Anglia in literature and translation also works as a translator, writer, and editor. One of the most impressive things about this blog is the sheer diversity of posts. Dr Epstein covers pretty much any topic worth covering in her 400+ posts and is a treasure of links, resources and tips.

 

Translation Tribulations

Cared for by Kevin Lossner, a German to English translator and technical consultant. Kevin’s blog is rather niche however we concluded this was its strength. Although the blog is meant to focus on translation technologies, marketing strategies, workflow optimization, resource reviews, controversies and other topics of interest to translators, it is in fact heavily biased towards looking at technology within translation. The conclusion was therefore that this blog is very valuable for others looking at using or currently working with certain tools or technologies.

 

Musings from an overworked translator

A title that most translators can relate to, the blog is kept by Jill Sommer a full-time freelance German to English translator. Blog posts aside Jill has a nice format to her site with tabs at the top pointing towards information about her; what she is currently reading, what she is currently working on and a list of useful abbreviations used in her posts. It was felt that these additions to the website were a bit different and innovative and allowed people an insight into what Jill is up to. Post-wise the frequent updates are all interesting, relevant and useful.

 

Translation Times

Owners Judy Jenner and Dagmar Jenner are a pair of identical translating and interpreting twins working in Spanish, German, English, and French (Dagmar only). The slick, modern and bright look of their blog immediately won fans within the review team. The format and navigation of the blog is also more in line with a website, offering readers the ability to reach categories through links at the top of the page. The posts are peppered with lots of insight into the industry as well as specific posts on humour, professional development, marketing and even fraud.

 

Blogging Translator

Philippa Hammond works from French, Spanish and Portuguese into English, specialising in law, EU matters and marketing and communication. The posts since 2007 offer a nice look at the development of a freelance translator in terms of the experience, issues, challenges, etc they have faced. The personal tone of the blog makes one feel like Philippa is communicating directly to the reader.

 

There’s something about Translation

Sarah Dillon is a full-time professional translator working from French, Spanish and German into first-language English. The blog offers readers useful tips and detailed guides on the things they don’t teach you in translator school. Posts include interviews with other translators, reports on events and conferences as well as hot topics in the world of translation. A clean, smart look which integrates well with web2.0 functionality makes this a blog worth watching.

 

Copyright Kwintessential Ltd

 

Toxic Translation: A Twelve-Step Program for Self-Injuring Translators

The Twelve Steps

by Wendell Ricketts

1. Admit that you are powerless over translation agencies.

2. Make a searching and fearless inventory of the times you have found yourself saying “I might as well take this job for $0.0000000006 per word; if I don’t, someone else will!” or “A client who pays regularly at 8,275 days is still better than one who doesn’t pay at all!” or “Agencies are a business like any other; it’s only natural that they try to make as much money as possible.” Acknowledge that the justification of unjustifiable behavior is an addiction and that your life as a translator has become unmanageable.

3. Prepare to receive a truth of the universe in nine words: Translation rates are dropping because translators accept low rates. If you want rates to stop descending, you must take your finger off the elevator button. Immediately. There is no methadone for people who are willing to translate for half what the average busboy makes, so the only way to combat this addiction is cold-turkey. Make amends by explaining clearly, each time you respond to an insulting offer, refuse a low-wage job, or decline an invitation to lower your rates why you are doing so. I know Miss Manners says we’re not supposed to tell crass, rude people that they’re crass and rude, but she’d make an exception if she were a translator: Low-payers are the abyssopelagic feeders of the sea of translation. Do not hesitate to send them back to filter the ooze whence they came.

4. If you are truly living on Kibbles ‘n Bits, cannot pay the rent, or are slipping your child thinly diluted Elmer’s glue because it’s cheaper than milk, you have an excellent excuse to accept offensive working conditions and insulting wages. Temporarily. While you look for a job that pays you a living wage and doesn’t screw your colleagues who depend on translation for their livelihood. Otherwise, you don’t have an excuse. Not everything in life is black and white, but this is. Meanwhile, if you are not truly in need, stop using that pretext to justify your participation in the destruction of the profession. It might happen to any of us to find the wolf at the door, but he isn’t at everyone’s door all the time. Don’t use the real misery of others to disguise the fact that you couldn’t locate your self-respect with a Sherpa guide and GPS.

5. Conversely, if your parents are still paying your rent and buying your groceries, your husband is the CEO of Halliburton or the President of Mediaset, or you’re a trust-fund baby who just “loves languages,” do some good for the profession and your immortal soul and start translating for free. There are dozens, if not hundreds, of worthy non-profit organizations who could use your help. In the meantime, some of us are trying to earn a living here. Your “pin-money” rates are killing translators who depend on translation as their sole source of income.

6. Accept the fact that your degree from Acme School of Language Mediation or The Flinghurst Academy of Translationology is substantially worthless. Translation is learned in the field, not in the classroom. If you are nonetheless a recent graduate of such a program, here is what to do until you’re truly prepared to command professional rates: apprentice yourself to a translator you trust, donate translations to a worthy cause in order to build your curriculum (see No. 5, above), spend your free time doing practice translations for your personal training, improve your ability to write in your native language, read—a lot—in both your languages. DO NOT : offer cut-rate translations or beg clients to let you work “for practically nothing” because you “love translating.” Why not? For the same reason that there’s a sign at the zoo that says “Don’t Feed The Monkeys.” Because, if you do, they get fat and lazy and never learn that professional, well qualified bananas are not handed around for free.

7.  Stop allowing clients to dictate your fees and working conditions. Do you really need me to trot the analogy out for you one more time? Do you? Really? Fine. Here it is: You sit down to eat in a restaurant. After consulting the menu, you call the owner over to your table. “This steak is overpriced,” you say. “I’ll pay half, and I want you to throw in a bottle of wine with that. If you don’t get everything on my table within ten minutes, though, the deal’s off.” What happens in a restaurant is that they toss you out on your stern. What happens in translation is that you say, “Oh, yes, Mr. Client, thank you, Mr. Client, may I please have another, Mr. Client.” Three words: Knock. It. Off.

8. Stop using the internet until you learn how. The “freedictionary” is not a professional resource and Wordreference.com and Yahoo! Answers are not forums where you can consult with reliable and knowledgeable colleagues. About half the answers on ProZ.com’s KudoZ boards are wrong. Wiki is often worth the paper it’s printed on. Google is not your friend. Go search for the phrase “their is” or “its a question” and see how many hits you get (2,160,000 and 50,500,000, respectively). Then we can talk about how internet searches can be so helpful in confirming correct usage. (Gosh! Translation turns out to be tougher than you thought, huh?)

9. If a client doesn’t pay you on time (or doesn’t pay you at all), stop working for that client. Agencies, publishers, and clients who fail to pay as promised are like men who hit their wives. They will do it again. The only question is: Are you going to be standing there when the blow comes? (Quiz: “They didn’t mean to do it”; “They’re just going through a difficult period”; and “If I leave, who knows if I’ll ever find another one” are phrases commonly used by [a] abused wives; [b] self-injuring translators; [c] both.)

10. Translation is not the ‘Ndrangheta. No one will send you to sleep with the fishes if you fail to maintain a lifelong pledge of omertà. Tell your colleagues when clients don’t pay, when they make unreasonable demands, when they revise without telling you, when they insist that you lower your rates, when they forget to put your name on the translation, when they change the agreed-upon conditions after you’ve already started, when they refuse to pay for urgent or after-hours work, when they demand unwarranted discounts. Accepting these conditions silently doesn’t make you a Wise Guy; it makes you an accomplice.

11. Stand up for your native language. Take pride in seeing it used eloquently, fluently, and well. Take offense when it is abused and disrespected. Don’t believe the hype about globalism, world languages, and all the rest. Stop caving in to the absurd and unverified claim that non-native translation is just as valid as native translation or that the people who read translations in their second language “don’t care” if they’re well written or not. Your ability to deploy your native language with sophistication, flexibility, and skill is your most important selling point. You may never succeed in convincing everyone of the importance of this issue, but consider this: many people also find it acceptable to drink wine that comes in boxes, watch Fox News, or buy Lady Gaga CDs. If you’re a language professional, you’re supposed to be above things like that.

12. If there’s anything worse than translators who complain all the time, it’s translators who complain about translators who complain all the time. Let’s suppose you make lots of money, your clients are respectful of your time and your expertise, and everyone pays you promptly. If so, let’s call that what it is: Enormous luck. What it is not is a license to lecture everyone on how they should just stop whinging and get back to work. The fact that translators complain is a good thing; it indicates self-esteem and an instinct for self-preservation, as distinct from your sense of superiority and every-man-for-himself smugness. If you have nothing to say that helps moves the profession forward (and not just your personal little slice of it), at least have the decency to get out of the way of people who are trying to make things better (including for you, buckaroo).

Πηγή: ProvenWrite