Only Human Translators

Riding the changes

Riding the changes

I think most translators would agree that our world is changing faster than we’d like it to and not always in the ways we’d prefer. And a good idea of the effect this is having on the translation community could be gleaned from last week’s BP23...
Real reasons to be proud

Real reasons to be proud

It’s been sometime since I posted about Standing Up, the Facebook group for translators I have been involved in running since it started in 2016. Being an admin of a group like that (there are three of us in total – sincere thanks are due to my coadmins...
Mentoring at any price?

Mentoring at any price?

When I started out in translation, I didn’t have a mentor. There was no-one to tell me how to go about things, which clients to choose and which to avoid or how to market my services. No-one, apart from the occasional client, to give me feedback on my work. I...
Why new isn’t always best

Why new isn’t always best

Nearly three years ago now, I decided to make big changes in my accounting. Over the years, I’d developed an Excel system for invoicing that had served me reasonably well. But its limitations were becoming increasingly obvious. Put simply, I was making too many...
Keeping the balance

Keeping the balance

It’s commonly said that, for freelancers, the personal and the professional are closely linked, and rarely has this been truer for me than in the turbulent year that was 2022. So for my turn-of-the-year post, instead of the usual looking back at the old year and...
The content conundrum

The content conundrum

Rarely has a conference been more eagerly anticipated than last month’s METM22. After all, it had taken two years to get to San Sebastián after successive COVID cancellations. It was certainly great to see so many old friends. And standing on the terrace of the...
Pairing up for pomodoros

Pairing up for pomodoros

Focusing on work isn’t always easy. With some of the things that have happened to me this year, I have certainly had difficulty in concentrating at various times. After the BP conference in Lisbon, I was talking about this with the Brazilian translator and...
New life in Lisbon

New life in Lisbon

It was just what the translation world needed; it was just what I needed. For most people, the BP event in Lisbon was a very welcome return to in-person conferences after two years of online-only events due to COVID. It’s a conference that has a reputation of...
The languages of love

The languages of love

Everyone has someone who makes a difference to their life – someone who gives them a vital piece of help or advice, maybe, or some welcome and unexpected finance. But I don’t think many people have had their life quite so radically changed as mine was by...
Connecting people

Connecting people

It’s always a great feeling introducing your friends to one another – people from different parts of your life who don’t know each other but who you are certain will hit it off. Nowadays, of course, it’s easier than it’s ever been. Social...