Translation

If I were consistent enough to have a core business instead of dabbling in too many things, it would be translation – at least, it is my steadiest source of income. If you happen to be looking for a Spanish-English translator, I hope you don’t need a detailed CV as I haven’t updated it in a long while, but here is a kind of mini-profile:

Languages: Spanish to English. Accepted good practice is to translate only into your native tongue, so under normal circumstances, I only translate from Spanish to English. I occasionally translate into Spanish, but there needs to be a good reason. I have varying degrees of proficiency in other languages – French, Portuguese, even Latin – but don’t work with them.
Specialities: air traffic control; civil engineering tenders; radar systems; presence and access control, etc. The full list is very long, as I have been translating professionally since 1991, approximately. Inevitably, I have worked with most language areas, though the bulk of the work that comes my way is technical.
Availability/Output: I am usually available for translation work. I turn out around 3,500-4,500 words a day comfortably and can accept up to 2,000-2,500 words a day from a single client, more when a relationship of trust has been established.
Rates and Payment: normal Spanish rates, by which I mean rates in Spain, that being where I live and have to buy my groceries. I rarely haggle, but the better the rate you offer, the more likely I am to be available. Payment on delivery would be nice, but the truth is most people pay me at 45-60 days.
Contact: send queries to webmaster AT mediterraneanblue.com, please.

And now, for your edification and amusement (if you are interested in language at least), the following are feeds from some of the sites I browse regularly to keep up to date or put myself in a translation frame of mind (this page is about the translation business – you’ll find more general, usually lighter articles about linguistics and language on the Language Stuff page). If you know a site related with translation or the translation business that would be in good company on this page, do drop me an e-mail or, better still, a comment.

Musings from an overworked translator » Just because there’s a “free trial” doesn’t mean you should abuse it

Friday 2 July 18:20:24 CDT 2010

Translators are a notoriously cheap bunch. Our job affords us the luxury of having low overhead for our businesses. All we really need is a computer, an e-mail address and Internet access, and we are in business. We don’t need to buy lots of suits or pay for gas to drive to work. We don’t have to spend money on … [Link]

Musings from an overworked translator » TGIF: A small rewrite (Shakespeare sketch)

Friday 2 July 10:55:16 CDT 2010

Long-time readers know of my love for both Rowan Atkinson and Hugh Laurie. Here is a live Shakespeare sketch called ‘A Small Rewrite’ made for Comic Relief, with Hugh Laurie as Shakespeare and Rowan Atkinson as the editor. It’s a total scream. Enjoy! [Link]