It seems that many scientific and technical
translators take a roundabout path in their careers. Is that true for you? Tell
us about how you became a translator with your specialization.
Being
a translator is my second career so taking a roundabout way is very true for
me. During my studies I was very interested in languages and cultures, but
becoming a translator was not on my radar then. I graduated with an M.Sc. in Economics and went on to study for an M.A. in
Business Communications in France and Belgium. After this I got a job as a
marketing assistant in Stockholm, Sweden and worked myself up the career ladder
to become a product marketing manager in IT-services for an international
telecommunications company. It wasn’t until I lived in the US with my American
husband and two small children that I started looking into an alternative
career where I could make use of my linguistic skills. I started researching
and learning about being a freelance translator and after my first translation
project I was hooked. My specialization in IT and marketing came naturally from
having worked with IT at a telecommunication company and from my educational
background in marketing. I had lived and breathed IT and marketing for nearly
ten years already.
Was it challenging for you to combine your technical
and linguistic interests? What advice would you give to translators or
interpreters just starting their careers?
I
think it would be hard to start out as a technical translator if you only have
linguistic experience, but not impossible. In order to become a good specialized
translator you need to have a thorough knowledge of what you translate and a
keen interest in it too. Since my previous career had focused on internet
services and the technology behind them, it was not hard to transfer this to
translating computer software and hardware. Both my husband and I are very
interested in IT and were early adopters of Internet, email and computers.
What is unique about your skill set? What
sets you apart?
I
specialize in only one language combination and focus all my training and
research on this language pair, which can give me an advantage in the amount of
knowledge and expertise I can obtain in these languages. After having lived
more than 20 years in a Swedish speaking country and more than 10 years in the
US, I am well versed in both cultures and languages and have extensive
knowledge and insight in both markets. I have worked with translation for over
10 years and during this time I have also studied both translation practice and
theory, though not formally, plus taken every opportunity to improve my Swedish
writing skills.
My
thorough experience in IT, software and hardware is also one of my strengths. I
have worked and translated IT for almost 20 years and feel comfortable
discussing software strings, help files, and router and computer hardware with
technicians, marketers and linguists.
What is your favorite type of text to
translate or interpreting assignment? What makes it fun for you?
Translating
user manuals of new software and hardware is fun, since I learn all about the
new technology. Translators are probably the ones who have read the user manual
the most thoroughly. I also enjoy creating appealing marketing texts for the
Swedish market, especially when I can work closely with the client and the
editor in order to create the best copy for the purpose.
Are there any resources you use when
translating that you’d like to share with readers?
Technicians
love using acronyms and Acronym Finder has been a great help for me, plus of course the Microsoft glossary database.
More specifically for Swedish, there is the Swedish National Term Bank and of course Svenska Datatermgruppen’s database.
How can readers learn more about you and connect with you?
My
website contains more in depth information about me and my translation services
both in English and Swedish: www.swedishtranslationservices.com
To connect
with me you can go to:
Twitter:
@Tesstranslates
Email:
tess@swedishtranslationservices.com
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