Working as a full-time freelance translator since 2006, I have learned what matters in translation through trial and error, feedback from clients and colleagues, and my efforts to become a better translator. Good translations should make sense when they are presented to the target audience.

Source text

Most text for general public tends to be written with the eighth-grade level of readers in mind. Many people mistakenly think it’s easy to translate such text into any language. But translators should have a higher level of linguistic understanding than the source text seems to require to understand and translate it. And not every source text is created equal, especially when the source text itself has been translated from another language. To produce translations that make sense you need experience as well as commitment.

Target text

Translating is a creative process to a certain extent. And you need to be creative to produce translations that make sense. By "creative", I don’t mean creating one’s own target text different from the source text, but being creative in the way meanings of the source text is converted into the target language. I believe the only way to achieve creativity in translation is through experience and commitment. In a sense a translator is a craftsman striving to achieve perfection. Good translations can be made better by others, whereas poor translations cannot.

How I work

The quality of source text varies widely. Some are crisp and clear; others are common; still others are very poor. I try to convey what the source text means in the target text, asking questions when necessary and taking appropriate time.

What I do well and not very well

The areas in which I have worked and studied long enough are automotive, business, and website translation. I know the difference between engine torque and power; between revenues and profit; between buttons to click and instructions for readers. But over the years, I have translated almost everything except medicine, chemistry or biology for professional readers.