Sarah's Archives

an archive of content from ≈ 2005 - 2015, relating to international business, translation, freelancing, and working online.

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CPD Matters: What is CPD?

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I refer frequently to professional development on this blog (in fact, I have an entire category dedicated to it), but life-long learning is not specific to translators or language professionals.

Doctors do it, engineers do it, and I have it on good authority that even educated fleas do it. So I’m running a mini-series on CPD over the next few weeks: what it is, how to do it and most importantly, where to get it, even if you’re not in a position to fly 10,000 miles for a one-day workshop. [Read more…]

5Qs with Andrew Bell, AAA Scandinavian Translations

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After working as a nurse in several countries, Andrew Bell set up AAA Scandinavian Translations in 2001 and now specialises in medical/pharmaceutical translation services. He also runs the popular translator-networking site Watercooler. Here Andrew tells us about how he became a translator, and offers a wealth of advice for new and experienced translators interested in moving into the highly specialised field of medical/ pharmaceutical translations.

Sarah Dillon: You have many years of experience in healthcare, and are in fact a Registered Nurse (RN). How difficult was it to make the conversion to being a medical translator? What preparation did you have to undertake to supplement your existing knowledge, and do you have any tips for aspiring medical translators who might not have this background? [Sorry, I know that’s really 3 questions but I couldn’t resist!] [Read more…]

Hello to ITI Bulletin readers

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ITI Bulletin cover, July - August 2009

ITI Bulletin cover, July - August 2009

A big hello to readers who have found their way here from my recent article in the ITI Bulletin. You might find these posts of particular interest:

  1. Twitter: this director’s cut – screencasts of Twitter in action, including examples of professionals who are doing it right and a live demo of another kind of Twitter tool called TwitKit.
  2. ITI Conference round-up: a social media perspective – a full write-up of a side to the conference you may not even know existed (the Bulletin article was an extract of this).
  3. The royal we: why small is the new big – a perspective on why setting our sights low as freelancers can reap rewards.
  4. The value of professional organisations: another view – ideas on the value of professional organisations to newly-established translators.
  5. If you’ve had enough of hearing how essential social media is, try these posts for a slightly different perspective: A healthy dose of scepticism and 7 ways NOT to use Twitter for business purposes.
  6. Finally, see what you think of my series of short interviews with professionals in the translation world: 5 Qs.

Enjoy!

ITI Conference round-up: a social media perspective

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This is a round-up of my experiences of the ITI International Conference in London this year.

Presenting

Some background

This year was only the second since 2003 that I did not attend the conference in person. I did seriously consider arranging a trip back to Europe based around the conference, but last year decided to focus my resources on events around the Asia-Pacific region instead. Then late last year, Philippa and I were invited by the organising committee to present a paper on social media, based on our own experiences of applying these tools to our everyday business activities. The idea was that we could also demonstrate some of the possibilities of web 2.0 by working together and ultimately, presenting, with me based in Brisbane and Philippa in London. It was an exciting idea and Philippa and I got to work. [Read more…]

Experts in the Industry: Silvia Ferrero, English to Spanish translator and interpreter

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Silvia Ferrero is an English to Spanish freelance translator and interpreter with a specialism in software and website localisation. Prior to going freelance, she gained valuable experience in the games localisation industry while working in-house for Sony Computer Entertainment Europe. She holds a degree in English Philology from the University of Zaragoza in Spain and an MA from the University of Salford. Silvia is also Chair of the ITI’s North-West Translators’ Network. On Saturday 16th May, Silvia will present a paper on the move towards sustainability in the games localisation industry.

Check out the rest of the ITI Conference programme here. [Read more…]

Experts in the industry: Philippa Hammond, French, Spanish, Portuguese to English translator

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Philippa Hammond is a French, Spanish and Portuguese to English freelance translator based in London. She has an MA in Translation and Linguistics from the University of Westminster and a BA(Hons) in French and Spanish from Cardiff University, and worked in-house for several years before going freelance. Philippa maintains a professional blog, is editor of the ITI French Network newsletter, and helps mentor newcomers to the industry as part of the ITI’s online training course, the PSG. On Sunday 17th May, Philippa will be speaking (with me!) on sustaining careers in T&I using social media.

Check out the rest of the ITI Conference programme here. [Read more…]

Experts in the Industry: Cat Akana, Managing Director of Blue Planet Multicultural

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Cat Akana is Managing Director of Blue Planet Multicultural and teaches at a university affiliated to the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Prior to founding Blue Planet Multicultural in 2005, Cat lived in Japan for seven years and also travelled widely, working in management, sales and marketing, logistics, publishing, education, teacher training and translation. She has a degree in modern languages from Salford University and is currently studying for a Masters in Education for Sustainability. On Saturday 16th May, Cat will be speaking about how major global challenges affect translators and interpreters.

Check out the rest of the ITI Conference programme here. [Read more…]

Experts in the Industry: Suki Chung, Chinese and English translator and interpreter

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Suki Chung is a Chinese and English translator and interpreter working mainly in the field of political and social development issues. Suki recently completed a Masters in translation at Aston University after more than five years of professional experience in Hong Kong, which included translating international news reports for publications such as the Oriental Daily. She will present a paper on the relationship between translation and ideology in British news reports on China at the session for recent graduates on 16th May.

Check out the rest of the ITI Conference programme here. [Read more…]

Experts in the Industry: Paul Appleyard, French to English translator

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Paul Appleyard is a French to English translator and Director of Manzana Business Solutions Limited, a translation company specialising in work between English and French. He has worked in a range of roles within the industry since finishing his studies in translation over 20 years ago, including Software Support Engineer, Computational Linguist, Terminologist, Translator, and Translation Manager. He is Coordinator of the ITI French Network and will be sharing his experience in a panel discussion called Where to draw the line? on Sunday 17th May.

Check out the rest of the ITI Conference programme here. [Read more…]

Experts in the Industry: Iwan Davies, French and German translator and localiser

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Iwan Davies is a French and German to English translator and localiser, and one half of the crack team at Translutions Limited. In addition to almost 15 years as a professional translator, Iwan has extensive experience in computer programming, including working with complex file formats and characters conversions. He is also webmaster of the ITI Scottish Network, and is working away behind the scenes as part of the Conference Committee. On Sunday 17th May, he will be part of a panel discussion called Where to draw the line?.

Check out the rest of the ITI Conference programme here. [Read more…]