With this suggestive phrase, I hope it is understood that translations take a process and that they are not done in a moment. More than a fried egg, to make a translation in the culinary jargon so fashionable lately, would be more like cooking a good stew. Every stew is left to rest to get more flavor (at least, that’s what my grandmother taught me) and this is precisely what clients don’t know or don’t understand. or understand well.
Contrary to this premise, which can be linked to many proverbs such as: “haste is not a good advisor”, “cheap is expensive” , clients always ask us for translations, and I mean ALWAYS, the day before and as cheaply as possible. When I started translating, 18 years ago, the concept of URGENCY was very different from what it is now; new technologies have helped us to get to everything faster, but they have also made us live in a more hurried and disorderly way. These technologies have worsened the translator’s situation in the sense that non-certified translations are sent by e-mail and reach their addressee almost instantaneously. Twenty years ago they were sent by post or at most by modem first and later by fax. The bad thing is that the first faxes were thermal and in black and white; therefore, the ink on the paper disappeared over time, so they always had to be sent by post or even hand-carried to the addressee.
Many of my fellow translators will identify with me on the subject of rushing. There is no client who does not ask for something like this, and moreover, if possible, cheaply. Years ago we used to charge for urgency, nowadays, the opposite is true; the translator’s job in Spain, in addition to translating, is to educate his clients, to teach them how much can be translated in a day and that we are not machines, that the texts have to rest and take X amount of time to cook, depending on the type of text. Not all casseroles take the same amount of time; you can also cook in an espresso pot or Thermomix, but also in the traditional pot. The same thing happens in translation, that is why, as good translators, before starting to translate, we have to inform our client, not only about the price but also about how important is the quality of the job well done, and this takes time; no more and no less, its time.
It is my deepest wish that at least my clients understand this reflection very well and internalize it as much as possible. Thanks to this space, which allows me to let off some steam; now I must continue translating, as the minutes are flying by, with my neck aching from the accumulated tension, my fingers stiff from so many letters I type during the day and my tired eyes that are hardly able to open. I keep on translating at 12 o’clock at night for anyone who asks me to do so, because after all, translating is my passion, as well as my profession.
Good evening!
