| Pages in topic: < [1 2 3 4] | What is the most profitable language to pair with English? Thread poster: tjnisonger (X)
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| The two ideas can be reconciled by charging through the nose | Jul 26, 2013 |
LilianBNekipelo wrote:
in the opposite direction -- have another business that would bring them enough money so they can translate whatever they want.
Just charge through the nose, while being a good translator. You'll only have clients that appreciate quality and jobs where it matters. You'll have plenty of free time to do things you want – or even to have that other business of yours. You'll also be able to accept literary translations at the lower rates that are usually paid for them relative to business translations.
Charging through the nose doesn't make you earn more; in fact, it can actually make you earn slightly less in abstract numbers. But you'll have a good ROI on your time invested, and plenty of time left. With that luxury, you'll also be motivated and fresh enough to offer some good quality translations effortlessly, unlike when you're tired and feeling exploited.
Edit: Also important to note is, though, that having a separate business on the side gives you a fall-back source of income for the times when your charging through the nose results in a temporary lack of work and thus income. That allows you to avoid lowering your translation rates to facilitate survival.
[Edited at 2013-07-26 15:10 GMT]
| | | | | I usually charge regular rates | Jul 26, 2013 |
but if you charged what translation is really worth, more like $0.20/word, you would most likely be left with a few old, loyal clients.
| | | | Charlotte Farrell 
United Kingdom
Local time: 03:56
Member (2013)
German to English
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| My own experience | Jul 26, 2013 |
I've been following the discussion in this thread but have decided just to answer the initial question briefly based on my own experience!
Background: I studied Spanish and German at university after doing both for A level at school. I then worked for a German translation company for several months after graduation and have been freelancing for close to four months now. I added French, which I studied at school/university as well as in my own time, as an additional source language w... See more I've been following the discussion in this thread but have decided just to answer the initial question briefly based on my own experience!
Background: I studied Spanish and German at university after doing both for A level at school. I then worked for a German translation company for several months after graduation and have been freelancing for close to four months now. I added French, which I studied at school/university as well as in my own time, as an additional source language while working in-house.
Now, I have to say that German>English is most definitely my most profitable combination and one that I would say you have a good chance of getting well paid work and reasonable volume. This is followed by French>English, which has made up between 25% and 50% of my work each month as a freelancer. Then there's Spanish>English which, while Spanish was the language that encouraged me to be a linguist and a translator in the first place and which I have until recently always spoken much better than German, isn't a combination in which I have found much work.
I know that the only part of my personal experience that will really help you is German, so let me emphasise that it's a great source language to have as an English native translator. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Ty Kendall
United Kingdom
Local time: 03:56
Hebrew to English
Charlotte Farrell wrote:
I know that the only part of my personal experience that will really help you is German, so let me emphasise that it's a great source language to have as an English native translator.
I don't have many regrets but not keeping my German up after studying it for the best part of a decade is definitely one of them.
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Woodstock (X)
Germany
Local time: 04:56
German to English
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| Peculiar reaction by OP | Jul 28, 2013 |
How strange. The person with the original question disappeared, i.e. is no longer registered, and without so much as a thank you for all the helpful advice. Maybe s/he got scared off by the animated discussion? Very odd...
| | | | Ty Kendall
United Kingdom
Local time: 03:56
Hebrew to English
| Slightly annoying | Jul 28, 2013 |
Woodstock wrote:
How strange. The person with the original question disappeared, i.e. is no longer registered, and without so much as a thank you for all the helpful advice. Maybe s/he got scared off by the animated discussion? Very odd...
But maybe they've gone off to work on whatever language he/she decided on
Maybe we'll see him/her again in about a decade
| | | | Kay Denney
France
Local time: 04:56
French to English
Ty Kendall wrote: Woodstock wrote:
How strange. The person with the original question disappeared, i.e. is no longer registered, and without so much as a thank you for all the helpful advice. Maybe s/he got scared off by the animated discussion? Very odd... But maybe they've gone off to work on whatever language he/she decided on Maybe we'll see him/her again in about a decade
I think it's more likely we frightened them off with all our flights of cultural fancy when they were just looking to make a fast buck.
| | | | Woodstock (X)
Germany
Local time: 04:56
German to English
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| What an ingrate! ;-) | Jul 28, 2013 |
Ty Kendall wrote: But maybe they've gone off to work on whatever language he/she decided on Maybe we'll see him/her again in about a decade
Hmmm, possibly. I suspect the person had no idea what s/he was about to unleash with a seemingly innocuous question. I suppose "passion" is not something you would usually associate with languages, lol!
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| Spanish & English: which way round...? | Aug 22, 2013 |
I was just wondering out of interest. For a translator working in both the UK and Spain, in general, is ES>EN more profitable than EN>ES...? does anyone have any thoughts on this..?
I mention this because, for family/personal reasons (British mother, Spanish father, lived in both countries, etc...) I am basically a native speaker of both languages. I am trying to get established as ES>EN but I am also able to translate the other way around, EN>ES, as long as it is European Spanish.... See more I was just wondering out of interest. For a translator working in both the UK and Spain, in general, is ES>EN more profitable than EN>ES...? does anyone have any thoughts on this..?
I mention this because, for family/personal reasons (British mother, Spanish father, lived in both countries, etc...) I am basically a native speaker of both languages. I am trying to get established as ES>EN but I am also able to translate the other way around, EN>ES, as long as it is European Spanish. I realise this is a bit tricky because the industry tends to view translating both ways as unprofessional but I was just wondering...? ▲ Collapse
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LilianBNekipelo wrote:
but if you charged what translation is really worth, more like $0.20/word, you would most likely be left with a few old, loyal clients.
Yes, and you'd have time reserves to react to emergency translation requests, some of which come with a rush fee.
| | | | Lincoln Hui
Hong Kong
Local time: 10:56
Member
Chinese to English
+ ...
| Answer to yourself | Aug 22, 2013 |
Daniel Alvarez wrote:
I was just wondering out of interest. For a translator working in both the UK and Spain, in general, is ES>EN more profitable than EN>ES...? does anyone have any thoughts on this..?
I mention this because, for family/personal reasons (British mother, Spanish father, lived in both countries, etc...) I am basically a native speaker of both languages. I am trying to get established as ES>EN but I am also able to translate the other way around, EN>ES, as long as it is European Spanish. I realise this is a bit tricky because the industry tends to view translating both ways as unprofessional but I was just wondering...?
Just answer to your own conscience and ignore the morons.
| | | | Ty Kendall
United Kingdom
Local time: 03:56
Hebrew to English
Daniel Alvarez wrote:
I was just wondering out of interest. For a translator working in both the UK and Spain, in general, is ES>EN more profitable than EN>ES...? does anyone have any thoughts on this..?
I mention this because, for family/personal reasons (British mother, Spanish father, lived in both countries, etc...) I am basically a native speaker of both languages. I am trying to get established as ES>EN but I am also able to translate the other way around, EN>ES, as long as it is European Spanish. I realise this is a bit tricky because the industry tends to view translating both ways as unprofessional but I was just wondering...?
Hi Daniel! Moron here...I think that's a slight misconception. There are plenty of professional translators translating in both directions of their language pair, many, if not most of them being true bilinguals such as yourself.
The industry (and by that I mean a significant portion of the practitioners and the most prestigious professional bodies) look dimly on it when there's misrepresentation involved (false claims of being a native speaker of x) or when claimed competence is lacking.
Nobody questions the professionalism of honest translators producing high quality translations.
In short: it's not a black and white issue.
As to your main question, you might be better off starting a new thread specifically asking people working in that language pair. Rates are always a bit hush-hush though, so I wouldn't ask people directly what they earn, I'd phrase it like you have here.
Spanish is a pretty saturated language pair though (from what I've heard) - in both directions ...so I'd guess that one direction isn't vastly more profitable than the other - but I could be wrong.
It might boil down to whichever direction you are more productive in (presuming you are more productive in one, a lot of people are). Even if ES-EN pays more per word than EN-ES, if you can translate 1000 / 2000 more words per day in EN-ES than you can in ES-EN, then that per word price difference would be offset by the increased word count you can achieve in the other direction. (Of course, the converse also applies - a lucrative direction might not be so lucrative if you are unproductive in it).
Something to consider.
[Edited at 2013-08-24 07:50 GMT]
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Ty Kendall wrote: I don't have many regrets but not keeping my German up after studying it for the best part of a decade is definitely one of them.
Ditto!! *sigh* I took the Amalfi Coast instead. Actually I think it was the Via Emilia...
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Daniel Alvarez wrote:
I was just wondering out of interest. For a translator working in both the UK and Spain, in general, is ES>EN more profitable than EN>ES...? does anyone have any thoughts on this..?
I mention this because, for family/personal reasons (British mother, Spanish father, lived in both countries, etc...) I am basically a native speaker of both languages. I am trying to get established as ES>EN but I am also able to translate the other way around, EN>ES, as long as it is European Spanish. I realise this is a bit tricky because the industry tends to view translating both ways as unprofessional but I was just wondering...?
My wife and I translate both ways, I've noticed a slightly higher rate in EN>ES lately, but much more work in ES>EN. There are a lot of ES-EN translators, but there's a lot of work out there.
| | | | | I couldn't resist... | Aug 23, 2013 |
Technically English is my second language. I was born in the US but my dad was transferred to Germany before I was a year old and we went with him. Though my parents spoke to me in English, German was my main language. I have forgotten almost everything, which is one of my great regrets.
I learned Spanish at 19 in Argentina. I moved there as a missionary and didn't speak a word of English for two years. They told me that I had a German accent when I first arrived, but now I'm consta... See more Technically English is my second language. I was born in the US but my dad was transferred to Germany before I was a year old and we went with him. Though my parents spoke to me in English, German was my main language. I have forgotten almost everything, which is one of my great regrets.
I learned Spanish at 19 in Argentina. I moved there as a missionary and didn't speak a word of English for two years. They told me that I had a German accent when I first arrived, but now I'm constantly mistaken for an Argentine, even by other Argentines.
Because of all of this, plus my previous in-house jobs and wife, Spanish has been primary language for the past seven years. I studied it here in the university (well... the professor made me test out when she found out that I'm a translator, I did receive a perfect grade on the test though), and have continued studying the language intensively throughout this entire period. I am able to translate into Spanish without any trouble, but am faster working into English.
I still have a German accent when I'm tired or really stressed out about something. I plan to take German classes now that I've been banned from Spanish. ▲ Collapse
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