I have seventy or more RSS feeds in my Google Reader all on the topic of translation and publishing. Note, that doesn’t include any of my feeds on writing and freelancing… It’s no wonder I’m often I’m overwhelmed by the abundance of everything there is to read!

Still, I like to at least skim through the headlines to see what’s going on. I’ll also tweet certain links I think others would like. But not everyone is on Twitter, so today I thought I’d share a few of the items I found of particular interest over the past week.

Apply for Summer Translation Residency in Lagrasse, France  j.mp/JYVWXb (on Arabic Literature (in English))

PEN World Voices: Make it New, Make it International (Dammit)! j.mp/Knl39T (on Publishing Perspectives)

20th Century Fox Options Self-Published Novel j.mp/KgLk5T (on Galley Cat)

[sic] – A Journal of Literature, Culture and Literary Translation is Accepting Submissions j.mp/KWkAqJ

Writer ’s plea: Open our market… and our minds through literary translation j.mp/J387GQ

Opening Up the World: an Interview with Literary Translator Michael Henry Heim j.mp/IMO5j5

If you find these links at all interesting or useful, leave a comment to let me know and I’ll consider making this a regular feature!

I originally published this post on the Depression Cookies blog in July 2011. You can also read writer Tia Bach’s guest post on the same topic of voice, hosted here.

Finding My Voice — And Subverting It

Writing is all about voice. Blog posts, articles and books abound on this very subject: defining voice, finding it, understanding it, analyzing it, strengthening it! As a writer, it’s something I work hard at in the hopes of one day mastering my own individual writing style. As an undercover writer (aka literary translator), however, I have to work just as hard at subverting my voice to ensure the author’s shines through every word and phrase.

It can be a fine line to walk, and I must acknowledge that, no matter how hard I try, my voice will always peek through in some small measure.

You see, there is no such thing as a “neutral” or “perfect” or “definitive” translation. Translators are individuals with a particular background, education, life experience and, therefore, personal vocabulary and style. The choices we make when translating will invariably reflect this personality.

If the same text were translated by two different people, you would get two entirely different  renditions. One will not necessarily be better or worse than the other; they are just informed by different realities. Similarly, as a reader, whether you like one more than another is also a case of personal preference given your own background.

Regardless, my primary aim as a literary translator is to analyze and capture the author’s voice. So, how exactly do I do that? How do I ensure that I subvert my voice to the author’s, prevent too much of my own from shining through?

For me, it is about listening closely to the text. I must study it to see what the author has done and make decisions in the translation that reflect the author’s choices.

Whenever I begin a new book, I read it through in its entirety at least once. I then jot notes on a macro level: What did the text evoke? What did I see and feel as I was reading it? Then, when I get down to the actual task of translation, I analyze the text on a micro level, looking at sentence structure and vocabulary choice. Does the author prefer passive to active? Long sentences to short? Are the verbs punchy or understated? How are the metaphors structured? What vocabulary is specific to the time in which the story is set?

All of these aspects are carefully considered in order to make a myriad of style choices along the way. The result, I hope, is a faithful portrayal of the author’s voice. As a new creation, however, there is inevitably a hint of me, too.

Yesterday was a theme day as part of Blogathon 2012, when we were encouraged to exchange guest posts with other participants.

This year, fellow translator Lise Capitan was my guest. Lise shared her experience over the last three years, as she worked to establish herself as a literary translator. The story is both excellent and inspiring!

Lise likewise hosted me on her blog yesterday. If you would like to read my post on Life as a Literary Translator, please do check it out on her site. Oh, and be sure to have a read through Lise’s other posts! They are not to be missed, particularly if you’re a French translator.

Image by Mam'zelle Kaelle

My first steps as a literary translator
A guest post by Lise Capitan

The bad beginning

As everyone who is new to something, I started by making mistakes. When I settled as a freelance translator, in 2009, I sent out some resumes & e-mails to the publishing houses I admired.

The thing is, I sent them the documents as if they were translation agencies. Very general letters, no published translated fiction on my resume… Unsurprisingly, I did not get a lot of feedback.

The chance

One day though, I was lucky enough to be in direct contact with the publishing house in charge of the French edition of Fantasy & Science Fiction Magazine (among other things), les Moutons électriques. They told me they were looking for translators to handle contemporary F & SF short stories.

I did not hesitate and accepted immediately. I began with a short story by the Australian author Terry Dowling. I translated a short story that was part of his Rynosseros universe, set in a poetic science-fiction context, quite similar to Cordwainer Smith’s.

I exchanged e-mails with the editor and he was satisfied with my work — well, enough to entrust me with other short stories. So I went on to discover the iconoclast writer of The Steampunk Trilogy, Paul di Filippo, the sensitive style of Alexandra Duncan, and most recently, I worked on Alex Irvine’s high fantasy short stories.

The great thing about translating short stories is that it’s usually around 10,000 words, so it was rather easy to squeeze in my schedule (sometimes very full of video games). And, it gave me the opportunity to discover several authors in a short time frame, which is a wonderful thing.

The hard work

In the meantime, a Twitter connection forwarded me a post by Irish author David Gaughran (Lisa commented on it too). So I contacted him to be on his list of adventurous translators.

Then in October, the French Kindle store opened. It was a perfect moment for David Gaughran to have his top-rated self-publishing guide translated into French. So I jumped in. The contract was rather different from what is done in trade publishing, but I was very excited and could afford to try this new thing.

There, I understood the real difference between a short story and a book-length translation. But, I also discovered the great satisfaction of having typed the very last of several thousands of words. The book is now being edited and will certainly be published quite soon (looking forward to it).

The future

So finally, in spite of a bad beginning, I have to say, the sky looks brighter right now, three years after I started.

What’s next, then? Well, Les moutons électriques offered me a full book to translate, a Victorian novel on which I’m starting just now.

And, now that I have finally built some experience, I will be able to create a nice portfolio to approach other great publishing houses, hopefully getting other contracts for the future.

I’m not there yet, but what I learnt in these three years is this: patience and hard work are your best weapons to try and succeed in this field. Also, if you see a project that looks really tempting to you and you have the financial ability to venture into new grounds, listen to your heart and just do it!

About the author

Lise Capitan translates from English and Spanish into French & writes in French. She mainly works on video games & speculative fiction.

After graduating in translation & writing in Paris, she started to work for the video game industry. Since 2009, she has been freelancing and decided to use the freedom of this status to try & direct her career towards literary translation.

Blog: http://www.lisecapitan.com/blog/ (Mostly in French, but with some English posts too)

Twitter: https://fr.twitter.com/#!/LiseCapitan

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002354110731

I recently asked a colleague, friend and co-mentor to provide feedback to the introduction I’m writing for my soon-to-be first ebook, a primer on literary translation. In it, I said I believe it is a laudable goal to want to be a literary translator, but didn’t go into any more detail. She suggested I explain why I think literary translation is so enormously important.

This comment actually took me aback. I didn’t have a ready-made answer, had to give it some serious thought. Indeed, what did lead me to choose this career? Why do I think it’s a worthy task? What makes me want to remain in this profession for as long as I can?

In essence:

* I have been a traveller, writer and reader all my life. Literary translation involves all of these and thus feels like a comfortable cocoon, a place that is truly me.

* Being a literary translator allows me to open the door at least a smidgen, allowing others to enter a different world.

* International literature can bring us closer as people. It provides an opportunity to see that, while there may be outside differences, the core of the human experience remains the same.

* Literary translation is a space that allows for great creativity within certain constraints. Quite honestly, the blank page can scare me when it comes to writing fiction. But in this profession, the story is written, the characters determined; I simply get to bring them to life in another language.

There is more, of course that makes me so passionate about the work that I do, but I don’t want to spoil the whole introduction to my ebook! More importantly, I now want to hear from you…

What made you choose the career you did?