I had an interesting conversation last night with a friend I hadn’t seen in a while. Phil asked what I was up to in terms of work, and I told him I have a deadline looming… A book translation I’ve been working on for about four months now is due toward the end of September, so crunch time is here. He asked whether I would make my deadline. What a question! Of course I’ll make my deadline! Even if I have to go to the doctor to ask for stronger anti-inflammatories to dull the pain of my RSI in order to work the long, long hours that haven’t been possible of late, I will make my deadline. I don’t think I’ve ever missed one. In fact, whenever possible, I much prefer to beat my deadline and deliver translations hours or even days earlier than they’re due. It’s something I pride myself on.
Phil then asked whether this was particular to me or to my profession, and I was unsure of the answer. It is definitely a personal trait, but what do other translators think about deadlines? The very few times I have subcontracted any work out (with the express permission of the client!), those translators took every last second of the time I gave them. There’s certainly nothing wrong with that, because they didn’t miss the deadline, but if it had been delivered earlier, thus giving me more time to revise and compile, I would have been much happier. It’s why I deliver as early as I possibly can, while never compromising on the quality of the work: it’s good customer service, and that’s the business we’re in.
Tell me about your thoughts on deadlines, your successes and horror stories. In the meantime, I’ll get back to work on the novel translation so as to deliver on time (or early!) and not make a liar out of myself.
