3 things I learned at Warwick Translates Summer School

5 August, 20195 August, 2019 / Natalie Soper / 1 Comment

Source: Mike1024

Last month I attended the Warwick Translates Summer School at the University of Warwick, a series of literary translation workshops and talks led by leading professional translators and publishers. As I hadn’t been to a translation event in quite some time and this one was especially geared towards literary translation, I was quite excited. My enthusiasm clearly showed as I tried to cram in three modules over the 5 days: French translation, Spanish translation, and Theatre translation.

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What’s it like being a translator? Q and A with the professionals

9 March, 201810 July, 2018 / Natalie Soper / Leave a comment

Questions about becoming a freelance translator

On 7^th March, I was invited to a translation round table at the University of Exeter, where I, along with two other translation professionals, took questions from the final-year Modern Languages students, who are currently in the middle of a translation business project.

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My appearance on Translators on Air (and a press interview!)

28 October, 201624 July, 2017 / Natalie Soper / 1 Comment

As I mentioned in my previous blog post, I had some fun translation projects and events lined up for this month.

So Wednesday 26^th October was a very exciting day for me, as I had not one, but two media appearances!

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“La rentrée” – Checking up on my business goals…

26 September, 201612 October, 2016 / Natalie Soper / 2 Comments

hot-air-balloon-valley-sky-1578272_960_720

Going ‘back to school’ in September is a bigger deal in France than in the UK. They call it la rentrée, and not only does it mark a new year of school for children, but it is also a perfect opportunity for adults to start new projects, make plans, and basically treat it like a second ‘New Year.’

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On cabin fever and the joys of freelancer friends

21 August, 201612 October, 2016 / Natalie Soper / Leave a comment

Cafe - Sized

When I tell people that I work from home, the general reaction is “lucky you! I wish I could!” After all, what’s not to like? No horrible commute at the crack of dawn, no awkward water-cooler chat with acquaintances about how everyone’s weekend was, and you can make important business decisions without anyone but you knowing that you are, secretly, still in your pyjamas.

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My New Year’s Resolutions (after my first year of business)

14 March, 201612 October, 2016 / Natalie Soper / 1 Comment

Notebooks

Hooray, I’m still alive!

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How to network when you feel socially awkward

1 October, 201515 May, 2017 / Natalie Soper / 4 Comments

Still from Mean Girls, 2004 (Paramount)

I hope I’m not the only person who feels this way, but I find social interaction pretty exhausting.

Don’t get me wrong; I love my friends and family, and once I’ve hauled myself out of the house and into some kind of social event, I tend to have a great time. People wouldn’t guess from looking at me that inside my brain rages a storm of social awkwardness.

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My route to becoming a freelance translator

17 September, 201510 January, 2018 / Natalie Soper / 6 Comments

(What do you mean, you don’t remember asking for my life story?)

My name is Natalie, and I am a freelance translator.

It still feels weird to say to people “I’m a freelancer” “I work from home” or “I own my own business” – but I am slowly getting used to this relatively new path in my life. Maybe one day I’ll be able to swagger into a room and flick business cards at people, one-handed, like a magician, but I’m not quite there yet (and sadly, I haven’t found any marketing training that teaches business-card-tricks).

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