(1)
Yours is one of the most thankless professions in the world You are being paid –
if we can even use the word ‘paid’ for the disgusting pittance you are
undoubtedly getting – to help somebody else earn money and become famous.
Accept it! Publishers will always think of you, if they think of you at all, as
a sort of glorified typist. As for authors, take comfort in the words of an
Italian sinologist friend of mine who said: ‘The nice thing about translating
Ancient Chinese poetry is that the authors are already dead!’
(2)
Try to avoid translating authors who know more than five words of your own
native language. They will always think they have found mistakes in your
translation, and want you to change your text accordingly.
(3)
If you can’t see what the damned text MEANS, take a deep breath and just
translate what it SAYS. An obscure original has the right to an obscure
translation.
(4)
Don’t break your back trying to make the original sound better than it is. We
are not in business to teach people to write decently.
(5)
If you are an American, never expect that one single European, never one single
one of them in your lifetime or in all eternity, will ever think you know
anything at all about a language called ‘English.’
(6)
Don’t assume that just because a word is in the dictionary, it must be wrong.
Lloyd
Haft
January
2015
