A blog about translation, writing and language in all its glorious aspects
Books are always a lovely Christmas present, all the more so if they’re carefully chosen and a wee bit out of the ordinary. Hersilia Press and Peirene Press both specialise in books in translation. Hersilia is “an independent publisher bringing you the best of Italian crime fiction” and Peirene “specializes in contemporary European literature in …
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I took part in a conversation on Twitter recently about converting files from PDF to Word without losing the formatting. In this case, it was for translation purposes but there are plenty of other circumstances where this would come in handy. Filling in forms sent as PDFs, for example (so without having to print them out …
Continue reading “Converting PDFs (for free) without losing the formatting — or your temper.”
I wrote a couple of posts, back in August, about the Oxford comma (Oxford commas (1), The Oxford Comma dilemma: a solution? and Oxford commas (2): Live dangerously – take our poll!). This post too is about “list” sentences containing commas. It’s also about a way of spotting when an Italian-to-English translator is working on …
One of my clients told me recently that their company is re-doing its website. They’re working with web-designers and -developers, copy-writers, graphic designers and search-engine optimisation (SEO) specialists based in Spain, the US and various Italian cities. The client, a company based in north-east Italy, already works with designers and suppliers based in Spain, Denmark, …
Continue reading “Planning a new website? Communicate! (with your translator too)”
A quick PS to yesterday’s post on the use of the Italian adeguamento (correction, adjustment) to signify aumento (increase). Italy’s Regulatory Authority for Electricity and Gas uses the term aggiornamento (literally “up-dating” ) when referring to its quarterly gas and electricity price adjustments. Energy tariffs are linked to oil and natural gas prices on the …
Blowing the nation’s trumpet is all very well, but sometimes the message sent out to foreign audiences is a bit too rosy. When the Labour Government came to power in 1997, I was working in the Social Affairs section of the British Embassy in Rome. One of our jobs was to send out press releases …
Continue reading “Blowing the nation’s trumpet: languages and diplomacy (2)”
I recently spent 2 days interpreting in Birmingham for an Italian delegation from Italia Lavoro and Regione Marche. They were here to find out more about the work being done by Sue Veszpremi’s Employer Engagement team at Jobcentre Plus to help the long-term unemployed back into employment. Wonderful work, in my opinion – Mr. Osborne, please don’t …
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At 5.45 yesterday evening I was at DHL sending a package to Italy containing my bid for a translation contract. The timing was tight and stress levels were sky-high. But according to the DHL tracking service the package arrived at its destination on time – phew! The whole bidding process was difficult and demanding, and …
A translation agency recently sent me a one-page (270 words) document, asking me to quote for “a re-write, not a straight translation”. I did my sums and sent off the quote, without thinking too much about it. The agency got back to me a couple of days later and gave me the go-ahead. Fine. But …
“Words to good effect” is one of the winning blogs in the Top 100 Language Blogs 2010 competition organised by LexioPhiles and Bab.La. We came 42nd overall, and 9th in the Top 10 Language Professionals category. We’re delighted! A big Thank You to everyone who voted for us! By Marian Dougan