GOOD WRITING



Ellen Sowchek, Editor



Greetings and Bienvenue from your new editor!


First impressions are very important, so I have been trying to find just the right topic with which to begin my inaugural blog posting as editor.

While reviewing the many possibilities, I read Grant Hamilton's posting on the FLD list giving some preliminary information for On traduit dans l'Estrie/Translate in the Townships, to be held August 19-23, 2012 in Orford, Quebec. This event, a continuation of Translate in the Catskills, organized by Chris Durban in 2009 and 2011, is a "must attend" for me and as a Catskills double-alumna I am greatly looking forward to it. Although there are many excellent continuing education opportunities for translators, this event is special: great presenters in a collegial environment together with wonderful colleagues, all of whom understand that good writing is a crucial aspect of good translation and a professional skill that merits, and even requires on-going development.

Good writing – the perfect topic for a blog!

I would like to begin with a full disclosure: I do not consider myself a "natural" writer. I do not have my own blog, I have never kept a diary, I do not write in a journal, and I have no plans to ever write my memoirs. I am not someone who lives to write (or who must write to live) and I am impressed and even somewhat awed by those who do. That is not me. Writing is hard work and I work very hard to make mine seem "natural" - to give it flow - for this is a quality I feel is essential for any writing to be considered good.

What do I do? One method that has worked for me is to force myself to write – not in my native language, which is American English, but in French, my working language. This may seem counterintuitive, but here is my rationale: as a translator working from French into English, my French comprehension skills are constantly improving, but my French writing skills risk becoming dormant. If I write more – and better – in French, I believe it ultimately improves the quality of my English translations. How do I do this? For the last fifteen years I have participated in an atelier d'écriture – a creative writing workshop in French, conducted by a teacher who is a native French-speaker and a pioneer in using creative writing as a pedagogical tool for language-learning. Our writing is guided: we are asked to write on a given topic, or in a specific genre, or in a particular author's style. Our work is shared, corrected, critiqued and developed. For me, it has been invaluable because it has taught me how to read (and write) a text from the inside out. By creating a text that flows in French, I also improve the quality of my writing in English. Although it takes time, I consider it a well-spent investment in my continuing professional development.

As translators, we follow the cardinal rule of working only into our own native language. Perhaps that is why I am fascinated by the idea of  creative writing in a language that is not one's own and particularly by the number of writers who have chosen to do so in French. The first to come to mind is Samuel Beckett, who wrote plays in both English and French. There is Milan Kundera, who wrote his later works in French and then returned to his earlier works and translated them from Czech into French. In recent years, the Prix Goncourt, France's most important literary prize, has been awarded to several non-native speakers writing in French, among them Amin Maalouf (1993 for Le Rocher de Tanios, native language: Arabic), Andreï Makine (1995 for Le Testament français, native language: Russian), Jonathan Littell (2006 for Les Bienveillantes, native language: American English) and Atiq Rahimi (2008 for Syngué sabour: La Pierre de patience, native language: Persian).

Writing in French to improve one's writing in English – this is one approach I have tried. I am sure there are many others worth exploring. Do you have a specific method for improving writing skills that you would like to share? Examples of what is (and is not!) good writing in a translation? Please let me know. I would like this blog to serve as interactive meeting place for FLD members – it is your blog and I hope you will participate in providing its content. Consider it an opportunity to practice your writing skills!

A très bientôt!

Ellen Sowchek



How Paris Created America

Illustration: Misprinted Type; photos: Getty Images

Read Stacy Schiff's New York Times review of David McCullough's new book The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris (Simon & Schuster), which explores the intellectual legacy that France settled on its 19th-century visitors.

ATA plans its 52nd annual conference

The American Translators Association (ATA) will host its 52nd Annual Conference in Boston, Massachusetts (October 26-29). This conference showcases diverse panel discussions, expert presentations, training workshops, and scholarly papers. Both general and language-specific sessions will be offered. The conference also offers language professionals one of the best opportunities to network with colleagues. Additional conference activities include a Job Marketplace, a vendor exhibit hall, and ATA certification testing. For conference information see http://www.atanet.org/conf/2011/

For questions, contact Maggie Rowe, Membership Services Manager.
Phone: +1-703- 683-6100, extension 3001
Email: Maggie@atanet.org

Imagine you are a translation graduate

“You are about to enter a giant, complex and dynamic organism – the translation industry. But how much do you really know about its internal structure, its individual parts and the way they interact? How much do you really know about its evolution and current trends? How much do you know about translation as a business process?” Read Joanna Gough’s insightful article (originally published by TAUS on January 21, 2011) for an interesting perspective on whether translation courses are preparing students for the business of translation.

Web becomes dictionary with Linguee

As professional translators, we know how essential it is to consider context when choosing the right translation for a given word or phrase. This is now easier thanks to Linguee, a free search service that retrieves sentence pairs from webpages that are available in multiple language versions.

First launched in 2008 in German and English by co-founders Gereon Frahling and Leo Fink, in September 2010 Linguee added Spanish, French and Portuguese comparisons with English. Frahling and Fink plan to add Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, Russian and Italian later this year.

Co-founders Frahling and Fink manage Linguee at its head office in Cologne

Users report that Linguee's appeal lies in the context it provides. Search results are not limited to translations of single words or short phrases, as is usually the case with online dictionaries, glossaries and databases; instead, the service provides the entire sentence in which the item appears, as well as a link to the webpage on which it was found.

Not every result is reliable, but this is another way in which the context becomes useful: the sentences of dubious quality are easy to spot. Users have the option of voting a translation up or down, and can even edit an erroneous translation or suggest one of their own. Each change is verified by Linguee's editorial board and the community before being accepted.

Linguee is a free service supported by advertising. Users who create an account (free of charge) get their first 100 search queries free of advertising. And for each translation suggestion or change request they make, they  are rewarded with an additional 40 ad-free queries. Registered users can also join in discussions about the translations.

Free search plugins (for Firefox, Internet Explorer and Mac OS X) and a Mac dashboard widget are also available.

A Propos thanks Sheryl for sharing this on the list, and other list members for their feedback.

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Brassens in English

Georges Brassens (image: G. Bochenek)

"Translating his works into English is demanding — and it's discouraged quite a few singers. But now French-American composer Pierre de Gaillande has produced an album of Brassens' songs, titled Bad Reputation." Listen to Scott Simon's  National Public Radio music interview of December 18, 2010 to hear the results. A Propos thanks Joan for sharing this link!

Translation as Literary Ambassador

Photo: William P. O'Donnell
for The New York Times

"Hoping to increase their tiny share of the American book market, foreign governments and foundations are plunging into the publishing fray in the United States." Read Larry Rohter's full article (originally published in the New York Times on December 7, 2010) to learn more.