On February 1, 1996, the following question was posted to the Honyaku mailing list from a person in the United States:
        Dear Honyakkers,
        I am trying to get started as a part-time, freelance translator. I have never translated for money before but I feel confident in my abilities (at least for J>E). I have made several inquiries including letters to translation agencies in my town and trying to register with a couple of companies I've found on the World Wide Web. So far no reply. I even spoke to the owner of a translation agency here. When I told him that I had two years of college Japanese and lived in Japan for a year, he essentially told me "good luck" and hung up. It's beginning to look like one of those "need a job to get experience, but can't get a job without experience" Catch-22's that everyone hates....
        In any case, I do have a couple of specific questions. First, do you recommend sending samples of my Japanese writings with my resume? Second, should I go ahead and buy translation tools such as technical dictionaries and name dictionaries before I find work? And third, does anyone know of any translation agency that will give a newcomer a chance to do freelance work?
        ________________________________________
 
        The following are excerpts from some of the replies.
        ________________________________________
        I realize that you would prefer to work freelance at home. But from my own experience, I recommend that you go to work in somebody's office somewhere as an in-house translator, preferably where there are more experienced translators who can help you along. Then, after a couple of years you can strike out on your own.
        David Farnsworth
        ________________________________________
        I recommend that you go to work in-house for a company as a translator. It doesn't necessarily need to be in the translation business. I started out working for a Japanese automaker, and cut my teeth by interpreting in 8-hour business meetings in (literally) smoke-filled rooms and other abominable working conditions. The main reason for my recommendation, however, is the financial security it affords. Have you considered that [in the United States] you will be paying an extra 8% in social security taxes if you go freelance? I've been freelancing for many years and maintain pretty good efficiency and productivity. Still, with taxes and business expenses (mostly books and computer-related items) I estimate I actually get to keep about 50 cents of every dollar I earn translating.
        Being a freelancer does not mean coming and going at will, nor accepting work whenever you please. It means waiting days at a stretch for the phone to ring, pulling occasional all-nighters to get things done in time, and sometimes going 7 days straight with only an occasional nod to wife and family, who will become increasingly irate and begin to mutter disparagingly about your sanity. I suggest you work full-time at a language-related job and translate part-time on nights and weekends until you get established well enough to go out on your own.
        If you insist on going freelance from the start, I suggest you ask agencies to send you a translation test. Most of the large agencies test their new translators anyway. Maybe you can convince them of your translating capability. You will also need a good fax machine, computer (with appropriate software) and modem to deliver the goods on time. You must present yourself as a businessperson, not a college student looking for a job.
        I hope my words do not sound too harsh because that is not my intention. I just want you to go into this business with both eyes open and not expecting to turn a profit for some time.
        John Stroman
        ________________________________________
        Roger Chriss has written about translation as a profession, and he offers many pointers for people considering getting into the profession. His report can be found here.

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] 下一页