Translating is fun! When you get it right, it’s as satisfying as completing a crossword puzzle or a Sudoku. It’s not easy, though. You have to work very hard at getting all the right words in the right places – translating literally, which is when you substitute each word in French for a word in English as it appears on the page, is not an option.
What I particularly loved about translating the Oksa Pollock books was the huge number of fun names for creatures, spells and powers, which often worked as puns or wordplays in French. I had to find translations that worked in the same way in English as they did in French – which meant often doing something new, so that I was translating the idea behind the words and not the words themselves. Your mission as a translator, should you wish to accept it, is to move so stealthily that you become invisible, like a Ninja warrior. If you’re seen, you’ve failed.
This great Translator’s pack will give you some idea of what it means to be a translator and some of the difficulties that we face. Good luck, Ninja masters – over to you!
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