The ATA Chronicle - January/February 2021 - 15

prevent poor remote working

machine translation systems

Interpreting training is

from around the country-as

conditions from getting baked

for non-critical translations

booming. And although some

well as Brazil, Egypt, India,

in as the " new normal. "

that don't have to be

translation direct clients

Mexico, Spain, and the

linguistically " perfect " and

are learning about neural

U.K.-attended.

edit the machine translation

machine translation, they

output themselves.

still need our services.

Robin
Bonthrone
Austin, Texas

Though 2020 further
isolated some translators,
it also opened our world

Waleska
Bonthrone

Allison
deFreese

financial-legal translator

Austin, Texas

Portland, Oregon

and specialist boutique

I'm the owner
of a boutique

Many assume
little changed

As a German>
English

owner whose clients are all
in the German-speaking

agency providing health care

for literary translators

countries, my business cycle

interpreting, translation,

in 2020. But the entire

reflects fluctuations in those

and health care interpreting

publishing circuit-from

countries' economies.

training services, with a

printers to book fairs and

focus on Spanish.

bookstore distribution-has

In line with the hard

to global collaboration
and solidarity on an
unprecedented scale. I hope
our interactions will continue
in 2021-and beyond!

Michael
Engley
Port Charlotte,
Florida

lockdowns imposed in

When the lockdown hit

Germany-my primary

Austin, half my local business

market-business fell off a

collapsed in one day. Onsite

cliff in April and remained

interpreting was not an option

readily available online,

season, but it didn't take

more or less stagnant until

anymore. I quickly realized

small independent presses

long for that to change.

late summer. The first half

that my local health care

have suffered. Four of my

The anticipated seasonal

(H1) 2020 financial reports,

clients and onsite interpreters

publishers shuttered or

projects that would normally

which generally arrive in July

were not prepared for the

delayed publications, some

keep me busy through the

each year for translation,

abrupt change. I created a

until 2021 or 2022. Furloughs

spring never materialized

were the exception, but most

video remote interpreting

included accountants, which

as the pandemic ramped up

of them were also shorter

(VRI) guideline for all of them

postponed payments for

earlier in Europe than in the

than usual.

in two days and trained the

manuscripts I submitted. One

U.S. and many employees

onsite interpreters to become

of my editors was laid off,

of German and Austrian

again in September/October,

VRI interpreters in a week

leaving my projects in limbo.

companies retreated to the

but it's currently too early

to ready them for the " new

Sadly, in November an editor

safety of their homes.

to say whether the renewed

normal " in interpreting.

I had worked with for years

I was finally called into

lockdown in Germany that

What the COVID-19

passed away. My translation

action again for some half-

Business started picking up

been unrooted, and with it

I began 2020

my translations.

comfortably busy during

While bestsellers are

the financial reporting

was imposed in December will

pandemic taught me directly

of María Negroni's Elegy for

yearly reports and was very

significantly impact translation

is to always be prepared for

Joseph Cornell, scheduled

busy for several weeks in the

demand in my markets.

change. I wasn't expecting my

for spring, appeared in

early fall. However, it has

online health care interpreting

October, but it hasn't been

been " crickets " ever since.

trends I believe to be

training to start booming

reviewed due to lack of

Luckily, I was approved

directly attributable to the

during the pandemic, but

staffing at publishers, and

(after several frustrating

COVID-19 pandemic. First,

that's exactly what happened.

all promotional events have

attempts) at the last minute

" discretionary " translations

Fortunately, I had updated my

been canceled.

for a Paycheck Protection

(not required by law or

one-on-one online training

another legal obligation)

to focus on VRI, which meant

eliminated geographical

sustain my family through

are recovering slowly but

I was already prepared to

borders, allowing translators

the second half of the year.

may not return to BC (before

help my students nationwide

to attend global conferences.

Fortunately for us, my wife

COVID) levels for a few

during lockdown.

In 2020, I coordinated a

is an " essential worker " at a

virtual conference for the

local hospital and very much
in demand.

I've identified several

Still, the pandemic has

Program loan that helped

years, if ever. Second, the

My take on the business

pandemic has exacerbated

impact of the pandemic is that

Oregon Society of Translators

the price pressures that were

local onsite interpreting is

and Interpreters (an ATA

I've taken advantage of

already building up BC. And

picking up slowly, with many

affiliate), an event usually

the unplanned sabbatical by

third, some direct clients are

health care providers still not

limited to Pacific Northwest

spending more time with

starting to understand that

comfortable with VRI because

and California attendees.

my three-year-old son and

they can use the latest neural

of their specializations.

Speakers and participants

honing new skills that I

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The ATA Chronicle - January/February 2021

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