Freelance Japanese-to-English translating for agencies is coming to a rapid end for most agency-dependent freelance translators, meaning almost all freelance translators. This isn’t a prediction; it’s an an evidence-based observation.
I have deleted everything I have ever written for colleagues, over the years and more recently. The only exception, for the time being is Confessions of a Professional Translator, a blog article, but even that is very likely going to be removed at the end of this month. I have provided more background for this decision on the parent website.
It makes no sense and is futile to think that any but a tiny number of translators locked into working for agencies will be able to survive. Writing articles about surviving and even about the art of translating is deceptive and not in the interest of people who hope(d) to make a living translating. Almost none will achieve that, and I cannot continue to unintentionally deceive them into thinking that they will.
People in our profession, and that includes universities and translators’ organizations, need to screw up the courage and honesty to realize where we are and do the necessary to live beyond their translation-based careers. It has ended; there is nothing to gain by deception and delusion.
