Weights, translations, survival expeditions and opera

This week we begin a series of interviews dedicated to our most loyal collaborators, through which we want to show the reality of the translator profession and the other profiles that contribute to the hectic activity of an agency.

The translator is often thought of as a man of letters, permanently shut in, grinding out words while hunched over his desk. That may have been the case in the distant past, but today’s translators are a long way from that image. They are trained professionals, at ease with technology, accustomed to combining very different activities and, above all, always on the move: to stay up-to-date, to deepen knowledge of the subject of specialisation, to establish relationships with colleagues and clients.

Agnese Scortichini, one of our Italian translators is a perfect example. Graduated with honors from SSLMIT in Forlì (Bolonia), she first worked as an English teacher and then became a freelance technical and editorial translator. Attracted by the world of fitness, she has combined two of her passions by translating various titles for Elika Editrice, a publishing house specializing in manuals on sports, nutrition, physical activity and wellness. Parallel to her language career, she found time to obtain two diplomas as a personal trainer and sports masseuse, while continuing to train and study opera singing.

Photography by Editing Studio, Corridonia (MC).

Let’s start from the beginning: how long have you been translating?

I have been translating professionally since 2014, when I started working with a publishing house that publishes texts on training and sports nutrition. I’ve always pursued multiple paths together, so while I was doing this job, I was teaching English at a private school and translating for the first few agencies I came in contact with.

How did you get started? Since when do you collaborate with Qabiria?

I’d like to say “sending resumes.” In fact, one of the very few times I was contacted again, I was offered an unexpected job: I had applied as a translator for a language school, but they needed a teacher. I agreed, but in the meantime, gripped by stubborn despondency, I knocked on the door of a translation agency and said: “I work for free, but you guys let me get experience.” I spent one of the most useful months of my life in there. In 2016, while I was still working as a teacher, a colleague at the university mentioned my name to Qabiria and I have been an integral part of the team ever since.

What do you appreciate about this collaboration?

What I appreciate most is that we are always able to exchange ideas both on projects managed by Qabiria and on translation challenges encountered in other contexts, because Marco, Sergio and the other collaborators are also interested in fields other than their own. Therefore, the work chat is not only for coordinating on translations to be delivered, but also for dispelling doubts and exchanging points of view.

And what would you improve?

Nothing directly dependent on Qabiria. The inability to know in advance the amount of work for a given week is one of the few aspects I don’t appreciate about this job, but it’s inherent in freelance work and attributable almost entirely to chance.

What is the most interesting project you have worked on?

Definitely a translation of a rail travel site, especially in the last couple of pandemic years. Not being able to move from home, translating the European itineraries proposed by the site has allowed me to wander at least with my mind in places I have never visited or to which I would like to return as soon as possible.

What is your typical work day like?

Despite being a night owl, so mentally much more active in the evenings, I try to wake up early. I eat breakfast, throw down a cup of coffee, and go work out. I get on the PC around 9 and only come off for a quick lunch. In the early afternoon, when my head is going slower and my body is still active, I devote myself to the other activities for which I have acquired certifications, such as sports massage therapy. In the second part of the afternoon and in the evening I insert revisions, less complex translations or relating to topics that are more interesting to me. I also rarely translate after dinner, but it can happen, especially during dense periods.

What is currently the biggest challenge for a translation professional like you?

There is probably a need to understand your own professional value in the face of the growing "do-it-yourself" tendency of those who think they can translate because they’ve been in Spain for a week, but also the need to continually update and acquire computer, graphic or copywriting skills that will allow you to offer a more complete service.

“I never gave up on the idea that I could only do one thing in life.”

Besides translating, how do you spend your time?

Since my college days, I’ve been obsessed with making the most of the hours in the day, because I’ve never given up on the idea that I could only do one thing in life. So translation remains my main occupation, but I’m also a massage therapist and a sportswoman in general. I am a lover of gothic and steampunk style, I have been studying opera singing for years and in my spare time I dedicate myself to calligraphy, visiting castles and medieval villages. I work out almost every day and am seduced by activities that challenge me physically and mentally. That’s why I like to hike and try adrenaline experiences like bungee jumping, angel flying, paragliding, and other things my mum might turn her nose up at. In 2018, I went on an expedition to the Indian Himalayas where I reached 5000 meters in altitude: a challenge for the body and the mind, in which I realized that it is important to focus on the single step and not on the whole path that remains. At heart, I have a quiet, “socially selective” soul, so I prefer the company of a book to a party with too many strangers.

Even in the Himalayas! Tell us more

Before leaving for the expedition, the guide said to me: “I usually prefer to avoid bringing women, because you know ... they’re always complaining.” I took it very personally and decided to change his mind. When we arrived at the departure village, we started loading everything we needed into our backpack, a 20-kilo behemoth: sleeping bag, water bottle, changes, food, knife and miscellaneous equipment. I hadn't had time to rehearse at home and my first thought when I put it on at 3000 meters was: “I can’t even walk three steps with this thing.” One of the guys on the expedition, to good-naturedly tease me, pointed out to the group that - seen from behind - I looked like a big backpack with legs. I laughed and decided I would get to the top before he did. Throughout the climb I didn’t even stop to eat, fumbling with my arms looking for the energy bars in the side pockets. I thought I was putting on a particularly funny show for whoever I had behind me, and I laughed every time. Eventually, I earned the nickname “little tank”, and the guide seemed to have changed his mind.

There would be many anecdotes, but I’ll tell you just one more. On a survival expedition it is difficult to meet a woman, if only because of the unhygienic and very camaraderie-like conditions in which one finds oneself sleeping, eating and everything else. After a three-day experience in the woods in which I was the only woman in the group, we had to take down the tents, eyelet tarps, and everything else we had planted to return the woods to nature as we found them. All that remained was to completely extinguish the fire to prevent the embers from somehow starting a fire. For a while the other boys stood around the fire looking at each other and throwing me a glance every now and then. Time passed and I began to wonder why they were lingering so long. At the umpteenth clearing of my throat, I had an epiphany about which way of putting out would save water and therefore be the smartest. I apologized to those present for arriving there a little late and walked away to allow them the proper collective “intimacy”, without being able to stop laughing.

I can imagine the scene... And how do you see your future? Will you continue to translate or will you devote more time to your passion? Maybe there’s some more climbing in sight?

I have big plans for the future, where I plan to keep translation as my main occupation, but also pursue my other passions (the plural is a must). Music, for example, has always been an essential component in my life and I don’t exclude the possibility of deepening this inclination. To those who ask me if I will ever stop studying or take on new paths, I like to answer with this little story: one day a pupil who wanted to learn to play the piano but was not yet convinced asked her teacher: “Master, do you have any idea how many years I’ll be before I’ll finally be able to play the piano?” The teacher then replied: “The same ones you’ll be if you don’t learn.”