OK, most of these are not actually asked very frequently, but they are probably sensible questions.
I translate Japanese to English (either US or UK).
Basically everything else. Specifically, I don’t do translation into Japanese, in-house work, interpreting, DTP, and trying to fix machine translation. I like to focus on doing one thing well.
It’s reassuring to place your translation business with a big agency. I get it. So why employ me instead, when I’m just one freelance translator? Because it’s only me: Every time you place a job with me, I’ll do it personally. Of course, I’ll translate every job according to its content, but I’ll also apply a consistent style and voice. If you take the trouble to write in your own, or your brand’s, consistent style, you’ll want nothing less for your translated content.
You can pay me through Paypal, Payoneer, or bank transfer. Please contact me for details.
I cannot accept credit card payments, but you can use your card through Paypal.
As a rough guideline, assume I can do 4,000 output words per day of no-match new material in most fields.
That volume is increased by familiar content, existing translation memory and glossary resources, fuzzy matches and repetition, emergencies, and other factors.
No. I never use Google Translate or any other machine translation system. Other than the quality problem, transmitting lines of text to a server somewhere is an unacceptable security risk.
Translation memory tools, also known as Computer Assisted Translation (CAT) tools, make me more efficient and consistent by reusing previous similar content, automating glossary linkage, providing QA (Quality Assurance), and other functions.
Wikipedia has an article about translation memory here.
Yes. Luckily I have MemoQ, which is fully compatible with all Trados files and resources, so I don’t have to actually have to use Trados itself. I can deliver all files in native Trados formats.
None. I studied engineering at university, then learned Japanese in Japan, and learned translation by translating. After 28 years and about 15 million words, it seems to have worked.
Yes, within reason (say 200 words or so). I understand that as I’m asserting the quality of my work, rather than my formal qualifications, it’s fair for potential clients to ask to see what I can do. Please note that I cannot provide examples of previous work, because that is covered by non-disclosure agreements with clients, or at least by my own non-disclosure policy.
No. If you ask me to do a job, I will do it myself. If we cannot agree on a schedule that I can commit to, I will not accept the job. The job will not be subdivided, outsourced, translated using external tools, or disclosed.
As a freelancer working from a home office, I enjoy being flexible with my hours. That’s good for me, and for my clients. I arrange my working hours according to my work commitments and other demands on my time. So, feel free to ask me for jobs that involve working on weekends, holidays, after business hours, etc. There’s no extra charge, as long as the deadline is reasonable.
My rates are negotiable but not cheap. Agreed rates usually include deductions for matches and repetitions, but flat rates are also acceptable. Assume a baseline of JPY9 per source character, or JPY18 per target word (currently equivalent to roughly USD0.08 or EUR0.07 per source character).
I only do volume-based work, so I have no hourly rate.
LinkedIn, and that’s about it.