Do people know what translators do? Well, as the name suggests, they translate. But what does that mean, exactly?

Even translators’ definitions of translation vary, so how likely is it that non-translators understand our work?

There’s a popular meme about what it means to be a translator, and its more or less similar variations have wandered the internet for quite some time now (like this one). It consists of several pictures that depict how the profession is seen from different perspectives, roughly in the following way:

• How my friends see me (a picture of Google Translate or other AI translation tool)
• How my family sees me (a person in a corporate-looking suit with a writing pad in front of a mic, performing a simultaneous interpreting of a big-time political meeting, with Joe Biden in the background)
• How society sees me (Nicole Kidman in The Interpreter)
• How my editor sees me (a little kid scribbling with crayons)

And so on. Well-worn as it is, this meme signals persistent misconceptions surrounding the role of the translator and our understanding of it. I can confirm that, upon hearing the word “translator,” many people do indeed envisage you sitting in a glass booth with a headset on in the UN, the European Parliament, or another similarly institutional environment. I’ve lost count of the people who have assumed that translation equals interpreting, and that a translator is perfectly capable of performing simultaneous interpreting of an off-the-cuff speech, without notice, from or into all their language combinations. “Isn’t this what you do?”

Does this mean that our profession is shrouded in mystery?

Recently, I conducted an informal survey to explore this further. The eighty-some respondents were all participating in a large literary event; none were professional translators, but all had an interest in world literature. I asked them to look over a list of activities and, for each one, answer this question: “Who, in your opinion, is more likely to do this?” with the answer options being “Translator” and “Someone else.”

Here are some of the activities included in the list:

• Translating
• Inventing new words
• Editing
• Co-authoring / co-creating with an author of the source text
• Scouting for new authors and new voices
• Tracking down the rights owners
• Researching sales figures, languages a certain book has been translated into, and other data
• Writing reader’s reports
• Leading workshops
• Speaking at events
• Publicizing books (e.g., organizing events)
• Hosting book clubs and discussion groups
• Carrying extra books around in a tote bag in case there are not enough copies at an event or a signing
• Researching the literary market to find out exactly which publisher, journal, or platform would be right for the text or author they are translating or want to translate (also known as matchmaking)
• Persuading an author to experiment with a new genre or topic that would have particular appeal in a certain market
• Preparing pitches and pitch packs
• Preparing catchy one-liners to quickly describe a book they think has potential
• Writing statements about the importance and appeal of books and authors
• Writing commentaries, notes, forewords, or afterwords
• Including relevant information in the writer’s bio and updating their Wikipedia page
• Applying for grants
• Representing authors in their absence
• Writing memoirs about their work process
• Acting as an intermediary between authors, publishers, editors, sponsors, cultural organizations, and other people involved in the translation and publishing process, both in the source culture and the target culture
• Putting together projects that involve cultural organizations, development agencies, public bodies, universities, and other establishments (also known as scheming)
• Increasing the visibility of international literature and multilingualism

I (deliberately) didn’t have an option that said “translators do all of the above,” but that would have been the correct answer. Translators actually do all these things, and they all contribute not only to the success of a particular book or author, but also to the visibility and stature of translation more broadly. They’re not just practical but often necessary. Let’s call them translation-adjacent activities.

In a recent article, Samantha Schnee notes, “Today’s translator is almost certain to perform multiple roles far beyond the old-fashioned job of rendering a work into another language.” Scouting, agenting, publicizing, networking, and, in general, multitasking are all among these roles. The mission of the translator, then, is more complex and wide-ranging than it may seem. But are people aware of it? And is it actually being acknowledged?

To return to my survey, the activities considered least likely to be done by translators were “writing memoirs,” “co-creating with an author of the source text,” and “representing authors in their absence.” “Translating” was the most popular choice, with an unsurprising 100% of respondents ticking this box and attributing this activity to a translator rather than someone else. But each of the other activities was attributed to translators by no more than 20% of respondents.

Although this was an informal survey, it shows an interesting trend. A majority of respondents was clearly inclined to believe that someone else is more likely than a translator to do most of the translation-adjacent activities on the list. Yet these things are absolutely significant and someone does need to do them. They are, in fact, essential. They produce so many positive results—providing great authors with a wider readership, expanding our understanding of the world, promoting multilingualism, giving voice to marginalized languages and cultures, diversifying the literary landscape, and many more. Translation-adjacent tasks are a mission, and it’s translators who very often end up with this mission. Why? Well, if anything, because no one else is willing to take it on. Even if they are, they won’t necessarily be able to do it.

These translation-adjacent tasks signal several problems. One: that there is seemingly no established practice for someone else to effectively take over these activities. Two: that there is apparently no established practice for translators to be empowered, financially and otherwise, to perform these tasks.

Even if the dreamlike, hypothetical someone else did exist and was willing to take up all the tasks on the list (properly leaving translators with only translating), that person would likely still need to consult translators. A translator inhabits multiple worlds, navigating both source and target languages and cultures; this makes them a go-to person with the knowledge and skills needed for these tasks—knowledge and skills others might not have. But performing them demands a significant amount of time, effort, and prowess, all on top of the first thing on the list: actually translating.

Until an established practice emerges, translators will remain out there, acting as agents of last resort (a term coined by Anton Hur), performing unsung tasks that are often unpaid and, even more often, unrecognized as a part of their work. The amount of labor that goes beyond translation—obtaining rights, creating samples, pitching, communicating, and sourcing funding—is brought out in Hur’s interview with Yee Heng Yeh, where Hur calls for “a better apparatus for representing authors and translators on the World Anglophone stage.” He adds, openly: “I don’t know how long I can do this work, to be frank.”

The plot thickens: Hur is now represented, both as a writer and a translator, by RCW’s Safae El-Ouahabi. At a recent BCLT event, Safae received an overwhelming amount of audience questions related to her work with translators. This suggests that the idea of a translator having an agent is not yet accepted as a natural thing—and also that this perspective might be rapidly shifting.

Translation—as well as translation-adjacent activities, which ideally lead to more translation—is often referred to as a “labor of love,” a definition that’s starting to acquire a menacing quality. It balances on the verge of an admirable, almost heroic devotion and exploitation. It’s as if you’re expected to do it because you love it so much, and being paid for it would be too much of a good thing. Love is reward enough. “But [labor of love] is labor nonetheless,” writes translator Nicholas Glastonbury.

Can this translation-adjacent labor be done, and done properly, if it must be squeezed in around the other thing that translators do, at least according to the majority of the survey respondents—actually translating?

In recent years, at least, there has been positive movement. A prominent example is PEN Presents, a program that funds the “often-unpaid work” of creating translation samples. Launched in 2022, it is meant to be a long-term, consistent program, and has already showcased diverse, compelling translation projects.

In 2024, I was awarded an individual grant by the Lithuanian Council for Culture. These prestigious and competitive grants are meant for creators working in all areas of culture and arts, both emerging and established, and support their personally designed projects. It was my first time applying, and I focused my project specifically on translation-adjacent activities. It was a true honor to appear on the list of awardees alongside highly skilled writers and creators whose work I studied at school. This grant is meaningful, but its meaning is not only personal. Above all, it is a significant acknowledgment that translation, in the broad sense, is a creative practice encompassing many activities, and that the adjacent tasks do in fact fall under the umbrella of translation—and of being a translator.

I know of other translators who have been successful in acquiring funding for projects that focus not only on translation but also on the adjacent activities. For example, Claire Storey’s proposal to translate YA literature from Latin America was awarded a DYCP grant from Arts Council, which “supports individuals who are cultural and creative practitioners and want to take time to focus on their creative development.” Storey’s project is centered on the time-consuming practices of creating pitches and presentations, networking, and conducting market research: classic translation-adjacents.

There have been other promising developments, though they still feel more like separate instances, results of someone’s individual endeavor and motivation rather than a consistent movement. Considering the importance of the mission translators carry out in diversifying and enriching world literature, and the enormous potential of what could be done given the right conditions, this state of affairs calls for more public awareness, consistency, and acknowledgment. The acknowledgment of translation and all the labor that comes with it should not feel like a pleasant, surprising exception, but like a normal practice.