如今疫情肆虐全球，各行各業正經歷前所未見的考驗。翻譯行業亦不例外。除了客戶預算減少，有些客戶經營多時的公司也可能面臨倒閉危機，以至於譯者的工作機會開始減少。
面對這個情況，譯者兼商業寫作人有兩個選擇。第一、不斷進修，磨練筆鋒之後繼續筆耕；第二、半隱退狀態，進而從事其他低門檻的工作，例如開始兼職開車賺外快。我的選擇是第一個選項，雖然我聽過很多人選擇第二項。
我之所以選擇第一選項，是因為翻譯與商業文案的要求隨著時代變遷而變得更為細分、更為複雜，而不是變得更簡單。單單是醫學翻譯，就已經有多個分支，精神／心理學科亦然，金融與法律翻譯的分類亦是五花八門，我若成為其中幾個領域的資深譯者或編輯，未來數十年依然需要我這枝筆幫忙潤飾好多好多的內容／書籍。
其實再遠大的目標都是從閱讀開始，我書架上一直有很多好看的英文和正體中文書等著我慢慢讀，因此可以開拓商業寫作領域的不同分支。
Covid-19 pandemic is turning the world upside down and every industry, every business are facing unprecedented challenges. So is the translation and interpretation industry, whose practitioners’ job opportunities are reduced due to clients’ lower budget and the fact that some longtime client companies could be closing down once and for all.
To deal with such situation, translators and business writers have two choices. Firstly, we can upskill and harness writing skills to keep on improving our writing business. Secondly, take flexible furlough leave and start driving for a part-time income. My choice is always the first, although I heard that many opted for the second.
I chose the first option because translation and business writing are becoming more specific and complicated as we change with the times. They do not become easier and less complex. Medical translation has many branches, so are psychiatry and psychology. When it comes to finance and legal translation, they are also of wide varieties. If I am good enough to become a senior translator cum editor in several of the knowlegde segments, I will have a lot of opportunities to polish the contents and books in future decades.
As a matter of fact, all business writing goals start from reading. I always have many interesting English and Traditional Chinese books waiting for me to read during free time. As always, reading provides lots of ideas for me to explore new branches of business writing.
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