I’m coming a little late to the party, but as it promises to be quite some party, I thought I should introduce myself, particularly as I have met few of the delegates/speakers before.

I have been a Spanish-English translator for nearly 20 years, beginning somewhat by chance following a move with my (then) young family to Central America in 2006 (Guatemala followed by Panama). At the time I had no formal qualifications in Spanish or translation (my degree was in German and French and I had spent two years in Spain post-graduation).

My first assignment (at a time when I was barely computer-literate, let alone translation-savvy) was 30,000 words of legal documentation relating to electricity privatisation in Mexico (courtesy of a friend who thought I might be bored of coffee mornings, play dates and golf). This was followed not long afterwards by scripts for a children’s tv cartoon series (courtesy of a(nother) friend who …). Definitely a case of sink or swim. I survived and went on to sit the Dip Trans exam in a language school in Guatemala City.

You would be forgiven for thinking that diversity is my byword, but in fact I soon settled into a routine of legal, financial and business texts, principally through a long association with a Madrid-based agency.

In my previous existence I had been a commercial litigation solicitor with a large London law firm. After returning to the UK in 2002 I continued to translate full-time, until I resumed legal practice in 2006, “reinventing” myself as an employment lawyer representing employees and small businesses. I have had my own law firm for almost eight years. Throughout this time I have continued to translate in my “spare time” and have now decided to focus increasingly on my translation business, capitalising on my knowledge of the law in practice and perhaps moving into more creative fields too. I’m attending a number of CPD events this year, including going on “holiday” to London for Translate in the City, which I hope will inspire me. I look forward to meeting new colleagues in Newcastle and becoming more involved in ITI.

I shall be joining the runners on Friday evening – I’ll be the one bringing up the rear. I couldn’t resist the lure of a free teeshirt!