Hello!
Salut, Hola, Ciao!
Who am I?
I'm a polyglot and a word nerd. I'm endlessly curious and constantly delving into the detail. I'm a purist when it comes to language but I also like to bend the rules, be playful and punny. Although schooled in the UK, French was an enduring part of my childhood and this early exposure to a second language led me to embark on my linguistic journey. It began with a move to Switzerland in 1988 and continued with extended stays in Germany, Spain and Italy, accumulating languages and experience, lending multilingual support in various roles, and gaining a deeper cultural understanding of the people I encountered. Today, my language learning continues: brushing up on German in the hope of adding it to my offer and starting to decipher the complexities of Russian.
Translation has been my focus since 2021, as a generalist initially, until my specialisms jumped out at me. It's no surprise that tourism and health and wellbeing have emerged as clear favourites, or that I was immediately drawn to the creativity of marketing texts. I'm working on a few new specialisms (dog cognition, for example) and I've diversified into transcription and more recently subtitling, which appeals to my creativity-within-constraints mindset.
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My commitment to the profession includes membership of the Chartered Institute of Linguists, the Institute of Translation and Interpreting and SUBTLE, and regular participation in webinars, workshops and activities to hone my translation and linguistic skills.
I've found that content writing has come about as a natural extension of translation; both call for an ability to convey a message in a clear, concise and elegant manner. With my aptitude for painstaking research, together with a flair for producing engaging and thought-provoking copy, not to mention a real desire to educate and fascinate, I can whip up some delicious content for every preference or whim!
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What can I do for you? Keep reading...
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Language Services & Specialisms
Translation | Transcription | Subtitling
French, Spanish and Italian > UK English
Do you have a written text, an audio file or a video that's crying out for an English version?
Is your project too close to your heart to trust a machine?
Is a literal, unidiomatic translation not going to cut it?
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First, what I don't do: technical, legal or medical.
(But I can recommend someone from my network of specialised colleagues).
I specialise in the topics and texts that spark joy and that align with my lifestyle.
Tourism, because I get to embark on a voyage of discovery with every piece I translate.
Marketing, because creative translation challenges me and ignites those neural pathways.
Health & Wellness, because I live and breathe healthy living and want to support others.
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If you want idiomatic, polished and naturally flowing translations
that sound like they were originally written in English, I'm your gal!
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I can give your tourism and marketing texts a human touch
to captivate and stimulate your audience.
Let me revitalise your health & wellness content
to educate and inspire people to live their best life.
Let's create something together!
Click on the tabs below to find out what I can do for you.
Tourism
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Translating tourist texts involves a balancing act between providing just the right amount of relevant information and making sure that culture won't get lost in translation. Wrapped in a pretty package of highly persuasive language to seduce your audience. A masterful mélange of accurate facts and terminology, and appealing copy that triggers an emotional reaction. And for online texts, a sprinkling of keywords for SEO. Machine translation won't deliver the goods, but this human translator will rise to the occasion!
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What types of texts have I worked on?
Content for a French ecotourism website and a Spanish luxury villa rental website.
Guides for French and Italian national parks.
Academic papers on food, tourism and local development in Italy.
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Qualifications:
MA dissertation: Translating tourism online: Navigating a path through information, persuasion and adaptation | Open University | 2021
Marketing
Straight translation will have your clients heading for the hills. For marketing translation, make way for transcreation and localisation. Why risk those well-advertised marketing translation fails that make us smirk but won't convert? Let me help convey your style and tone of voice to an English-speaking audience by adapting yet retaining your message and intent. If you’re looking for a linguist who cares about your words, rather than a machine for whom words are merely input and output, you've come to the right place.
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What types of texts have I worked on?
Social media posts for water cooler company.
Client success stories, interviews, blog articles and website updates for e-commerce companies.
Art gallery exhibition descriptions and artist bios.
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Qualifications and continuous professional development:
An Introduction to marketing translation | Crisol Translation Services course | September 2022
How to translate marketing text | CIOL webinar | December 2022
The art of web localisation and SEO | CIOL webinar | March 2023
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Health & Wellness
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I strive to educate myself on how we can optimise our health by eating well, moving more, sleeping better and managing our stress levels. I keep up to date on traditional and trending “bio-hacks” including diet (Keto, paleo, carnivore, vegetarian, vegan), supplements, superfoods, time-restricted eating and intermittent fasting; fitness (cardio, strength training, yoga, calisthenics); sleep (circadian rhythms, sleep hygiene, hormonal levels); stress busters (meditation, breathwork, cold exposure) and so much more. I devour this stuff, so keep feeding me with your texts to translate!
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What types of texts have I worked on?
Content for mental health app and website.
Subtitles for wellbeing masterclass videos.
Health food promotional materials.
Psychological report for court.
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Qualifications & CPD
My 20 years living abroad gave me the unique opportunity to live as a local, learn the lingos to near-native level, and discover the endearing quirks and foibles of my fellow Europeans. I bolstered my experience in the field with formal study of both languages and translation, in situ as well as remotely. But as a lifelong learner and a curious, conscientious and committed translator, continuous professional development will always go hand-in-hand with my daily bread.
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As a member of CIOL, ITI and SUBTLE, I benefit from the many and varied options offered to develop professionally, to hone my skills, keep up to date with my current specialisms and investigate new areas of interest. See below for a handful of formal qualifications and contact me if you'd like more details on the webinars, workshops and courses I undertake to remain at the top of my game.
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Advanced Subtitling Skills
University College London | 2023
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Master's in Translation (Distinction)
The Open University | 2021
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BA in Modern Language Studies with French and Spanish (First-class honours)
The Open University | 2016
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Certificazione di Italiano come Lingua Straniera (C2)
Università di Siena | 2004
Diplôme Approfondi de Langue Française
Alliance Française | 2003
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Diploma de Español para Extranjeros
Escuela Oficial de Idiomas Madrid | 1995
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CAT Tools and Software
SDL Trados Studio 2019
MemoQ
Express Scribe Pro
Subtitle Workshop/Edit
Ooona 3.40.25
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What do people say about me?
I highly recommend working with Tania. She is very responsive, attentive to details, she respects project deadlines and I've received only positive feedback on her translations from our clients and revisors.
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Csaba Paulik
Entre Les Lignes, Belgium
I’ve worked with Tania Lines for a considerable time now and I am happy to recommend her as a talented linguist, excellent translator and a highly qualified professional. She utilises her lingual, cultural and technical expertise to put forth the best possible work. I highly recommend Tania if you need a professional French or Spanish to English translator. She is friendly, prompt and delivers high quality work.
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Arjun Dutta, Lingual Consultancy
Ms. Lines has constantly demonstrated her linguistic expertise and her skill and sensibility in the management of international relations, as well as her timely completion of all work undertaken.
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Professor Armando Montanari, Italy
This volume could not have been realised in the way and timeframe desired without the skill and continuous collaboration of Tania Lines, who took care of the linguistic editing and, where necessary, provided translations.
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IGU-Home of Geography Publication Series
Vol. IV The New Geography of Human Mobility – Inequality Trends? edited by Yoshitaka Ishikawa and Armando Montanari
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What do I say about myself?
If I could sum myself up in just a few words, it would be curious, conscientious and committed. Let me elaborate...
Curiosity
Learning languages and the art of translation has been a labour of love spanning several decades but I think that being curious goes further than wanting to learn. For me, it's not only about acquiring knowledge but it's more a case of truly understanding: a language, subject, text, other people or myself. I like to go in-depth until I reach the next level, and then probe some more. This can lead me down a labyrinth of rabbit holes when it comes to researching a term or concept. It's not enough "just" to translate - it's important to make total sense of the source text, a journey which often uncovers inconsistencies and errors and which can result in improvements in the original version. Are machines curious? Or do they just accept a text at face value...?
Conscientiousness
Machines may be faster and cheaper but we win when it comes to human values. Caring about providing excellence and taking pride in my work underpins every job I do. Being a translator isn't just about translating a text and washing my hands of it. I believe in close collaboration, asking questions and tweaking and fine-tuning until we've jointly produced the very best piece of work. I've been described as a great listener, easy to talk to and a creative problem-solver by my clients and colleagues. And most important of all, treating everyone in a kind and thoughtful manner is always my priority. Yes to human connection and great working relationships and a big no to impersonal, faceless working practices!
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Commitment
It really all boils down to this: I’m committed to lifelong learning, creating collaborative relationships with colleagues and clients alike, and being an active member of the translation industry, so that I can strive for excellence and satisfaction, both for myself and my customers. What does commitment look like for me? Working hard to gain recognised qualifications and participating in regular continuous professional development; nurturing and extending my network of fellow linguists and supporting newcomers to the profession; affiliation to professional associations to keep my finger on the pulse of new developments in the industry and to show my continuing support to help shape a sustainable and equitable future for linguists.