So as some of you might know, I work as a freelance translator. What you probably don't know is that as much as I'm interested in languages, I hate the job more and more as time passes. In fact, I hated my Master's degree in it from day 1 and the only reason I stayed is that 1) I had already paid money and 2) I didn't realise it would drag on for two years at the time (last couple of months!).
These past few months have been very difficult for me as I stressed out a lot about life after uni and trying to get a decent income. I explored all possibilities in the translation industry and ended up almost wishing I'd get rejected because I dislike it so much. I have two agencies sending me work every now and then, but not enough to make a living. At this point, I'm happy with the amount. It's small enough to keep me sane, but good enough to add a bit of nice income once I find another job.
The main problem for me is that I haven't been able to find anything that's decently paid or something I can imagine me doing long term here in Malta. I've been thinking about moving for a long time but finances aren't too promising at the moment. That's still on the cards within the next year or so, prime candidates being Australia and maybe Ireland (the latter depending on whether I decide to settle with a certain important person in my life), but it's obviously not easy.
Today I received the very good news that I've been accepted for an artistic project spanning the next 3 years in Malta which will involve collaborating with top artists and organisations from around Europe (such as the Royal Opera House in London). It'll involve a main highlight event every year, the first of which will be in November this year. It's all unpaid, but as long as I stay until November I'll get a certificate for my efforts + a lot of contacts and training with these top international organisations who will also be scouting for talent. I'm also currently helping out another local organisation led by top local academics and making good contacts there. All in all I'm now confident I'll either break into the local scene or even better, have enough experience and contacts to do so abroad. After months in a profession I hate, there's a light at the end of the tunnel and I'm very excited about it. In the meantime while I do my unpaid experience, translating will be more tolerable as I know it's only a temporary income to support what I want. I'm also thinking of going back to teaching English as a foreign language part time as long as I stay in Malta - it's not a job I wanted to do long term, but it's pretty much the best paid job in Malta.
So all in all, big and exciting changes are hopefully on the horizon.
