Ten questions for... translator Jamie Bulloch

One of the first intake of the Frankfurt Book Fair’s Translators Programme discusses grants, Brexit and Boba Fett.

01 What is the mood among translators in the UK?
In general, literary translators choose their job because first and foremost they love books and language, so they tend to be people who are passionate about their work. Many works of foreign fiction do not enjoy big sales figures, however, and financial margins are very tight, which means it’s always hard to earn a decent living from the job.

02 Do you think translators are being treated properly, or given due acknowledgement in terms of prizes and payment?
In the UK there are standard contracts which differ little between publishers, and more or less offer the same rate for translation work as well as royalties. There has definitely been a shift towards greater acknowledgement of the translator in book reviews and to increase the profile of translators on book covers. There are a number of prizes that translators can now win, a couple of which come with very valuable prizes.

As far as payment is concerned, every translator realises (I hope) that the scope for big earnings is very limited. We choose this job for reasons other than financial gain, and we ought to go into it with our eyes open.

03 Do you think British audiences are becoming more receptive to translated works—and German works in particular? And if so, why?
Yes, it seems as if the book-buying public is becoming more open to world literature, including books translated from German. There is no doubt that the craze for Scandinavian crime fiction has helped, but I also think another factor is involved. While the number of overall readers has shrunk, there are, I suspect, a greater proportion—real book-lovers—who are now more discerning and adventurous, eager to try new things.

Without the system of translation grants offered by national cultural institutes, publishers would be more reluctant to take on foreign fiction that didn’t have strong commercial potential. Having said that, it has become evident over the past few years that some foreign authors do compete strongly in the market and I think more publishers have become alive to this.

04 How do you work? Do you query phrases with the author, or the editor?
I try my very best to figure everything out myself first. If I’m still unsure, I will contact the author directly, even with the most basic of questions. Although nuance is critical to literary fiction, if there is something the translator doesn’t understand in full, then the subtlety cannot be replicated. The relationship with the editor is even more important.

I expect a good editor to come back at me with plenty of changes and queries, the vast majority of which I’ll happily accept. Editors are the unsung heroes of translated fiction.

05 Will Brexit help or hinder works in translation?
We don’t know for sure, but I can’t see in any way how it will have a positive impact on literature in translation.

06 As you know, in Germany bookshops are protected by a fixed price system. Why do you think Germany has such a different attitude to its book industry?
I suspect it’s because Germany hasn’t embraced US capitalism quite so wholeheartedly as the UK has. The social market economy, which has been a principal feature of the Federal Republic since its foundation, has clearly influenced the values of the country’s citizens. Many Germans seem quite attached to what is small and local, which is why you will still see extraordinary markets thriving in medium-sized towns, as well as independent bakeries and butchers.

07 Do you sometimes think that English holds the UK back?
Our attitude to modern languages within the school curriculum is risible. All children should be learning a foreign language—it doesn’t matter which one—from the first year of primary school, and it should be taught by native speakers in that language. At secondary school, pupils ought to have the option of taking multiple languages at GSCE level, even if that means dropping a couple of sciences. Yes, I think our lack of language skills puts us at a great disadvantage. Being able to communicate in a foreign tongue has all manner of benefits, including that of being a gateway into another culture.

08 Your father, the actor Jeremy Bulloch, played Boba Fett in Star Wars. What is it like having a father who played a cult character?
I was excited to learn that Dad would be in the second Star Wars film, having loved the first. At the time we just thought it was a minor part. My brother and I did get a day out at Elstree [Studios], however, where we met [Luke Skywalker actor] Mark Hamill. But in fact Boba Fett has become far more of a worldwide phenomenon over the past 20 years than he ever was in my childhood.

09 How did you get into translating? What was your first assignment?
Having completed my PhD, I hoped to stay on at university. But after a few years of teaching other people’s sabbaticals, I couldn’t wait any longer for the right job to come up. I’d done a bit of social science translation and was offered a sample for a psychological crime novel. The editor, Christopher MacLehose, liked what I did and commissioned me to translate the whole novel.

10 And finally, what would be the collective noun for a group of translators?
A lexicon?

Jamie Bulloch is a German to English British translator. He has translated more than 30 books in the past decade, many for Maclehose Press, such as Timur Vermes’ Look Who’s Back, Robert Menasse’s Capital and Steven Uhly’s Kingdom of Twilight. Work for other publishers includes Martin Sufer’s Elefant (Fourth Estate), Ricarda Huch’s The Last Summer (Pereine) and Arsenal and Germany footballer Mesut Özil’s Gunning for Greatness (Hodder).