Name: Marion Rhodes
LC position: interaktiv Editor-in-Chief
Where are you originally from?
Nuremberg, Germany
Where do you currently live?
San Diego, CA
How did you become a translator/interpreter?
English and French were my favorite classes in high school, I even did my Abitur with English and French as my two primary subjects. After high school, I moved to the United States and studied journalism in college. I spent four years as a reporter for a daily newspaper before my husband and I were stationed in Germany with the US Air Force, forcing me to give up my job. I wanted to find a more “portable” career that would allow me to work from anywhere the military would send us. Since I had a passion for writing and was fluent in English and German, translation seemed like a natural fit, so I completed an online translation program at New York University and started building my own translation business.
What are your areas of specialization?
I work primarily in the area of consumer products and retail, where I focus on SEO and creative copywriting in English and German, as well international marketing adaptation. For the past two years, I was employed as an in-house copywriter for a large e-commerce aggregator, and I discovered a knack for writing and localizing Amazon listings. I also translate a lot of press releases, and perform the occasional certified translation of vital records.
What do you like about ATA?
ATA has turned me from a hobby translator into a translation professional. Not only did I gain industry knowledge through conferences, the ATA Chronicle, webinars, listserv discussions, etc., I also made valuable connections with peers. ATA has also given me a way to share my passion for languages and my professional expertise with others, be it as a presenter or as a volunteer for the association.
Tell us about your position on the GLD Leadership Council.
I plan and oversee the publication of the GLD newsletter, interaktiv, which comes out twice a year. This means picking a theme or identifying interesting topics to cover, finding contributing writers, and coordinating the production process. I wouldn’t be able to do it alone, though, and rely heavily on my team of copy editors and proofreaders, our layout designer, and our regular contributors.
Anything else you would like to share? (hobbies, interests, etc.)
I’m a huge animal lover. In addition to having 2 horses, 4 dogs, and 4 cats, I volunteer for a cat rescue organization, so we pretty much always have a few foster kittens around the house as well. I’ve raised bottle babies from as young as two days old, and nursed kittens back to health from the doors of death. It’s a lot of work, but I couldn’t imagine living my life without being surrounded by my animal army.