One of my most interesting – and most sociable – jobs last year was translating Brecht Evens’ beautiful graphic novel Ergens waar je niet wil zijn, published by Drawn & Quarterly as The Wrong Place. Why sociable? Well, I was lucky enough to have the chance to work with two other translators, Michele Hutchison and Rhian Heppleston, which involved long chats over kitchen tables, the odd bottle of wine and even a sleepover. We also had a few rather entertaining email exchanges with the author, Brecht Evens, and the publisher, Tom Devlin, as we found ourselves discussing subjects including the finer points of terminology for body parts and the essential differences between boys and girls.
Our experiment with team translation was great fun and a fine exercise in collaboration. I’m hoping that the HepHutWat three-headed translation team will be let loose on another great book before too long.
The Wrong Place is a fine read and packed with wonderful illustrations. I was really pleased to hear that the book recently won the Prix de l’Audace at the Angoulême International Comic Festival and that Brecht’s going to be participating with his own exhibition at the Bilbolbul Comic Festival in March. The Wrong Place – seen in all the right places! Brecht’s certainly one to watch. Hmmm, wonder if he needs anything else translating…