Most readers never notice the translator’s name, yet translation is the difference between a book that merely “sounds correct” and a book that actually lives in a new language. We sit down with Cécile Deniard, a literary translator of around 60 books and a longtime leader in European translator advocacy, to show what the job really demands: deep reading, seven or more revision passes, research that can span prison systems to 19th-century Canada, and constant collaboration with authors, editors, and outside experts.From there, we get concrete about rights and working conditions. Cécile explains why literary translators are legally authors under the Berne Convention, what moral rights mean in practice, and why fair pay is still the profession’s most urgent challenge. We talk about contracts that delay payment, missing advances, lack of royalties.Then we face the biggest pressure point in publishing right now: AI translation and machine translation tools like DeepL and ChatGPT. Cécile breaks down why post-editing often backfires, how “anchoring” locks you into bad machine choices, and why AI cannot be treated as a co-creator when only humans can carry responsibility for the final text. We also unpack the larger copyright fight around: Authorization, Remuneration, and Transparency.If you care about books, language, copyright, and the future of creative work, subscribe, share this conversation with your network, and leave a review so more listeners can find Intangibilia.(Recorded in November 2025)Send us Fan MailCheck out "Protection for the Inventive Mind" – available now on Amazon in print and Kindle formats.The views and opinions expressed (by the host and guest(s)) in this podcast are strictly their own and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the entities with which they may be affiliated. This podcast should in no way be construed as promoting or criticizing any particular government policy, institutional position, private interest or commercial entity. Any content provided is for informational and educational purposes only.