I Translated, Therefore I Wrote: Where It All Began

Not every path is a straight line. Sometimes, it twists and turns like a good mystery novel.

For as long as I can remember, storytelling has been a part of who I am. As a kid, I spent countless hours in my “makeshift office” crafting little books filled with eccentric characters and wild plots. Sure, most of those storylines had more holes than Swiss cheese, but looking back, I can see that each attempt taught me something. The seed had already been planted.

Growing up in a small town only deepened my love for literature. With not many places to go, the local library became my favorite spot to spend time. It was there I discovered authors like Agatha Christie and James Patterson.

And that was it, I was hooked.

The suspense, the twists, the secrets buried in every character… Crime fiction had its grip on me. And I wanted to be part of that world somehow.

After high school, I decided to learn English. I didn’t have the money for formal classes, so I took the self-taught route, you know… books, videos, online resources. Within two years, I was translating indie novels from English into Portuguese. That eventually led me to work with international publishers, including Next Chapter, which became an important part of my journey.

Translation felt like a natural extension of my love for language and storytelling. I learned everything from using CAT tools to adapting a story without losing its soul. It was a bumpy road, sure, but it taught me a lot, especially about pacing, tone, and what truly keeps a reader turning the pages.

Over time, the urge to write my own stories became too strong to ignore. I took a leap and asked Next Chapter if I could join not just as a translator, but also as an author. To my surprise, they said yes. That’s how I published my first book—a suspense novel, of course.

Before that, I had written nonfiction pieces about quirky historical facts for a niche website. But my heart was always in crime fiction. I love exploring the darker side of human nature, building plots that make readers question everything, and creating characters who hide more than they reveal.

These days, I’m no longer publishing with Next Chapter and have taken a break from translation work so I can focus fully on writing my own stories. So if you enjoy twists, unlikely suspects, and endings that catch you off guard, I invite you to stick around. This is just the prologue, so there are many more chapters to come.