In this paper I reflect on some examples of my activity as a translator guided by the following questions: since translations often broaden the boundaries of language, can we consider the contribution of translated texts to systematic language research? And further, is the meta-translational and metalinguistic reflection of translators important for the study of language? To answer these questions, I will consider the nature of translation and writing as twin operations, and after mentioning synthetically and essentially the theory that guides my translating decisions, I will dwell on some examples concerning the “creative” use of verbal tenses in my Spanish translations of Umberto Eco’s The Island of the Day Before (1995) and The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana (2005).
