In this episode I talk to Martina Abagnale, a financial translator and co-founder of the business-management software tool Lemon Twist for freelancers like her.
She speaks candidly about why she launched a second business, how she combines it with her main revenue-generating work as a translator, and how translation work differs from being a co-founder (and product manager, marketer and overall face of the Lemon Twist brand).
Key Takeaways
- A natural interest in languages and interculturality: she grew up in Pompeii, surrounded by a vast variety of people visiting her small town, which led her to wonder what else was ‘out there’
- Proactive from a young age: she researched then convinced her parents to let her spend a year in Hungary during secondary school
- Finding her own niche in translation: after a while she realised she wanted to specialise in financial translation and started actively marketing her services to banks, financial institutions and venture capitalists in need of multilingual reports and documents
- Solving her own problem: after years of complaining about the same irritating admin stuff she convinced her husband to create a business management tool
About Martina
Martina Abagnale is an Italian translator specialised in finance. Active since 2019, she has also worked as a trainer, industry speaker and event organizer, sharing her passion and knowledge about finance, translation and anything in between. In 2025 she co-founded Lemon Twist, a business-management software for freelance language professionals.
About Lemon Twist
Lemon Twist is a management software created by freelance translator Martina Abagnale and software developer Julio Greff. What began in 2020 as a personal quest for a fast and intuitive way to organize her translation work, turned into a fully fledged company in May 2024. Our mantra is: Every click counts. We’re building a system that saves you time on boring tasks and puts a smile on your face with its clean, playful design.
- E-mail: hey@lemontwist.ing
- Website: https://lemontwist.ing/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/italian-financial-translator/
- Newsletter: https://stats.sender.net/forms/aAD9A1/view
- Discount code: LT15 (15% off for new subscriptions)
About Sonia Kampshoff
Sonia is a translator turned multilingual digital marketer specialising in paid media, and now also a podcaster. Growing up bilingual, languages have been a constant in her life. In 2025 she launched a podcast where together with her guests she explores the huge variety of jobs and career opportunities open to people with language skills. She is available to speak on podcasts and stages about marketing, languages, work and podcasting.
Connect with Sonia
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/workingwithlanguages
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/soniakampshoff/
- Website: https://moreperfect.digital/
- Email: sonia@moreperfect.digital
If you enjoyed this episode please share it with someone who may like it too, and subscribe to the podcast.
✉️ Join my free newsletter
☕ Support my work, buy me a coffee
