A well-known pattern is that transfiction authors are often translators, too, which suggests that some inspiration for writing transfiction stems from their first-hand experience, whether rendered autobiographically or fictionalised. This observation raises questions about possible differences in the representation of translation by translator writers and non-translator writers. It also touches on issues of perception, more specifically of what translation-related tropes in fiction may be taken as clichés by readers with an understanding of translation and as something unexpected by readers who have never really thought about what translators do.