Literary translation is not merely communication or transmission of meaning. Insofar as it proceeds from a unique enunciative process, in the same way as the original text itself, it is akin to original writing. Starting from this hypothesis, the present paper considers the adequacy between the two terms creation and translation and the extent to which the comparison, translation as creation, applies. First the semantic closeness of the terms creation and creativity that are often used interchangeably in the field of Translation Studies are examined. Then, the connections between the translation process as creative development and its “result” perceived as creation are discussed. It is argued that it may be possible to read a translation as a creation if it results from an effort aiming at reducing the difference between the texts and seeking an aesthetic and poetic concordance between languages by drawing on the resources of the target language. To this end, excerpts from the poem “The Sea in Winter” by Derek Mahon, and its translation into French, “La mer hivernale,” by Jacques Chuto are contrasted to bring to light the forces behind the ordinary task of creative translating.