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Smart Habits for Translators – Podcast Review

Smart Habits for Translators – Podcast Review

I love podcasts, but I’m also really picky about them. Working full time, I only have so many hours in the day so I don’t want to waste said time on podcasts I don’t enjoy. There are a few podcasts

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Jennifer ODonnell February 22, 2021February 22, 2021 Advice, Translation Business No Comments Read more

Stephen Meyerink – Game Translator & Writer – Interviews With Localizers

Stephen Meyerink – Game Translator & Writer – Interviews With Localizers

– Discussions with people in the Japanese media localization industry – Stephen Meyerink Can you tell us about yourself? I can! I’m Stephen Meyerink, and I’m a J to E translator, writer, game development learner, and a lover of video

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Jennifer ODonnell February 11, 2021February 11, 2021 Interviews With Localizers No Comments Read more

Japanese – English Translation Competitions 2021

Japanese – English Translation Competitions 2021

It is a new year and a new round of translation competitions is upon us! At least I hope they will be! Last year was a bit of an odd one with everything that could possibly going wrong, going wrong.

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Jennifer ODonnell February 6, 2021February 6, 2021 Link Roundup, Literary Translation No Comments Read more

Why The Localization of Final Fantasy VII Remake Is Amazing

Why The Localization of Final Fantasy VII Remake Is Amazing

When I was in secondary school (when I had more time) I played Final Fantasy IX, VIII, VII, then X and X-2. I was hooked. So when the Final Fantasy VII Remake was announced many, many, many years ago, I

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Jennifer ODonnell January 15, 2021January 16, 2021 Localization, Translation Review No Comments Read more

Can You Learn Translation from “The Routledge Course in Japanese Translation”?

Can You Learn Translation from “The Routledge Course in Japanese Translation”?

The Routledge Course in Japanese Translation is based on a decade of Yoko Hasegawa’s experience teaching translation theory and practice at a University level in the US. It’s designed to be a complete guide for aspiring Japanese-English translators, but is

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Jennifer ODonnell December 5, 2020December 5, 2020 Education, Improve Translation Tips, Translation Review No Comments Read more

A Summary of “The Routledge Course in Japanese Translation”

A Summary of “The Routledge Course in Japanese Translation”

This is a breakdown summary of The Routledge Course in Japanese Translation. If you would like a review into how useful this is for translators please read Can You Learn Translation from “The Routledge Course in Japanese Translation”?   The

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Jennifer ODonnell December 5, 2020December 5, 2020 Education, Improve Translation Tips, Translation Review No Comments Read more

All You Need Is Kill – Translation Review

All You Need Is Kill – Translation Review

What if you’re stuck in a Groundhog day-like time loop? Only it’s not a creepy stalker romance, but a horrifying nightmare in a war-zone. And the English translation of this living nightmare is so beautifully done!   All You Need is

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Jennifer ODonnell October 24, 2020October 25, 2020 Translation Review No Comments Read more

How To Get into Video Game Localization – JAT PROJECT 2020

How To Get into Video Game Localization – JAT PROJECT 2020

On September 13th 2020 I held a talk for the Japan Association of Translators (JAT) online conference PROJECT. Each talk focused on a different sub-genre of Japanese English translation. Literary, medical, legal, interpreting, how to use CAT tools, and entertainment.

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Jennifer ODonnell October 10, 2020October 10, 2020 Advice, Localization, Translation Business No Comments Read more

If Cats Disappeared from the World – Translation Review

If Cats Disappeared from the World – Translation Review

What if all the cats disappeared from the world? What would be lost, what would be gained? The theme of this book is (as the narrator says many times) “you must lose something to gain something.” And, as a result of

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Jennifer ODonnell September 25, 2020October 9, 2020 Translation Review No Comments Read more

10 Japanese to English MANGA Professionals – Women in Translation Month

10 Japanese to English MANGA Professionals – Women in Translation Month

The other week I talked about Japanese to English female literary translators for Women in Translation Month, 2020. But as a counterpart to this, I wanted to shed light on some of the amazing female manga professionals. They aren’t just

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Jennifer ODonnell August 23, 2020 Manga Translation No Comments Read more

10 Must Read Japanese to English Literary Translators – Women in Translation Month

10 Must Read Japanese to English Literary Translators – Women in Translation Month

It’s Women in Translation Month! This event, that began in 2014, spans the entirety of August. It brings awareness to the gender imbalance of writers from other languages that are translated into English. But I also saw someone say that it

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Jennifer ODonnell August 11, 2020August 23, 2020 Literary Translation No Comments Read more

Working on Your Niche – How to Improve Your Translations Skills

Working on Your Niche – How to Improve Your Translations Skills

This was one of the biggest things I struggled with when I started out as a freelance translator: What is my niche? This was something I struggled with because what I wanted to do and what was available to me

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Jennifer ODonnell August 6, 2020August 6, 2020 Improve Translation Tips No Comments Read more

10 Modern Japanese Authors That Aren’t Murakami

10 Modern Japanese Authors That Aren’t Murakami

I often get the impression that people interested in Japan and literature only know of Haruki Murakami. Of course this isn’t actually true (at least I hope not), but if you search for “Japanese literature recommendations”, every single one of

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Jennifer ODonnell July 18, 2020August 11, 2020 Link Roundup, Literary Translation No Comments Read more

Webinar for Freelance Entertainment Translators: Finding Clients, Writing Cover e-mails, Resumes

Webinar for Freelance Entertainment Translators: Finding Clients, Writing Cover e-mails, Resumes

This article is a summary of a webinar I held on the Hon-yak’s discord on 5th July, 2020. The webinar was for freelance Japanese to English (and FIGS+) translators in the entertainment industry, but could apply to editors, letterers, etc.,

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Jennifer ODonnell July 10, 2020 Translation Business No Comments Read more

Improving Self-Editing – How to Improve Your Translations Skills

Improving Self-Editing – How to Improve Your Translations Skills

Some people don’t realize how important self-editing is to a translation. Even if you know an editor will look over your work it helps to have at least two or more passes of your work before submitting it. As a

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Jennifer ODonnell May 28, 2020February 6, 2021 Improve Translation Tips No Comments Read more

Celebrating Game Localization – Translation Link Roundup [Spring 2020]

Celebrating Game Localization – Translation Link Roundup [Spring 2020]

It seems that over the last year I found a lot of articles on games localization, creativity, and literary translation. These articles range from old and more recent articles. I have tried to organize them by relevance to each other

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Jennifer ODonnell May 17, 2020May 17, 2020 Link Roundup No Comments Read more

Learning from Others – How to Improve Your Translations Skills

Learning from Others – How to Improve Your Translations Skills

How can translators learn from others without taking a degree or class in translation? This is a question I have struggled with over the years. However, I’ve noticed that over time, one of the biggest impacts to improving my translation

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Jennifer ODonnell April 30, 2020August 6, 2020 Improve Translation Tips No Comments Read more

Improving English Writing – How to Improve Your Translations Skills

Improving English Writing – How to Improve Your Translations Skills

I explained in part one of this series how experienced translators will tell aspiring translators that they need to practice. However, that can be easier said than done. How does one practice and improve their translation skills? Translation isn’t just

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Jennifer ODonnell April 23, 2020August 6, 2020 Improve Translation Tips No Comments Read more

Understanding Source Texts – How to Improve Your Translations Skills

Understanding Source Texts – How to Improve Your Translations Skills

Translation is a highly skilled career, yet the majority of translators are self-taught. Perhaps a class at college or a seminar here and there, but the majority of translators don’t tend to go to school for formal training. Even those

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Jennifer ODonnell April 13, 2020August 6, 2020 Education, Improve Translation Tips, Japanese Language, Localization No Comments Read more

My Manga Translation Process

My Manga Translation Process

I’ve been thinking a lot about how people go about translating lately. Everyone’s different, we all find our own ways to approach translation. Not just how we translate something but how we translate it; the process from being given a

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Jennifer ODonnell March 28, 2020March 28, 2020 Freelance Life, Manga Translation No Comments Read more

Japanese – English Translation Competitions 2020

Japanese – English Translation Competitions 2020

Japanese – English translation competitions are a great way to improve your translation skills and get your name out there. They can be particularly great for people new to the industry for putting on resumes. If you win one you’re

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Jennifer ODonnell January 12, 2020October 5, 2020 Literary Translation, Localization No Comments Read more

Emily Balistrieri – Literary Translator – Interviews With Localizers

Emily Balistrieri – Literary Translator – Interviews With Localizers

– Discussions with people in the Japanese media localization industry – Emily Balistrieri   Can you tell us about yourself? I’m Tristan, a nonbinary trans guy (he/him) from Wisconsin currently living in Tokyo; I’m in the process of coming out

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Jennifer ODonnell December 21, 2019December 21, 2019 Interviews With Localizers No Comments Read more

Sarah Tangney – Freelance Japanese-English Game Translator – Interviews With Localizers

Sarah Tangney – Freelance Japanese-English Game Translator – Interviews With Localizers

– Discussions with people in the Japanese media localization industry – Sarah Tangney   Meet Sarah Tangney Hi! I’m a translator/editor/writer, and I’ve been fascinated by words and language for my whole life. My Japanese studies started because of anime

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Jennifer ODonnell November 30, 2019December 1, 2019 Interviews With Localizers No Comments Read more

Manga Translation Pitfalls

Manga Translation Pitfalls

A manga translation can vary drastically when handled by different people. Not just the translator, but editors, adapters, and of course companies, have their own approaches and preferences (hence why styles guides are a thing). I (Jennifer) teamed up with

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Jennifer ODonnell November 16, 2019November 16, 2019 Literary Translation, Localization, Manga Translation No Comments Read more

Molly Rabbitt – Translator and Educator – Interviews With Localizers

Molly Rabbitt – Translator and Educator – Interviews With Localizers

– Discussions with people in the Japanese media localization industry – Molly Rabbitt   Can you tell us about yourself? Hi! I’m your friendly neighborhood translator, Molly. Sorry you haven’t seen me for a minute. I’m still alive, I’ve just

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Jennifer ODonnell November 10, 2019November 10, 2019 Interviews With Localizers No Comments Read more

Lucile Danilov – French Game Translator and Consultant – Interviews With Localizers

Lucile Danilov – French Game Translator and Consultant – Interviews With Localizers

– Discussions with people in the Japanese media localization industry – Lucile Danilov   Can you tell us about yourself? Hello! I’m Lucile Danilov. I’ve been working in the games industry for about 12 years now… Which I guess makes

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Jennifer ODonnell October 14, 2019October 14, 2019 Interviews With Localizers No Comments Read more

Julie Goniwich – Technical and Creative Translator – Interviews With Localizers

Julie Goniwich – Technical and Creative Translator – Interviews With Localizers

– Discussions with people in the Japanese media localization industry – Julie Goniwich Meet Julie Goniwich I’m a freelance translator currently living in Japan with my husband and 3-year-old daughter. I worked in-house briefly, but I’ve been freelance for about

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Jennifer ODonnell September 29, 2019September 29, 2019 Interviews With Localizers No Comments Read more

Liz Bushouse – Video Game Translator – Interviews With Localizers

Liz Bushouse – Video Game Translator – Interviews With Localizers

– Discussions with people in the Japanese media localization industry – Liz Bushouse   Tell us about yourself! I’m Liz Bushouse, a freelance Japanese to English video game translator. I started translating professionally in 2016 when I was 26, so

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Jennifer ODonnell September 13, 2019February 11, 2021 Interviews With Localizers No Comments Read more

Jenny McKeon – Manga and Light Novel Translator – Interviews With Localizers

Jenny McKeon – Manga and Light Novel Translator – Interviews With Localizers

– Discussions with people in the Japanese media localization industry – Jenny McKeon Tell us about yourself! I’m Jenny McKeon, a Japanese to English translator of manga and light novels! I have a BA in Japanese and Linguistics from UMass

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Jennifer ODonnell August 18, 2019August 18, 2019 Interviews With Localizers No Comments Read more

Michelle Deco – Video Game Editor and Writer – Interview With Localizers

Michelle Deco – Video Game Editor and Writer – Interview With Localizers

– Discussions with people in the Japanese media localization industry – Michelle Deco   Can you tell us about yourself? Hi! My name’s Michelle Deco and I’m a Localization Writer/Editor! I currently work as a Localization Editor/Coordinator at NIS America.

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Jennifer ODonnell August 11, 2019August 12, 2019 Interviews With Localizers No Comments Read more
  • « Previous

Recent Posts

  • Smart Habits for Translators – Podcast Review
  • Stephen Meyerink – Game Translator & Writer – Interviews With Localizers
  • Japanese – English Translation Competitions 2021
  • Why The Localization of Final Fantasy VII Remake Is Amazing
  • Can You Learn Translation from “The Routledge Course in Japanese Translation”?
  • A Summary of “The Routledge Course in Japanese Translation”
  • All You Need Is Kill – Translation Review
  • How To Get into Video Game Localization – JAT PROJECT 2020

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Join me on Twitter!

@JENTranslations @JENTranslations
@aizoyurei @LimitedRunGames HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!

- February 24, 2021

h J R
@JENTranslations @JENTranslations
@EatsMeatsWes: This picture of Arthur must not have made it into the press kits for #GhostsNGoblinsResurrection. Hey @retroOtoko, Ghosts ‘n Goblins is back (from the grave), baby! https://t.co/u1bgVRw92C

- February 24, 2021

h J R
@JENTranslations @JENTranslations
@katrinaltrnsl8r: Revision is an essential part of the translation process! In this thread, I’m going to give ya’ll a behind-the-scenes look at how a subtitle translator adjusts, changes, and revises an episode (Horimiya 7). #amtranslating #horimiya https://t.co/XFAsd9F0Un

- February 23, 2021

h J R
@JENTranslations @JENTranslations
@mollymay5000 Niiiice!

- February 23, 2021

h J R
@JENTranslations @JENTranslations
Freelance translators/editors/letterers/PMs - listen to Smart Habits for Translators! I know I've harped on about them the last few weeks but it's SUCH a great podcast with lots of useful advice for both aspiring and established freelancers. https://t.co/68TpAlKnPK

- February 23, 2021

h J R
@JENTranslations @JENTranslations
@FestiveBuoy That's so depressing. I probably sound like an old woman but some people need to understand that if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all.

- February 23, 2021

h J R
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