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Jenn & Wesley O'Donnell – Japanese-English Game and Media Translators

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The Translation Process

The Translation Process

The translation process is fundamental to translation but it’s often overlooked when people talk about translation. Everyone assumes everyone else knows it, so doesn’t feel the need to talk about it. As a result, the vast majority of translators have

Jennifer O'Donnell July 8, 2023January 19, 2024 Improve Translation Skills Read more

There’s No Translator Shortage, Just a Shortage of Decent Companies

There’s No Translator Shortage, Just a Shortage of Decent Companies

RWS, a massive LSP (language service provider) and the company that owns the CAT (computer aided translation) tool Trados, recently released a report stating that the number of experienced translators with 10+ years of experience has dropped by almost 10%

Jennifer O'Donnell June 9, 2023January 19, 2024 Industry Read more

Dazzling Dialogue for Translators — Book Review

Dazzling Dialogue for Translators — Book Review

How to Write Dazzling Dialogue: The Fastest Way to Improve Any Manuscript by James Scott Bell How to Write Dazzling Dialogue is a book written for English writers looking to improve their novel/screen play/comic, etc. by improving the dialogue. But

Jennifer O'Donnell April 24, 2023April 24, 2023 Further Education, Improve Translation Skills Read more

Effective Self-Editing for Terrific Translations

Effective Self-Editing for Terrific Translations

Your translation is done! It’s finished! Time to send it off! BUT WAIT!!! Did you edit it? Edit? I’m a translator, not an editor, why would I need to edit my translation? Why indeed! In this article we’ll be going

Jennifer O'Donnell April 8, 2023September 12, 2024 Improve Translation Skills Read more

Idol Burning – Translation Review

Idol Burning – Translation Review

On the surface Idol Burning (推し、燃ゆ Oshi Moyu) by Rin Usami and translated into English by Asa Yoneda, is a story about a young girl obsessed with an idol from a boy group, but underneath it’s an look at mental

Jennifer O'Donnell January 14, 2023January 14, 2023 Translation Review Read more

Japanese – English Translation Competitions 2023

Japanese – English Translation Competitions 2023

A list of translation competitions for Japanese to English translators in 2023. I’ve also posted a list of articles at the bottom which should help!   Japanese – English Translation Competitions 2023 Materials Provided I’ve been keeping an eye on

Jennifer O'Donnell January 5, 2023January 19, 2024 Improve Translation Skills, Literary Translation Read more

Translation Chat 20 – Janet Hsu chats about Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors (999)

Translation Chat 20 – Janet Hsu chats about Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors (999)

  Janet Hsu is a localization director that has worked in the video game industry for almost two decades. Janet chats about the English localization of the Nintendo DS Game Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors by director Kotaro Uchikoshi

Jennifer O'Donnell December 24, 2022August 14, 2023 Translation Chat Podcast Read more

Translated Books I Read in 2022

Translated Books I Read in 2022

One of my goals this year was to read more translated books, so in April I decided to start a reading challenge. Each month had a different theme which acts as a reading prompt to help select books. I only

Jennifer O'Donnell December 21, 2022December 17, 2022 Literary Translation, Translation Review Read more

Translation Chat 19 – Wesley O’Donnell chats about Paper Mario and the Origami King

Translation Chat 19 – Wesley O’Donnell chats about Paper Mario and the Origami King

  Wesley O’Donnell is a freelance Japanese to English translator living in Japan. He’s worked on a variety of manga and light novels with penchant towards fantasy and comedy. Wesley chats about the amazing characterization and comedy in the English

Jennifer O'Donnell December 16, 2022December 16, 2022 Translation Chat Podcast Read more

Becoming a Translator—There Is No Magic Button

Becoming a Translator—There Is No Magic Button

From talking to aspiring translators lately it feels like many want to know what the magic button is to become a translator. But, there is no magic button. There’s no one way to gain experience. There’s no one company that

Jennifer O'Donnell December 9, 2022December 11, 2022 Improve Translation Skills Read more

Translation Chat 18 – Taylor Drew chats about Tokyo Ueno Station

Translation Chat 18 – Taylor Drew chats about Tokyo Ueno Station

  Taylor Drew is a translator, writer, and manga proofreader based in Tokyo. She writes book reviews for her personal blog A Basket of Words and also does interview translations for Febri. Passionate for all things written and everything to

Jennifer O'Donnell December 5, 2022December 16, 2022 Translation Chat Podcast Read more

Translation Chat 17 – Erica Friedman chats about Whisper Me a Love Song

Translation Chat 17 – Erica Friedman chats about Whisper Me a Love Song

  Erica Friedman is the Founder of Yuricon and has run the world’s oldest and most comprehensive blog on Yuri, Okazu, since 2002. She has edited manga for JManga, Seven Seas and Udon Entertainment, most recently Riyoko Ikeda’s epic historical

Jennifer O'Donnell November 26, 2022December 16, 2022 Translation Chat Podcast Read more

What is the Japan Visualmedia Translation Academy (JVTA)?

What is the Japan Visualmedia Translation Academy (JVTA)?

There is a lack of comprehensive educational programs for Japanese to English translators. The vast majority of programs available are post-graduate degrees or evening classes for professionals. Which is all well and good if you already live in the city

Jennifer O'Donnell November 18, 2022June 10, 2023 Further Education, Improve Translation Skills Read more

Translation Chat 16 – Stephen Meyerink chats about Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions

Translation Chat 16 – Stephen Meyerink chats about Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions

  Stephen Meyerink is a freelance Japanese to English translator, writer, and author who has worked on video games, books, albums, manga, and more. He is a massive fan of video game music (in terms of both a historical practice

Jennifer O'Donnell November 12, 2022December 16, 2022 Translation Chat Podcast Read more

Translation Chat 15 – Alexander O. Smith chats about All You Need Is Kill

Translation Chat 15 – Alexander O. Smith chats about All You Need Is Kill

  Alexander O. Smith—who goes by Alex—is a translator, writer, and photographer living in Kamakura, Japan. As a translator, he’s worked on games like Final Fantasy 12, novels in the fantasy, sci-fi, and mystery genres, and manga. He’s written for

Jennifer O'Donnell November 5, 2022December 16, 2022 Translation Chat Podcast Read more

Translation Chat 14 – Keith Spencer chats about The Emissary

Translation Chat 14 – Keith Spencer chats about The Emissary

  Keith Spencer is a visual artist and translator based in Kyoto. His artwork has been exhibited in the US, Japan, and Canada, while his translations have appeared in artist books, galleries, and numerous art-related online publications. Keith chose to

Jennifer O'Donnell October 30, 2022December 16, 2022 Translation Chat Podcast Read more

Translation Chat 13 – Mercedez Clewis chats about Super Cub

Translation Chat 13 – Mercedez Clewis chats about Super Cub

  Mercedez (Meru) Clewis (they/their) is a Japanese to English translation and localization editor working primarily with light novels and visual novels, such as Idea Factory’s Cupid Parasite. They’re also a pop culture critic, anime and manga reviewer, and a

Jennifer O'Donnell October 21, 2022December 16, 2022 Translation Chat Podcast Read more

What Skills Do I Need to be A Game Translator? (Part 2: Soft Skills)

What Skills Do I Need to be A Game Translator? (Part 2: Soft Skills)

Video game translators don’t just need to be good at translating, they need to be good at communication, empathy, curiosity, and so much more to be able to have long-term successful careers. While part 1 of What Skills Do I

Jennifer O'Donnell October 14, 2022March 2, 2024 Freelance Business Advice, Improve Translation Skills Read more

Translation Chat 12 – Kaylyn Wylie chats about Monster Hunter World

Translation Chat 12 – Kaylyn Wylie chats about Monster Hunter World

  Kaylyn S. Wylie (she/they) is a Japanese to English media localization specialist working primarily with video games. You can see her work most recently in Ender Lilies and Artesnaut. If you’d like to catch what she’s up to, you

Jennifer O'Donnell October 10, 2022December 16, 2022 Translation Chat Podcast Read more

Translation Chat 11 – Christina Rose chats about Final Fantasy XIV

Translation Chat 11 – Christina Rose chats about Final Fantasy XIV

  Christina Rose is a video game and manga translator who enjoys demystifying the J-E media translation industry and its practices for people new to the field or looking to break in. Final Fantasy XIV is a sci-fi/fantasy MMORPG that has

Jennifer O'Donnell September 30, 2022December 16, 2022 Translation Chat Podcast Read more

The Hustle and The Guilt

The Hustle and The Guilt

There’s a heavy cloud of guilt that comes with freelancing. An oppressive mist that hovers behind you throughout your day. The cloud doesn’t say anything but you can feel its eyes boring into the back of your skull. You need

Jennifer O'Donnell September 30, 2022June 9, 2023 Freelance Business Advice, Industry, Localization Read more

What Skills Do I Need to be A Game Translator? (Part 1: Translation Skills)

What Skills Do I Need to be A Game Translator? (Part 1: Translation Skills)

From my experience, the skills every translator needs can be broken down into two categories: translation skills and soft skills. Which precise skills are ideal will vary depending on the field of translation, but this article is specifically focusing on

Jennifer O'Donnell September 22, 2022October 16, 2022 Improve Translation Skills Read more

Translating Character Voice

Translating Character Voice

Character voice is not accents or dialects. Although accents might play a part, character voice is instead imagining how a character would say something in a natural way given the greater context of the setting. What words would the character

Jennifer O'Donnell August 20, 2022August 20, 2022 Improve Translation Skills Read more

Persistent Pitfalls in Media Translation and How to Avoid Them

Persistent Pitfalls in Media Translation and How to Avoid Them

A guide to navigating the jungles of media translation. How to avoid direct translation traps, handle tricky false friends, squeeze text into tight spots and more in manga, anime, and games. This is the summary of a talk I did

Jennifer O'Donnell July 6, 2022July 6, 2022 Improve Translation Skills Read more

Kevin Ishizaka – Light Novels and Lyrics – Interviews With Localizers

Kevin Ishizaka – Light Novels and Lyrics – Interviews With Localizers

– Discussions with people in the Japanese media localization industry – Kevin Ishizaka   Can you tell us about yourself? Hello! I’m Kevin Ishizaka, a freelance Japanese-to-English translator based in Tokyo. I come from Washington, USA and have been in

Jennifer O'Donnell April 23, 2022April 23, 2022 Interviews With Localizers Read more

The 2022 Translated Literature Challenge

The 2022 Translated Literature Challenge

I want to read more and a wider variety of translated literature and so I started the Translated Literature Reading Challenge! Whether anyone joins or not, I will try and read at least one translated book a month based on

Jennifer O'Donnell April 22, 2022April 22, 2022 Literary Translation, Personal Read more

Japanese – English Translation Competitions 2022

Japanese – English Translation Competitions 2022

A list of translation competitions for Japanese to English translators in 2022. I’ve also posted a list of articles at the bottom which should help! Japanese – English Translation Competitions 2022 Materials Provided I’ve been keeping an eye on Japanese to

Jennifer O'Donnell February 24, 2022September 16, 2022 Link Roundup, Literary Translation Read more

Translation Chat Podcast 10 – Daniel McCalla chats about The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles

Translation Chat Podcast 10 – Daniel McCalla chats about The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles

Daniel McCalla is a Japanese to English video game translator and (occasional) editor. During his four years as a freelancer, he worked on titles such as Phantasy Star Online 2, Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis, Dragon Quest XI S,

Jennifer O'Donnell February 12, 2022December 16, 2022 Translation Chat Podcast Read more

Translation Chat Podcast 09 – Gavin Greene chats about Harmony by Project Itoh

Translation Chat Podcast 09 – Gavin Greene chats about Harmony by Project Itoh

  Gavin Greene is a freelance localization director, translator, and interpreter specializing in video games. In his ten years in the industry, he’s translated more games than he can count (he’s better at writing than math), many of them for

Jennifer O'Donnell February 5, 2022December 16, 2022 Translation Chat Podcast Read more

Jasmine Bernhardt – Light Novels and Games Translator – Interviews With Localizers

Jasmine Bernhardt – Light Novels and Games Translator – Interviews With Localizers

– Discussions with people in the Japanese media localization industry – Jasmine Bernhardt   Can you tell us about yourself? Hiya! I’m Jasmine Bernhardt, an American Japanese to English translator living in the UK. I mostly translate light novels, video

Jennifer O'Donnell January 29, 2022January 30, 2022 Interviews With Localizers Read more
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