By JQ magazine editor Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe–shi, 2001-02). Justin has written about Japanese arts and entertainment for JETAA since 2005. For more of his articles, click here.

Live gatherings are back, and over 50,000 fans are expected to attend Anime NYC later this month, a three-day showcase of the best of Japanese pop culture, exclusive screenings, talks with iconic creators and industry leaders, Japanese games, and incredible live concerts.

Highlights from this year’s programming include:

FRIDAY, NOV. 19

• Funimation Presents Attack on Titan Final Season (4:30-5:30PM)
  Celebrate the end of Attack on Titan with two lead cast members on stage. Join Bryce Papenbrook (English voice of Eren Jaeger) and Jason Liebrecht (English voice of Zeke Jaeger) as they discuss their characters and their complex relationship, particularly during Attack on Titan Final Season Part 1 and the upcoming Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2.

• Shinji Aramaki Panel (5:00-5:45PM)

Shinji Aramaki is a film director and mechanical designer who will be conducting a rare live appearance. He has been directing anime films since the 1980s and is currently working on the CG anime series Blade Runner: Black Lotus (co-directed with Kenji Kamiyama) which will appear on Adult Swim and Crunchyroll.

SATURDAY, NOV. 20

• Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Special Event (12:00-1:30PM)
  Aniplex of America is proud to present all three lead voice actors on a stage for the first time this year! Join special guests Zach Aguilar (Tanjiro Kamado), Aleks Le (Zenitsu Agatsuma), and Bryce Papenbrook (Inouske Hashibira) and look back on the TV series and Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Movie: Mugen Train, plus the new Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Hinokami Chronicles game.

• Lupin the 3rd: Prison of the Past (3:30-5:30PM)

Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the gentleman thief Lupin’s first animated series with a trivia contest hosted by the dub cast along with awesome prizes and a world premiere screening.

SUNDAY, NOV. 21

• Pompo The Cinephile (12:00-1:30PM)

East Coast premiere! A rollicking, exuberant ode to the power of the movies and the joys and heartbreak of the creative process, as a new director and his team devote their lives to the pursuit of a “masterpiece.”

• BELLE (2:30- 5:00PM)

See a special advance screening of Mamoru Hosoda’s biggest film ever, BELLE, before it hits theaters early next year. When shy, everyday high school student Suzu enters “U,” a massive virtual world, she escapes into her online persona as popular idol singer Belle. When a mysterious “beast” enters her world, she embarks on an emotional quest to discover its identity—and her true self in the process.

Anime NYC takes place at Javits Center, 655 West 34th Street, Nov. 19-21. Click here for a complete list of programming. For tickets and more information, visit https://animenyc.com.

Welcome back to the US, JETs! You’re joining a national network of JET alumni. Join us for a primer on how the JET alumni network and local chapters can support you, a step-by-step guide to finding your post-JET career path, and a chance to mingle and socialize with other returnees and JET alumni. Co-hosted by USJETAA and PNW JETAA. Event is sponsored by Two Birds One Stone Learning.

REGISTER HERE

Find your timezone: 7 PM EST / 6 PM CST / 5 PM MST / 4 PM PST / 3 PM Alaska Time / 2 PM Hawaii Time

Agenda:

1) Welcome to the JET alumni network! (~10 mins)

2) “Finding Your Career Path After JET” with Emily Frank of Denver Career Catalyst with Q&A (~30-45 mins)

3) Additional career resources (~5 mins)

4) Networking and Mixing Breakout Rooms (~60 mins)

5) Closing

October 28 at 8 PM ET / 7 PM CT / 5 PM PT
Japan time: October 29 at 9 AM JT
Register free to get the access link:
https://usjetaa.wildapricot.org/event-4528144

In the lead up to next year’s 35th anniversary of the JET Program, join USJETAA for a creative program celebrating JET through the success of the alumni. Highlighting the contributions of JETs to the U.S.-Japan community, this variety show brings together the diverse community of JET alumni with snapshots into their experiences with arts, culture, research, and more!

Posted by Tom Baker

JET alum Todd Jay Leonard will lead a poetry workshop at the Oct. 15-17 Japan Writers Conference, a free event that is happening online. The official description of his talk appears below.

Todd Jay Leonard
So you want to publish a book? 10 Basic Points to Keep in Mind!
Short Lecture with Q&A

Professor Leonard has published extensively over the past 30 years and is willing to share his experiences of both Japanese traditional publishing houses and POD formats to assist budding authors in their quests to get published.
This lecture will cover ten primary points that “potential” authors need to keep in mind when submitting a proposal to a publishing company or when self-publishing a book. He will outline the basic process from the book’s initial concept to getting the book into print to marketing it. His extensive experience in publishing as an author in Japan will serve to assist budding authors with the basics in the overall process that need to be considered when pursuing a publishing contract or when self-publishing. This is a short lecture with a Q & A format.
Todd Jay Leonard lives, writes, and teaches on the southern island of Kyushu, where he is a university professor at the University of Teacher Education Fukuoka. He has published extensively in academic journals, magazines, and newspapers on cross-cultural, historical, and Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) themes. He is the author of 25 books.

Posted by Tom Baker
JET alum Joy Jarman-Walsh will give a presentation on how to conduct an interview at the Japan Writers Conference, a free event that is happening online this year. The official description of her talk appears below.

Joy Jarman-Walsh
Live + Engaging Networking via Interviews with Japan Insiders
Short Lecture with Q&A

Moving beyond words on a page by live broadcasting interviews to a worldwide audience in real time – it seems daunting but is transparent and engaging, reaching new audiences tired of traditional media. If you are researching an article, you are actually prepared to livestream- let me explain how to do it, and why it’ll make your content better.
I’ve been on a crazy and unexpected journey researching and hosting daily interviews with various experts and insiders in Japan, or abroad who are focused on Japan, to dive into what it means to seek sustainability. A big part of seeking sustainability is transparency, which I think is also critical for good writing, which can be achieved by engaging with your audience as you create the content. I believe that one of the best ways to do this is by livestreaming content to engage with a wider audience. As of the end of May, I’ve done over 250 live interviews and the comments and questions of live viewers has been an important aspect of the finished product. I think this concept can inform and improve almost any type of writing project. There are key strategies to prepping for interviews as well as running live talkshows which engage with a live audience. There is also post-production work that needs to be done, including getting the interview onto a podcast platform. I will lay out not only the why’s but also the how-to’s of the process.
Joy Jarman-Walsh (jjwalsh) runs a daily livestream talkshow called #SeekingSustainabilityLive which had it’s 250th episode in May 2021. Joy co-founded GetHiroshima in 1999, worked as an Assistant Professor teaching Tourism and Business for more than 21 years, then started her own sustainability-focused travel consulting business, InboundAmbassador, in 2019. Joy has written for academic journals as well as travel copy and destination articles. Joy has an MA in Sustainable Tourism from ASU (USA).

Posted by Tom Baker

JET alum and Jeopardy champion Tom Baker will lead offer tips on how to write trivia questions at the Oct. 15-17 Japan Writers Conference, a free event that is happening online. The official description of his talk appears below.

Tom Baker
Trivia Tips: How to Write a Pub Quiz
Short Lecture with Q&A

“I once attended a pub quiz in Bristol where a dispute over an answer resulted in a wild west-style brawl and the police had to be called,” a woman told the BBC in 2005. “Arrests were made, including the quizmaster.”
Quizzes should be fun. If you wish to host one that doesn’t end in tears – or behind bars – well-written questions are essential.
Drawing on my experience as both a contestant and a quizmaster, I will offer tips on how to write questions that are clear, entertaining, and minimally disputable.
Using examples from quizzes seen on TV and at pubs around Tokyo, I will discuss a variety of question formats, writing with brevity and clarity, ways of organizing categories, anticipating hecklers and nit-pickers, making obscure questions guessable, and the importance of flattering your audience by writing easy questions that sound hard.
Tom Baker appeared on four regular-season episodes of the U.S. quiz show “Jeopardy!” in 2004, before returning for the season-ending Tournament of Champions. He first guest-hosted a round of a Tokyo pub quiz in 2019, and has written and presented more than 20 rounds since then. Topics have included “The FBI 10 Most Wanted List,” “Pigs and Rats,” “Literary Works,” “Officeholders,” “Prime Numbers,” “Traveling Around Japan,” “Body Parts” and “Motorcycle Gangs and Clubs.”

For details, visit http://japanwritersconference.org/

Posted by Tom Baker

JET poet Michael Frazier will lead a poetry workshop at the Oct. 15-17 Japan Writers Conference, a free event that is happening online. The official description of his talk appears below.

Michael Frazier
A Poem is a Thing that Moves: Contemporary Lyric Poems
Craft Workshop
Poetry
A lyric poem is a thing that moves, through time, one’s mind, and, in turn, moves the hearts of readers. We will read and analyze lyric poems that move towards unanswerable questions, via associative jumps, by Leila Chatti, Li-Young Lee, and Aracelis Girmay. We will write our own lyric poems!
Scan through most recently released poetry collections and you are bound to find poems marked not by chronological narratives, but by incongruent images, ideas, and questions seemingly held together by only a distinct first-person voice and the magic of poetry. In this workshop we want to dispel the illusion of the non-linear lyric poem. We will read a handful of lyric poems that rely on associative jumps by Leila Chatti, L-Young Lee, Terrance Hayes, and Aracelis Girmay. We will analyze how these writers navigate through a poem (motifs, music, etc.), and pursue a question to arrive at a new revelation (the turn). As a result, we will understand how their poems are maps for how their actual minds move and perceive the world. A poem is a thing that moves, through time, one’s mind, and, in turn, moves the hearts of readers. Under scaffolded prompting, we will write our own lyric poems that prioritize the patterns of our psyche.
Michael Frazier is a poet & HS Teacher living in Kanazawa, Japan. Pushcart Prize & Best New Poets nominated, his poems appear in Poetry Daily, The Offing, RHINO, Tinderbox, Tokyo Poetry Journal, and elsewhere. Currently, he’s facilitating a biweekly zoom poetry book club open to the public. Message @fraziermichael to join!

Posted by Tom Baker

JET alum Suzanne Kamata will lead a panel discussion on “Writing Identity” at the Oct. 15-17 Japan Writers Conference, a free event that is happening online. Suzanne is the author of multiple novels and nonfiction books, which you can read about at www.suzannekamata.com. The official descriptions of her talk appears below.

Suzanne Kamata
with Clara Kiyoko Kumagain, Kristin Osani, Clarissa Goenawan, Sara Fujimura
Writing Identity, From Inside and Outside
Panel Discussion
Fiction

Identity politics play a large part in determining which stories are published and how they are currently received in the English-speaking market. Generation Z readers — the audience for YA and New Adult titles — are especially aware of issues surrounding diversity, appropriation, and ownership. In this session, to be moderated by Suzanne Kamata, four authors of different backgrounds, writing about Japan from inside and out of their lanes, will discuss diversity, identity, inclusivity, and their own experiences and approaches to writing these in their own work.
In this era of #ownvoices and a heightened awareness of identity politics, what stories should be told, who should be allowed to write them, and how they should be presented are often contentious issues. In this moderated session, five authors of different backgrounds, writing inside and out of their lanes, will discuss diversity, identity, inclusivity, and their own experiences and approaches to writing these in their own work.
Award-winning author Suzanne Kamata was born and raised in the United States, but has lived in Japan for more than half of her life. She is the author or editor of 15 published books including, most recently, The Baseball Widow (Wyatt-Mackenzie Publishing, 2021) and Pop Flies, Robo-pets and Other Disasters (One Elm Books, 2020).
Clara Kiyoko Kumagai is from Canada, Japan and Ireland. She writes fiction and non-fiction for children and adults, and has had work published in Banshee, Room, Event, and Cicada. She currently lives in Tokyo.
Kristin Osani @KristinOsani is a freelance Japanese to English translator, writer, and editor
Her previous projects include Left Alive, Oninaki, Code Shifter, Dragalia Lost, and many more. Her short fiction is forthcoming in Flash Point SF.
Clarissa Goenawan is an Indonesian-born Singaporean writer. Her award-winning short fiction has appeared in literary magazines and anthologies in Singapore, Australia, Japan, Indonesia, the UK, and the US. Rainbirds, her first novel, has been published in eleven different languages.
Sara Fujimura @SaraFujimura is an award-winning young adult author and creative writing teacher. She is the American half of her Japanese-American family, and has written about Japanese culture and raising bicultural children for such magazines as Appleseeds, Learning Through History, East West, and Mothering, as well as travel-related articles for To Japan With Love. Her young adult novels include Tanabata Wish, Breathe, Every Reason We Shouldn’t (Tor Teen, 2020) and Faking Reality (Tor Teen, 2021). She lives in Phoenix with her husband and children.

Posted by Tom Baker

Joe Palermo, who came to Japan on the pre-JET MEF program in the 1980s, has written a memoir about what life in Japan was like back then. Next month, he will give a presentation at the Japan Writers Conference (a free event that is happening online this year) on how he went about self-publishing it – a topic sure to be of interest to anyone who has written about their own Japan experiences. The official descriptions of his talk appears below.

Joe Palermo
No Pianos, Pets or Foreigners! Self Publishing a Memoir in eBook, Paperback and Audiobook Format at Minimal Cost
Short Lecture with Q&A
Nonfiction
A young Japanese woman was running through Tokyo station screaming “Save me! Save me!” There was a Japanese man chasing her and closing in. He grabbed her wrist and caught her about 10 feet in front of me. The woman was still yelling “Save me! Save Me!” but the Japanese people in the crowded station ignored her, not wanting to get involved.
This is the beginning of one of the stories from my experience living in Japan in the 1980’s, where I had moved right after graduating university. It was still rare to see an American who could speak Japanese fluently. This book guides the reader though my many adventures navigating through Japanese culture while living in the outskirts of Tokyo, as well as Tokyo proper.
I will detail my experience writing and publishing a book and audiobook about my life in Japan, using Amazon KDP and Amazon ACX. I will talk about what I learned through the process and what I would do differently.
Joe Palermo has retired after 30+ years as a corporate executive at the Nielsen Company and Information Resources, Inc. (IRI). He lived and worked in Japan for eight years and is the author of “No Pianos, Pets or Foreigners! My Life in Japan in the 80’s”.

REGISTER

During this lunch seminar, Dr. Mary J. Eberhardinger will briefly present her latest research on gift-giving practices in Japan from her new book followed by an opportunity for questions and discussion on attendees’ personal experiences with gift-giving in Japan. Depending on the number of registrants, this event may use breakout rooms. Dr. Eberhardinger’s book “A Rhetoric and Philosophy of Gifts” examines the relationship between gifts and rhetoric, with particular attention given to Japan where she lived as a JET Program assistant language teacher in Hyogo from 2008-2010. Her book includes a review of related literature, analysis, examples, and personal anecdotes of overseas experiences. Eberhardinger concludes the book by offering implications and opportunities for interpreting gifts, thereby addressing why the question concerning the relationship between gifts and rhetoric matters for the larger landscape of international relations, intercultural friendship, and peace-making. Registrants will receive a discount code for purchasing her book.

Partially supported by funding from the Japan Local Government Center CLAIR and the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership.

Posted by Tom Baker

In non-pandemic years, the Japan Writers Conference is held on an autumn weekend at a university somewhere in Japan. This year it is being held online (Oct. 15-17), which means you can participate no matter where in the world you are.

At least nine JETs (including classic-edition MEFs) will be among the published writers giving presentations on how to write well – and how to sell your work. These include memoirist Joe Palermo, poet Michael Frazier, poet and picture book author Holly Thompson, textbook author Todd Jay Leonard, and travel consultant Joy Jarman-Walsh. More JET alums are mentioned in the (slightly JET-edited) official press release below:

Published writers to share how they did it

TOKYO (Sept. 14, 2021) – The Japan Writers Conference has announced a lineup of more than 30 presentations by published writers in a variety of fields, from food writing to screenwriting and from to novels to haiku, for its 15th annual event on Oct. 15-17.

Due to the pandemic, this year’s conference will be held online, with Zoom details to be made available at http://japanwritersconference.org/email-updates/. As always, it will be a free, interactive event open to all who are interested in the art, craft and business of writing.

Poetry, memoir, fiction and publishing will be major themes. Tokyo Poetry Journal associate editor Zoria Petkoska will discuss how technology enables “cyber poetry,” while noted haikuist Michael Dylan Welch will look into the past to examine the use of place names. Karen Hill Anton and Lianne Wakabayashi will discuss crafting their Japan-related memoirs. Novelist and JET Joanne Anderton will explore mixing autobiography into speculative fiction, while novelists Charles Kowalski (another JET) and Michael Pronko will speak about creating characters. Multiple writers will share tips on both traditional publishing and self-publishing.

Astrophysicist and author Elizabeth Tasker will participate in a panel discussion on “Social Media for Writers,” while young adult novelist Sara Fujimura will join a panel on “Writing Identity.” Prominent multi-genre author – and JET – Suzanne Kamata will be part of both panels.

For more variety, journalist Melinda Joe will serve up the basics of food writing, photographer Edward Levinson will discuss finding inspiration in nature, filmmaker Yuri Kageyama will premiere a work on the Fukushima nuclear disaster, and “Jeopardy!” quiz show champion Tom Baker, still another JET, will describe how to write trivia questions. And that’s far from all.

Details on this year’s event can be found at http://www.japanwritersconference.org
Inquiries should be directed to japanwritersconference@gmail.com.

JET alumna Sarah Coomber (Yamaguchi, 1994-1996) wrote The Same Moon about her adventures after moving to Japan! Sarah will read a short passage from her book and then we will take questions from the audience. You do not need to have read the book to enjoy this event. We hope you’ll join us. Two copies of Sarah’s book will be given away via random draw to those attending live.

Date: July 22, 2021

Time: 8 PM ET / 5 PM PT

Join: REGISTER

About The Same Moon

Recently wed—and quickly divorced—twenty-four-year-old Sarah Coomber escapes the disappointments of her Minnesota life for a job teaching English in Japan. Her plan is to use the year to reflect, heal and figure out what to do with her wrecked life while enjoying the culture of the country where she had previously spent a life-changing summer that included a romance with a young baseball player.

About the Author

Ever since she turned seventeen, Sarah Coomber has held two homes in her heart: Minnesota, where she grew up, and Yamaguchi, where she spent a summer with the Maeda family, who welcomed her like a third daughter and introduced her to what became an on-again, off-again Japanese life.

That life has included teaching English in Yamaguchi on the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program (1994-96); teaching Japanese language and dance to children at an immersion camp in Minnesota; and studying the koto—Japanese zither—in Yamaguchi and Portland, Oregon, where she achieved her level four Seiha School certification.

Sarah has worked as a public relations professional, reporter, science writer and college English teacher, and her stories and essays on Japan have appeared in the Christian Science Monitor, the Japan Times, the Star Tribune, Cha: An Asian Literary Journal, Memoir Journal, the Font: A Literary Journal for Language Teachers and elsewhere.

She now works as a communications/writing consultant and coach, and teaches Holy Yoga, exploring the nexus of yoga and the Christian faith. She lives … and tries to remember to breathe deeply … with her family in Minnesota. More about here at https://sarahcoomber.com/.

Join the U.S. JET Programme Alumni Association (USJETAA) and JETAA Western Japan for this upcoming event.

Becoming a Life Coach
May 24, 2021 at 4 pm PT / 7 pm ET
Japan Time: May 25th at 8 am

Register: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0rcu-spjMvG9E9FEycUK1GkZWy5-SLd6U

Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/24691713708797

Life coach? That’s a profession? Really?!? I’ve never heard of it! Perhaps you’ve heard of a life coach but aren’t quite sure exactly what it entails. Or maybe this is truly your first time. Join USJETAA and JET alum Jeff Singal who will kick off this event with a brief background on his journey from being a JET in Mie (1995-1997) to how he learned about life coaching as a profession and why and how he decided to enter this profession. We’ll cover how to become a life coach and what a life coach does, and much, much more. This event is brought to you by USJETAA and JETAA Western Japan.

The webinar is partially supported by CLAIR and the Japan Foundation CGP.

Posted by Tom Baker (Chiba, 1989-91)

Before the pandemic, Tokyo was famous for its nightlife — and a small but fun part of that was a thriving English-language pub quiz scene. Some of those quizzes are now taking place online via Zoom. One of them is a long-running charity fundraiser for TELL, a mental-health nonprofit that offers counseling, in person or by phone, to people dealing with depression, anxiety or other issues. TELL is best-known for its free, anonymous Lifeline (03-5774-0992). It also offers other services that you can read about at the TELL website.

The next two quizzes are set for April 7 and May 12. Both start at 8 p.m. Japan Time. Players generally participate in teams, but don’t be afraid to show up solo — the host will be happy to add you to an existing team. You can find all the details on these quizzes, and other upcoming events, at https://telljp.com/outreach/events/.

Mark your calendar, and get ready for a fun evening out — on a screen.

Posted by Tom Baker (Chiba 1989-91)

The 15th annual Japan Writers Conference will be held in October this year. The organizers are now looking for writers, editors and publishers to give presentations on the art, craft and business of writing. If you are a writer, now is a good time to think about taking part.

The conference is a free event, held in English. It covers publishable writing of all types: poetry, fiction, journalism, memoir, translation and more.

Past presenters have included best-selling thriller author Barry Eisler, Edgar-winning mystery novelist Naomi Hirahara and “Slumdog Millionaire” creator Vikas Swarup. There have also been presentations by many JET writers over the years, including poets Warren Decker and Michael Frazier, novelists Percival Constantine and Benjamin Martin, journalists Elaine Lies and Tom Baker, textbook author Todd Jay Leonard, and writing renaissance woman Suzanne Kamata. This year’s event will be cohosted by JET alum and novelist Charles Kowalski, together with nonfiction writer Joan Bailey.

Here are the official details:

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

The 2021 Japan Writers Conference will be at Tokai University, Shonan Campus in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa, on Saturday, October 16th and Sunday, October 17th, 2020. Hiratsuka is on Sagami Bay, not far from Odawara. As in the past, the conference will be free and open to all who wish to attend. Please mark your calendars and plan to join in. As the COVID-19 pandemic is still with us, there is a possibility we’ll have to move online again this year, or it may be a hybrid, with some sessions held live, some online.

All published writers, translators, editors, agents and publishers are welcome to submit presentation proposals for the 2021 Japan Writers Conference. The deadline for your proposal is Tuesday, June 1, 2021.

Please send your proposals via this page on the JWC website: http://japanwritersconference.org/submit-proposal/

We especially encourage proposals from new submitters. One of our strengths has been variety, and the best way to foster variety is to have new presenters each year.

When planning your JWC proposal, keep your audience in mind. Your listeners will be writers and others (translators, editors, publishers, and agents) concerned with creating publishable writing. While teaching, literary studies and private self-expression are all worthy activities, they are not the focus of this conference.

Standard conference sessions are fifty minutes long, but if you have something longer in mind, please let us know and we will accommodate if possible.

To submit a proposal for a conference presentation, send the following information, using the form here to submit: http://japanwritersconference.org/submit-proposal/

1. Your name (or names)
2. Title of presentation (20 words or less)
3. Type of presentation (short lecture with Q&A, craft workshop, panel discussion, reading with Q&A, etc.)
4. Genre (Fiction, Poetry, Nonfiction, Translation, Instructional, Career)
5. Short summary (50 words or less)
6. Abstract (150 words or less)
7. Personal and professional biography (50 words or less. Mention your publications, as this will be part of the Conference program)
8. Your publications (Need not be complete, but give names of journals and genre for short pieces; title, publisher and date for books; venues and dates for plays, and so on)
9. Are you available on both days?
10. Any special needs?
11. Contact information (email address, telephone number) These remain confidential. Please include everyone who will be part of the presentation.

If you are unable to use the website form, or
have questions concerning your idea or the conference in general, you may use this email address: japanwritersconference@gmail.com