From Craigslist Philadelphia. There are similar writing/tutoring centers in New York (The Superhero Supply Co.), San Francisco (The Pirate Supply Co.) and Seattle (Space Travel Supply Co.) Pretty nifty concept for getting kids into writing.
Attention Writers and Educators! (Northern Liberties)
Start-up nonprofit organization is looking for writers, tutors, and educators who want to be a part of an exciting literacy program. Inspired by Dave Eggers’ 826 Valencia in San Francisco, we are working to create a dynamic student tutoring and publishing center – with a magic shoppe attached! (Learn more by listening to Eggers’ podcast here:
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/dave_eggers_makes_his_ted_prize_wish_once_upon_a_school.html).
While we’re looking at the Northern Liberties area, we do not yet have a physical space. We’re in need of people who want to research, write, and advise now, and those who want to be in it for the long haul! Great opportunity for experienced writers and educators as well as humanities, writing, English, and education majors. Anyone with an interest in literacy in Philadelphia is welcome!
Join the team!
Philadelphia Youth Literacy Alliance
Meet-and-Greet and Planning Meeting
Saturday, Dec. 13, 2008 at 10:00 a.m.
Cafe Euphoria 1001-13 N. 2nd St. #23
If you can’t make it and are still interested, we’d still love to connect with you! Please reply to the above email.
We can’t wait to meet you and share our enthusiasm for this project!
Philadelphia Youth Literacy Alliance (PYLA)
Welcome to the first JetWit Haiku Challenge! The challenge is to submit one or more haiku using the designated word. The best haiku submitted wins the prize.
This week’s challenge will be judged by James Kennedy (Nara-ken, 2004-06), author of The Order of Odd-Fish.
- Designated word (chosen by James): “Fewmets“ (a Medieval English word that means the droppings of an animal, by which the hunter identifies the prey. Mentioned in Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wind In The Door, specifically as dragon droppings.)
- Deadline: Thursday, December 11, before 5:00p.m. EST
- Prize: Free copy of The Order of Odd-Fish mailed to you.
- Form: Haiku are typically 5-7-5 and have a seasonal reference. Though the form actually has a fair amount of flexibility. Ultimately, James is the judge. If you look at his website or read a page from his book, you’ll get a pretty quick read on his sensibilities.
- E-mail responses to: jetwit /atto/ jetwit /dotto/ com
Haiku Challenge! #1 – “Fewmets”
Books, Contest, Uncategorized, Writers 
Comments Off on Haiku Challenge! #1 – “Fewmets”
Welcome to the first JetWit Haiku Challenge! The challenge is to submit one or more haiku using the designated word. The best haiku submitted wins the prize.
This week’s challenge will be judged by James Kennedy (Nara-ken, 2004-06), author of The Order of Odd-Fish.
- Designated word (chosen by James): “Fewmets“ (a Medieval English word that means the droppings of an animal, by which the hunter identifies the prey. Mentioned in Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wind In The Door, specifically as dragon droppings.)
- Deadline: Thursday, December 11, before 5:00p.m. EST
- Prize: Free copy of The Order of Odd-Fish mailed to you.
- Form: Haiku are typically 5-7-5 and have a seasonal reference. Though the form actually has a fair amount of flexibility. Ultimately, James is the judge. If you look at his website or read a page from his book, you’ll get a pretty quick read on his sensibilities.
- E-mail responses to: jetwit /atto/ jetwit /dotto/ com
Tadaima! #3 – Knocking on doors
Career, Jobs, Uncategorized, Writers Comments Off on Tadaima! #3 – Knocking on doors
My name is Rick Ambrosio (Ibaraki-ken, 2006-08). And whether readjusting to post-JET life is something you’re facing now, will deal with in the future or if you just enjoy reconnecting with that awkwardly uncertain feeling you had when you got back from Japan, come along with me as I look for a new job, a new apartment, and yes, mow the lawn of my parent’s house. Tadaima!
I scored my lucky seat on the train. You see, on the LIRR, there is always a fold down seat right near the doors between cars. Granted it wasn’t rush hour or anything, I just always love getting that seat.
I sat carefully in a futile attempt to not wrinkle the pants of my navy suit. I also liked my orange tie that I picked up in the Harajuku Zara back in Japan. I needed to dress to impress, because it was offense time. Read More
Thanks to writer/designer Meredith Hodges-Boos (Ehime-ken, Uwajima-shi, Yoshida-cho, 2003-05), JetWit now has some funky new merchandise. Chotto mite kudasai!
JetWit Success Story #2
Blogs, Career, JETAA Chapter Beat, Jobs, Networking, Writers Comments Off on JetWit Success Story #2
Omedetou to freelance writer/editor Jonathan Trace (Fukuoka-ken, 2005-08) who just got an internship with a publishing company thanks to his work with JetWit as the JETAA Chapter Beat guy!
He found out about it through Julie Matysik (who herself got an internship at the same publishing company after a JET alum who works there saw her first two Editorial Pursuits posts on JetWit), who found out about the latest internship opportunity and passed it on to Jonathan because she knew through JetWit that he was looking for similar opportunities.
This is one of the strengths of the JET alumni network. There are lots more connections and opportunities out there, even in this tough economy. We just have to dig a little and sometimes be creative to find them.
Note: The internships are unpaid, albeit good places to start, which means Julie and Jonathan are both still in the market for paying jobs if anyone wants to hire them. (The JET alumni network is strong, but it’s not all-powerful. Not yet anyway. :-)
Update: Roland Kelts (Osaka, 1998-99)
Article/Journalism, Blogs, Books, Japan Trends, Roland Kelts, Writers Comments Off on Update: Roland Kelts (Osaka, 1998-99)
After chaperoning Pete Townsend and The Who around Japan for a couple weeks, having a press conference with Hayao Miyazaki and interviewing both Murakamis (Haruki and Ryu), Roland Kelts (Osaka, 1998-99) pauses to reflect on the interactions as well as some new perspectives on “pop culture” in his latest SOFT POWER, HARD TRUTHS column in the Daily Yomiuri.
Update: I just learned from Roland that the radio discussion listed below will actually not air this week.
You can also hear Roland on NPR’s “The World” this Thursday (i.e., tomorrow) for a program about the Japanese Language Proficiency Test in the US.
Is author David Mitchell a JET alum?
Books, Celebrity, Uncategorized, Writers Comments Off on Is author David Mitchell a JET alum?
Can anyone confirm whether award-winning author David Mitchell is an alumni of the JET Program? His Wikipedia entry and other info on the web make clear that he lived in Hiroshima for 8 years and taught English at a technical school. Just trying to confirm whether he’s a JET alum.
E-mail any info to jetwit /atto/ jetwit /dotto/ com.
FYI, he is the author of (among other things) Ghostwritten (1999), number9dream (2001), and CloudAtlas (2004).
I just learned about another JET alum author named Rob Weston (Nara-ken, 2002-04), currently a resident of Toronto, thanks to JETAA DC newsletter chair Gina Anderson (Nara-ken, 2003-05).
Rob is the author of Zorgamazoo, a “rhyming, rhythmical tale of Katrina, a girl with a big heart and an even bigger imagination” published this year by Penguin Books and available via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Powells.
If the website for the book (www.zorgamazoo.com) is any indication, then the book seems like an exceedingly fun read for adults as well as children. (Plus, I read the free excerpt and it turns out it is as fun as the website.)
You can also follow Rob’s blog at wayofthewest.wordpress.com
FYI, to see a list of all JET alum authors (of which JetWit is aware), go to jetwit.com/wordpress/library/authorsbooks. And if you know of any others, be a good JET alum and send an e-mail to jetwit /att/ jetwit /dotto/ com.
Translation Resources
Blogs, Career, Networking, Translating/Interpreting, Writers Comments Off on Translation Resources
I’ve been following a blog called Translation-Language-Culture (www.translationlanguageculture.com) written by a guy named Werner Patel, and I noticed a nice recent post about online resources for translators that I thought was worth sharing.
Werner specializes in English-German translation and is a Canadian citizen, though the blog addresses translation issues from a general perspective.
I’d be interested in hearing what JetWit readerst think of the site, especially any info or perspectives that might be particularly helpful to the JET/JET alum community.
Send any comments to jetwit /atto/ jetwit /dotto/ com.
Rise in Elderly Crime in Japan – by The Washington Post’s Blaine Harden
Article/Journalism, Japan Trends, Uncategorized, Writers Comments Off on Rise in Elderly Crime in Japan – by The Washington Post’s Blaine Harden
An interesting article about a rise in crime by the elderly in Japan, by the Washington Post’s Blaine Harden and Akiko Yamamoto. Apparently many older people, feeling isolated and disconnected, are engaging in shoplifting.
A question for JET alumni readers: Have you heard about or experienced this trend or related trends in other contexts? Do any JETs or JET alums out there interact with elderly communities on a regular basis? It seems like there’s a lot of potential for both volunteer and 
work opportunities for JET alums with regard to Japan’s aging population.
Send an e-mail to jetwit /atto/ jetwit /dotto/ com with any comments or perspectives, or post a comment below.
It turns out JET alum Lars Martinson, author of the graphic novel Tonoharu: Part 1, has a four-part series on his experience applying for a Monbusho Scholarship that’s worth reading.
JetWit also recently had a post about Lars completing a 10-part series on his site (larsmartinson.com) all about self-publishing. And I just realized he has a unique section on his site devoted to reflections from his time on JET.
It’s also worth noting that, while he had been living in Minneapolis, MN, more recently he’s relocated to Tokushima-ken in Shikoku for graduate school.
Julie Matysik (Yamanashi-ken, 2006-07) is a freelance copy editor and aspiring in-house editor who recently moved to NYC with her husband (also a JET alum). She has just started an internship in editing/publishing/writing. Editorial Pursuits chronicles her job hunting efforts, experiences and lessons learned.
Warning: the following post is coming from deep frustrations with job searching and the inability to land a solid entry-level job in the editing and publishing field over the past four months.
I cannot even begin to express how frustrating it is when you check a site daily for jobs and find nothing a) that you are qualified for, b) that is in the city you are living in, or c) — just plain nothing!
My most favorite, and most reliable, job searching sites-Publisher’s Marketplace, MediaBistro, and Book Jobs-have not posted anything pertinent to my job search needs in the last two weeks.
Of course, I know better than to blame the job search engines for Read More
Job: Entry level economic correspondent for major Japanese newspaper (DC)
Jobs, Translating/Interpreting, Writers Comments Off on Job: Entry level economic correspondent for major Japanese newspaper (DC)
This just in from JETAA DC:
Job at Major Japanese Newspaper Bureau
Tue Nov 25, 2008 3:06 pm
The JET Office in DC just got word of a job opening at a Japanese newspaper’s DC bureau. Not sure yet which newspaper it is for, but if you have questions, please contact Ms. Oya, whose contact info is at the bottom of this message.
Job Title: Entry-level Economic Correspondent
Job Category: Editing/Writing
# of Openings: 1
Job Description / Qualifications: DC office of Major Japanese newspaper company seeks an Entry-level reporter on economic/financial news. Must have bachelor’s degree or higher in Economics or related field or equivalent job experience. Advanced English and Japanese language skills in speaking, writing and reading absolutely necessary.
Location: Washington DO.CO. (Washington DO.CO.)
Salary: Up to 40K(DOE)
Job Type: Permanent Job Preference: Full-Time
Visa Sponsor: Yes
Languages: English: Business Level, Japanese: Native Level
Anyone who is interested in this position can send your resume to Ms.
Madoka Oya moya /atto/ actus-usa /dotto/ com .
Chopsticks NY – Latest issue now available online
Article/Journalism, Translating/Interpreting, Writers Comments Off on Chopsticks NY – Latest issue now available online
I just picked up the latest issue of Chopsticks New York at Cafe Zaiya on 41st St. between 5th Ave & Madsion, which means that it’s now also available online. (FYI, Chopsticks New York is the English language magazine with the cool cover art published by Trend Pot (which also publishes New York Japion, the Japanese language weekly free newspaper).
It’s also worth noting that freelance writers/interpreters/translators Kia Cheleen (CIR, Aichi-ken 1996-98, ALT 1998-1999) and Stacy Smith (CIR Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03) are both frequent contributors to the magazine (though their bylines are not always shown). In the current issue, I think Kia wrote the “Ask the Beauty Guru” and in the upcoming January issue Stacy will have an item on hai chu as well as a restaurant review of Saburi.
