I studied Japanese in Australia, spent a year in Japan in 1990, and moved here in 2007. I'm a J to E translator, with a background in travel, a qualified tea ceremony instructor, and DJ, with a fixation for kanji. I also run gay/mixed Bar Chueca Kobe on Sundays, offering Spanish vermouth and disco music! You can always find me at https://mastodon.cloud/@DervPerv

Alice has lived and worked in Japan for close to 25 years. She studied Japanese art at Princeton University and translates for museums throughout Japan. Her popular column in The Japan Times, which ran from 2001 to 2015, answered readers’ questions on Japan with meticulously researched yet decidedly off-beat reports on everything from industrial safety to traditional talismans. She has appeared on NHK World and is certified as an expert consultant by the Japan Tourism Agency.

Tim Hornyak is a Canadian writer based in Tokyo, Japan, who has worked in journalism for more than 20 years. He has written extensively about travel, food, technology, science, culture and business in Japan for media including The New York Times, Nature, Science, Scientific American, CNBC, CNET, The Japan Times and IDG News. He is the author of Loving the Machine: The Art and Science of Japanese Robots.

Since his arrival in Asia in 1965, Mark Schreiber held jobs in retailing, public relations, advertising and market research before becoming a freelance writer and translator.

Elizabeth is a writer and stay-at-home mother wrapping up her PhD dissertation in Japanese and Canadian History from her home in Kyushu. If she’s not in a bookstore scouring the shelves for new finds, flipping through a recent fashion magazine, or ordering a royal milk tea to go, she is probably in a nearby park teaching her daughter the names of flowers in English and Japanese.

Originally from London, Julian Ryall has lived in Japan since 1992 and writes for media outlets around the world. He covers politics, international relations, economics, travel and social issues.

I’m a current eikaiwa (English conversation) teacher who loves to travel. When I get some of that coveted time off, I like to explore as much of Japan as possible! In my free time I take photos, do digital art, and practice my kanji through the art of Japanese calligraphy.

Azby Brown is a native of New Orleans, and has lived in Japan since 1985. He is a leading authority on Japanese architecture, design, and environmentalism, and the author of several influential books including The Very Small Home (2005), Just Enough: Lessons in living green from traditional Japan (2010), and The Genius of Japanese Carpentry (2014). Since the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant disaster in March 2011, Azby has been lead researcher for Safecast.