Wayne P. Lammers
Japanese-English Translations
On-line Resume and Book Info

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• FIELDS I WORK IN

  • Literature, language education, traditional and contemporary culture
  • Film subtitles, video and movie scripts/transcripts
  • Manga and anime
  • Photo essays
  • Academic articles, speeches, grant proposals and reports
  • Web pages and general business documents of a not too techinical nature (company and conference brochures, catalog copy, PR scripts, press releases, market research, newsletters, correspondence, etc.); I do not handle financial, legal, or medical documents
  • Editorial services and accuracy checking for English-to-Japanese projects in the above fields

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• CAREER HISTORY

  • Translating since 1972; full time free-lancer since 1992
  • Translations Editor of Mangajin magazine, 1991-1997
  • Advising editor to Japan Related magazine, 1994-1995
  • Assistant Professor of Japanese Language and Literature, 1984-1992 (University of Wisconsin-Madison; Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR)
  • Foreign Language Instructor, Iwate University (Morioka, Japan), 1982-83

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• BACKGROUND & EDUCATION

  • Born in U.S.A., raised in Japan; naturally bilingual since childhood
    
  • Japanese grade school, Hokkaido International School (junior high), and The American School In Japan (high school)
  • Sophia University International College, Tokyo: B.A. in East Asian Area Studies, 1976
  • University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI: A.M. and Ph.D. in Far Eastern Languages and Literatures (Japanese), 1980 and 1987
  • University of Tokyo, Japan: Fulbright-Hays Dissertation Fellow, 1981-82

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• AWARDS AND GRANTS

  • 1998 National Endowment for the Arts Translation Grant
  • 1993-94 Japan-US Friendship Commission Prize for the Translation of Japanese Literature (Modern)
  • 1993 PEN West Literary Award for Translation
  • 1981-1982 Fulbright-Hays Dissertation Research Abroad Fellowship

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• PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

  • Association for Asian Studies

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• PUBLICATIONS (most recent items first)

  Books:

  • The Shadow of a Blue Cat. Champaign and London: Dalkey Archive Press, 2011, 978-1564786418. Translation of Aoneko kazoku tentenroku, a novel by Naoyuki Ii (1953- ). A Japanese Literature Publishing Project selection.
  • Yamihiko. Tokyo: Japan PEN Club, 2010. Translation of Yamihiko, a novella by Takashi Atoda (1935- ). The original work and translation were produced in commemoration of the 2010 International PEN Congress in Tokyo.
  • Spinning Tropics. New York: Vintage Books, 2009, 978-0307473691. Translation of Kaiten suru nettai, a novel by Aska Mochizuki (1973- ). Winner of the first Random House Kodansha Prize in 2007 (also known as the Knopf Kodansha Prize).
  • Woman on the Other Shore. Tokyo: Kodansha International, 2007, 978-4770030436. Translation of Taigan no kanojo, a novel by Mitsuyo Kakuta. A Japanese Literature Publishing Project selection.
  • Undercurrents: Episodes from a Life on the Edge. Tokyo: Kodansha International, 2005, 978-477003007X. Translation of Shintaro Ishihara's collection of true-life episodes, Waga jinsei no toki no toki. A Japanese Literature Publishing Project selection.
  • Japanese the Manga Way: An Illustrated Guide to Grammar & Structure. Stone Bridge Press, 2005, 978-1880656906. An introductory Japanese language text for beginners as well as a handy reference for intermediate learners, with real manga examples used to illustrate each grammar point.
  • Strangers. London: Faber & Faber, 2005, 978-0571224364. Translation of Taichi Yamada's novel, Ijin-tachi to no natsu. A Japanese Literature Publishing Project selection. Translation originally published by Vertical, Inc., New York, in 2003.
  • Evening Clouds. Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press, 2000, 978-1880656485. Translation of contemporary Japanese author Junzo Shono's (1921-2009) novel, Yube no kumo, with brief introduction. Supported by a National Endowment for the Arts Translation Grant in 1998-99.
  • Taken Captive: A Japanese POW's Story. John Wiley, 1996, 978-0471142859. Translation of Furyoki, a literary POW journal by Shohei Ooka (1909-1988). A Pacific Basin Institute Book.
  • Mangajin's Basic Japanese Through Comics, Books 1 & 2. Atlanta: Mangajin, 1993 (with Vaughan P. Simmons) and 1996 (with Lev Grote), 978-0963433512 and 978-0963433547.
  • Bringing Home the Sushi: An inside look at Japanese business through Japanese comics. Atlanta: Mangajin, 1995. With Laura Silverman and Mangajin staff, 978-0963433520.
  • Treasures 3: Stories and Art by Students in Japan and Oregon, Chris Weber, ed. Portland, OR: Oregon Students Writing and Art Foundation, 1994. Co-translated original Japanese stories into English (with Clint Morrison) and original English stories into Japanese (with Harada Ako and Kuchina Akiko) for separate English [978-0961605863] and Japanese [978-0961605839] editions. Skipping Stones Magazine Honor Award, 1996.
  • Still Life and Other Stories. Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press, 1992, 978-1880656027. Translations of short stories by contemporary Japanese author Junzo Shono, with brief introduction. Winner of two translation awards--from PEN West, and the Japan-U.S. Friendship Committee.
  • The Tale of Matsura: Fujiwara Teika's Experiment in Fiction. Michigan Monograph Series in Japanese Studies 9. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Center for Japanese Studies, 1992, 978-0939512483. Complete translation of a Japanese courtly tale from the 12th century, with extensive annotation, introduction, critical essay, and appendixes.

  Stories, Plays, Other:

  • "Pieces," translation of Mitsuyo Kakuta’s story, "Piisu," in March Was Made of Yarn, ed., Elmer Luke and David Karashima (New York: Vintage, 2012, 978-0307948861).
  • "Mazakon," translation of Mitsuyo Kakuta’s story, "Mazakon (Mama's Boy)," in Asia Literary Review No. 15, Spring 2010.
  • "The Crowning Bloom," translation of Mitsuyo Kakuta’s story, "Saigo ni saku hana," in Flower: Works of Fukui Kotaro (Tokyo: Kyuryudo, 2009).
  • "Good Luck Bag," translation of Mitsuyo Kakuta’s story, "Fukubukuro," and "Dress Me in the Night," translation of Areno Inoue's story "Yoru o kiru" in Japanese Literature Today No. 26, ed., the Japan PEN Club, 2009.
  • "Moving the Birds," translation of Mitsuyo Kakuta’s story, "Tori o Hakobu," in Asia Literary Review No. 7, Spring 2008.
  • "Men at Work," translation of Nagatsuka Keishi’s play, "Hataraku Otoko," in Half a Century of Japanese Theater X, 1990s Part 4, ed., Japan Playwrights Association (Tokyo: Kinokuniya, 2008, 978-4314101813).
  • "Disappearance," translation of Keralino Sandorovich’s play, "Shoshitsu," in Half a Century of Japanese Theater IX, 1990s Part 3, ed., Japan Playwrights Association (Tokyo: Kinokuniya, 2007, 978-4314101608).
  • "Evenings at the Pool," translation of Junzo Shono's "Purusaido Shokei," in The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Literature, Volume 2: From 1945 to the Present, ed., J. Thomas Rimer and Van C. Gessel (New York: Columbia University Press, 2007, 978-0231138048).
  • "Taken Captive (Furyoki)," first chapter of Shohei Ooka's POW journal, in The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Literature, Volume 1: From Restoration to Occupations, 1868-1945, ed., J. Thomas Rimer and Van C. Gessel (New York: Columbia University Press, 2005, 978-0231118613).
  • "Advice Column," translation of Kojima Nobuo's story "Tegami Sodan," in Two Lines: A Journal of Translation, 2001.
  • Mangajin magazine, 10 issues per year, 1991-1997. [ISSN 1051-8177] Collaborated on "Basic Japanese" column and produced most of Mangajin's manga translations and language/cultural notes; "Translator's Note" column, issues 43-52; a wide variety of other translation and editorial work for the magazine.
  • "Still Life," in The Showa Anthology: Modern Japanese Short Stories, Van C. Gessel and Tomone Matsumoto, ed., Kodansha International, 1985, 978-0870117394, 978-0870119222, 978-4770017086.
  • "The Succession (Kuniyuzuri): A Translation from Utsuho Monogatari," Monumenta Nipponica 37.2 (Summer, 1982).
  • "Sachiko, Who Was Killed by the Atomic Bomb," "We Shall Bring Forth New Life," and "America, Do Not Perish at Your Own Hands," in Kurihara Sadako, The Songs of Hiroshima. Hiroshima: Anthology Publishing Association, December 1981 edition (first edition 1980). Translations of poems by Kurihara Sadako.
  • Japanese A-bomb Literature: An Annotated Bibliography. Wilmington, OH: Wilmington College Peace Resource Center, 1977. With Osamu Masaoka. Bibliography of approximately 500 Japanese titles, most of which are in the collection of the Peace Resource Center.

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• SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF MY OTHER TRANSLATION ACTIVITIES

  Business:

  • Web-based survey of networking practices of 100 global corporations
  • In-house worker survey for Japanese subsidiary of major Silicon Valley firm
  • Wireless modem and router company website
  • Major commercial real estate firm website
  • Major electronics company foreign employee recruitment brochure
  • Osaka world championship sporting event brochure, questionnaire, correspondence
  • Osaka bayside shopping and entertainment center brochure
  • Trade show and international friendship fair brochures
  • Municipal PR materials for Kobe and other cities

  Culture:

  • Text portions of Eigo de meguru sekai no bijutsukan: Ruburu Bijutsukan ("English Tour of the World's Museums: The Louvre"), The Japan Times, 2010. An annotated study aid for students of English.
  • Project Gen participant for the ten-volume edition of Keiji Nakazawa's manga about Hiroshima, Barefood Gen (Hadashi no Gen). Published by Last Gasp of San Francisco; completed 2009.
  • Comic rakugo monologues from the classical repertoire, for U.S. performances by San'yutei Kyoraku, 1998-2002: "Grass Beach" (Shibahama), "Apprentices' Holiday" (Yabuiri), and "Broken Family" (Kowakare).
  • Numerous feature film subtitles (samurai dramas, contemporary action, classics)
  • Documentary film "I Lived But . . . " subtitles
  • Animated TV series "Hyper Police" subtitles
  • Photo book of contemporary paintings (artist's text)
  • Photo book on Japan’s creative genius (captions, text, chronology)
  • Machine translation research consulting
  • Book-length manga biography of the sculptor-priest Enku (1632-1695)
  • Feature length movie script in development for U.S. production
  • Advisory editor for a Japanese edition of "Dilbert" comic strips