Good to meet you, and thanks for stopping by!

Ever since I was young, I found myself drawn to Japanese culture, from its anime and manga to its Shinto ceremonies and the quirks behind each kanji.

I began studying the Japanese language at age 16 and added a double major in Japanese in my second year at UC Irvine. I had an immense passion for translation and the Japanese language, and a semester abroad in the Japanese countryside was the last thing that convinced me to pursue a career in translation.

After graduating, I was admitted to the JET program and spent a year teaching English in a tiny mountain village in Yamanashi, where every day granted me the wondrous sight of Mt. Fuji peeking out between the gap in the valley.  The immersive experience only reinforced my decision to translate full-time, as well as granted me the cultural knowledge that would later assist me in my work.

I enrolled in Kent State University’s MA program in Translation in 2014, where I spent two years learning not only about translation, but translation theory and philosophy, ethics, editing, programming, software localization, and a brief foray into screenwriting. (You can read some excerpts from my thesis here.)

After moving back to Los Angeles as a full-time freelance translator, I joined SEGA of America, where I translated, edited, engineered, and managed dozens of game projects, eventually being promoted to Localization Coordinator. Over the course of my five years, I revolutionized the data management process in the Production department by coding an all-in-one localization management system that seamlessly connected developer assets and deliveries to in-house CAT tools and project management trackers.

Today, I live in Orange County, CA, where I work full-time for Deluxe coordinating the localization of Hollywood films and TV shows into 30+ languages. By night, I moonlight as a localization specialist, translating and consulting for the entertainment industry.