Questions, corrections, a name our converter mangled, a phrase that came out stiffer than it should — all of it is welcome. We read everything, and we answer most of it.
The fastest way to reach us is hello@japanknowhow.com. One inbox, three editors, no ticket system. We aim to reply within two business days; during a heavy publishing week it can stretch to four.
If your message is about a specific page, paste the URL. It saves a round trip and gets you a better answer.
What to write about
| If you want to… | Send us… |
|---|---|
| Report a wrong katakana spelling | The name, the spelling we gave, and the spelling you believe is right — plus where you’ve seen it used, if you have a source |
| Flag outdated information | The page URL and what’s changed. Prices and rail-pass rules move fastest, so these are always useful |
| Suggest a phrase for the phrasebook | The situation you needed it in. Situations are more useful to us than isolated sentences |
| Ask a question we haven’t answered | Just the question. If it comes up more than a few times, it becomes an article |
| Pitch a guest article | A two-paragraph outline and one link to something you’ve written. Don’t send the finished draft first |
| Discuss advertising or partnerships | What you have in mind. We’ll tell you plainly whether it fits |
Corrections
We treat corrections as a priority, not a complaint. If something on this site is wrong, we fix the page and note what changed and when, right on the page. You don’t need to prove anything to a high standard to write in — a hunch that something looks off is a perfectly good reason to email us. Our full policy is on the fact-checking page.
Questions we can’t help with
To save you the wait, here’s what we always have to turn down:
- Personal translation requests. We’re a small editorial team, not a translation service. For anything that matters — legal documents, business correspondence, a tattoo — hire a professional translator.
- Tattoo approval. We’ll explain what a character means and how it reads. We won’t tell you it’s safe to put on your body permanently. See the note on our tools page about why.
- Visa, immigration, tax, and legal questions. These are jurisdiction-specific and change often. Ask the relevant consulate or a licensed professional.
- Homework. Happy to point you at the right article. Not going to write the essay.
Press and media
For interview requests, data from our name database, or permission to reproduce a chart, write to hello@japanknowhow.com with “Press” in the subject line. We’re glad to license material and we’re glad to be quoted; we just ask to be told where it’s running.
Privacy
When you email us, we keep the message and your address only as long as we need them to handle your question and any follow-up. We don’t add correspondents to a mailing list and we don’t pass addresses to anyone else. The details are in our privacy policy.