Rob Goss

@robgoss.bsky.social

434 Followers 242 Following

Author/Writer. Books and features on Japan, travel & cultural regeneration; Lonely Planet guides; haiku & haibun; short scripts. Next books: Another Japan (Gestalten, 2026) In Brief: A Year in Haiku (Self-pub, 2026). www.robgosswriter.com

Book and dog’s paw. Book is called Another Japan.
I like that there are websites and social media accounts that post editor callouts and opportunities for writers. I also get that many publications legitimately have low budgets and that it's up to writers to decide what fees are acceptable for them. But I think it would help even more to somehow label the opportunities that offer extremely poor conditions, so early career writers are made aware that something like $100 for 1000 words is dreadful. Perhaps an opportunity to build an initial portfolio, but not a professional rate or anywhere near it.
Foreground is the broken lid of a plastic container. Background is a smiling black dog, a kuroshiba.
Four packs of painkilling patches.
Jammie Dodger biscuits. Great for dunking.
An outdoor performance of Noh.
Handsome kuroshiba looking into a box of books (just delivered) in disgust due to a distinct lack of snacks therein.
A snippet from a review of my latest book. One bit reads: Another Japan is an essential record of communities that prove real meaning is found in the simple moments and the enduring ties between people and place.
Myoga. A kind of ginger…I think. It so good when vinegared (maybe slightly sweetened too, or even with a touch of miso added) but also does well as tempura. ¥128 for this much feels like getting it at a quarter of regular price.
Screenshot from Yahoo Weather. It shows the path of two typhoons reaching Japan at the same time. A wet weekend ahead.
A banner at a supermarket in Tokyo. It says “cooling shelter” in Japanese and English, so people know they can pop in just to cool off when things get too hot.
A can of onion soup. With dog in background.
Blurb for a new book called Another Japan. Out in July in Europe, Sept elsewhere. It roughly says: by photographer Irwin Wong and writer Rob Goss, an intimate look at the resilience, creativity and living heritage of rural Japan.
A coffee tasting set. Three coffees. One each from Colombia, Costs Rica and Ethiopia. Though “Bioreactor” sounds more like something that melts down at the start of a disaster movie than a coffee.
Packets of myoga, a kind of Japanese ginger (I think…)
Cherry blossom petals covering the pavement in my part of Tokyo. With an outrageously handsome kuroshiba standing in the middle of it all, probably contemplating where to pee next.
Wembley stadium at night.
This is very unhelpful alt text because I don’t know what the flower is. Kind of lilac color. Small.
Henry, the world’s finest kuroshiba, snoring his way through a captioning day.
A kuroshiba, or black shiba, luxuriating in bed.
A screenshot of a haiku. It reads: Clearing skies The dog Finds every puddle
Yahoo Japan’s pollen forecast. The cedar, which causes runny nose carnage, will kick in properly from tomorrow.
Text that reads: In Japan’s 72 traditional micro seasons, winter gradually hints at giving way to spring with rain moistening the soil, mists that linger, and the surfacing of hibernating insects. In Tokyo, some of the old signs of transition still appear, but I tend to notice spring’s arrival elsewhere.
Henry, voted* Japan’s finest kuroshiba for 11 consecutive years, taking a break between snow-yellowing work today in Tokyo. *source needed
The view from the window of the bullet train. Mountains capped with snow in the background, fields in the foreground. Knackered writer holding phone (not pictured).
A small bottle of wine (250ml) that came with a thimble-sized cup.
I say coffee…it’s a nespresso. Makes me want to shave my tongue. Nevertheless, the snow in northern Hyogo right now is beautiful. This is the sight from my ryokan window. Somewhere under all that is a little Japanese garden.
Snow covered entrance to a shrine.
A rough sea on the northern coast of Kyoto prefecture.
On the coast of Fukui in the Hokuriku region of Japan. A red bridge leading over choppy water to a torii gate.
Snowy fields with mountains in the distance and a big wodge of blue sky.
A golf ball on a frosty fairway.
It’s not quite the same as clotted from Devon or Cornwall (it doesn’t have the lovely yellow “crust” of a Langage or Rhodda’s), but this Japanese clotted isn’t a bad alternative, and it’s available at a non-import kind of price at normal supermarkets here in Tokyo.
A page from a booklet, describing “gojukata” in Japanese. Literally “fifty years old shoulder” (in my case, achieved before 50…do a get a special achievement award for that?). It’s basically frozen shoulder or stiffness.
A pack of custard creams and a kuroshiba who won’t be getting any of them.
The inside of a Japanese bullet train.
The Shikoku Karst, a highland area in Kochi, Japan that’s accented by limestone rocks.
The inside of a Shinkansen, aka bullet train. Not in the Green car…so I brought my own flask of PG Tips.
A fawning bit of text that requires a sick bag.
An entirely unnecessary wrist device for gauging wrist position in a golf swing.
A firelit performance of Noh on Sado Island, Japan.
An iPhone screen with data about a very bad golf swing. Golf range in the background.
A cardboard box full of mikan (satsuma).
Eef Beach. Apparently it’s on Japan’s Best 100 Beaches list. Japan is fond of those kind of lists…
A black and white dog (a kuroshiba) being an idle sod while its dog-dad scrambles to deliver the first half of a book on time.
A screenshot from Nat Geo, introducing a story about Yamagata Prefecture in Japan.
A clump of cooked bread dough. Not risen because I forgot to put yeast in the bread maker.
Book cover of British Railways Locomotives. 1957.
A black and white shiba (dog) looking at the screen of an iPad.
The River Avon.
Cows in a field.
A football pitch. Two teams of donkeys could’ve played better.
The centre of the village. The road is lined with older stone/granite buildings. In the distance are fields.
Screenshot of a page of text. The text reads: What are the travel writing mentoring sessions like? A session isn’t one size fits all. It isn’t a fixed class. Each one runs for about an hour and the focus is up to the participant. Some people have wanted to discuss their freelance business plans or talk about how/what/who to pitch. Others have wanted to discuss specific pitches or get feedback on a writing sample. Some have wanted help building a strategy for transitioning from teaching to writing (like I did), or for going from writing for Japan-based media to writing for markets overseas (like I do). A few have wanted to share the frustrations they’ve encountered and then get some advice. When a participant isn’t entirely sure what they want to focus on, I often send them this blogpost about freelancing, and then we can hone in on some of the points it covers. With a few emails or DMs prior to a session, we can find something to structure a session around. When and how are the sessions conducted? Each session is conducted via Zoom. They are one-on-one and last about 60 minutes. I’m based in Tokyo (GMT+9) and (when not travelling) can schedule sessions on weekdays between 8am and 5pm my time. You don’t have to be in Japan – people have done sessions from Australia, the UK, and the US.
The interior of a Shinkansen, aka bullet train. This one goes from Shin Aomori in northern Japan down to Tokyo.
Yoshitomo Nara’s large statue of a dog, called Aomori-ken (Aomori Dog). On display in Aomori-ken (Aomori Prefecture).
A tall, thin glass of green tea (a lovely sencha from Kagoshima). In the background is a bonsai.
Nighttime Noh performance
A performance of Noh. The movement is very slow and deliberate, with actors in traditional costumes. The stage backdrop is a painting of a pine tree.
This is Henry. He’s a kuroshiba, currently with his tongue out and smiling. Possibly the most handsome kuroshiba, though frankly in need of a bath this weekend.