thestarsshine

Only focusing on reading would actually make learning Japanese harder, I would think. The basic kana are phonetic so that, at least, is really easy to learn how to read aloud. Speaking is easy, so first I would learn the vowel sounds, recite the alphabet, etc. Listen to Japanese being spoken by native speakers. Then memorize hiragana, then katakana, then focus on learning lots of grammar and vocab and such. After you've gotten enough down that you can have a basic conversation aloud or written in kana, then you should try to learn at least a few kanji a week. That's what I did when I was first learning, more or less, and I assimilated quite a lot pretty quickly. I've fallen behind on my kanji and vocab studies and haven't done structured learning in a long time, but when I was, it was pretty quick. Then again, I was in actual Japanese classes after I'd learnt basic sounds and kana, so there is that. But that much you can actually learn on your own. For the rest, if traditional learning is off the table, I would consult online guides and maybe books, and find some learning partners. Preferably someone roughly at your learning level who you can learn stuff with, along with someone very experienced who really knows the language well. I wonder why you want to learn Japanese, if all you want to do is read it? If it's just so you can read manga, novels, or games and such, well... I can understand. That was my original motivation when I was younger, anyway. But it is such a large and complex undertaking that unless you have more motive than that (i.e. you find you really enjoy the language itself, and the culture, and the subtleties) I doubt you will be able to stick with it for very long. Anyway, regardless of all that, I wish you the best luck!

時々　（ときどき - sometimes) テレビゲームにはへただけど、私だって時々かちます。

Like the others have said, Youtube is super great for learning just about anything, including language. If you want people to help you with specific things, like you have questions or something, you could always just ask us here (I think that's how it works). I'd be happy to help you with what I know. But asking for general grammar help is pretty broad!

Hmmm, this is a tough one! Maybe I'd like to learn Spanish, my mother is fluent and also it's helpful for getting jobs in the area. Too bad said jobs usually pay the same amount as monolingual ones, though. Still, would be pretty cool to be able to understand what people are saying when I happen to be surrounded by Spanish speakers. Plus, Spanish sounds pretty, especially Spain Spanish. I might also like to learn some Korean someday. I've heard it's a lot easier than it looks!

When I was about 11, I started teaching myself Japanese, and learning a bit from my friend who had a Japanese tutor. I really loved learning it and I absorbed as much info as I could get my hands on (which admittedly wasn't a lot). I kept doing this self-learning thing up until high school when I tested into a ninth year Japanese immersion class.... it was tough, but gave me a huge advantage when they started offering mainstream Japanese classes at my school. I sometimes consider going to college to learn more Japanese, but it's so expensive and I'd have to take so many unrelated courses that I just don't see the value outweighing the cost. I hope one day to be making enough money that I can get a tutor or audit some courses or something, though, that would be amazing.

I would assume that depends on what language you speak natively, and which language you are learning. A native English speaker would probably have a reasonably easy time writing/reading a romance language, but a lot harder time writing/reading one with a completely different alphabet. For me, listening in Japanese is far easier than any of the other things. I can read okay, but my knowledge of kanji is limited, which causes problems. Even fewer are the kanji that I can actually write. I could probably get by pretty dang well if everything had furigana. Kana was all surprisingly easy for me to learn, though! I think the phonetics really helped. I imagine it would be really difficult for someone used to phonetic spelling to learn English. Our rules are so arbitrary and weird!

とにかく (anyway) とにかく、急ぎましょうか。妹がまってるから。

I have an American accent! It wasn't detectable by anyone I met in Canada, though. They all assumed I was Canadian. (They mostly didn't have accents either.) When speaking Japanese, hmm, I wonder if I have an accent. I don't think I do, but perhaps my cadence is a bit too bouncy for a native speaker. I've never really asked anyone who wasn't also a learner.

There has never really been a question of 'quitting' or not for me. It's more of 'am I gonna continue to practice?' I started learning Japanese because I played a lot of obscure games and watched anime and read manga, and it was helpful for understanding them better. I still do those things, so my skills get used no matter what, but I haven't been serious about studying in a long while (although I am always learning more by default). Lately I've been practicing a lot more though. I may not ever use Japanese for any practical reason other than hobbies, but I really enjoy learning it, and not just because of my hobbies either.

I love using video games to learn Japanese, though it took me ages to get to the point where I could understand enough to play them. It's so, so great for vocab study and proper word usage. Board games, though, would be hard without a partner. Though, Cards Against Humanity is in other languages?.... Man, if I had Japanese speaking friends, I would so play that with them.

I love the idea of teaching English in Japan, though I read a blog from someone who did it through the JET Program that was a bit of a horror story. The kids were hellions, pretty much, and did things like try to put their fingers in the teacher's butt as a kids' game.... I've heard from others that it was a great experience though, so I'm pretty unsure. I never did it myself, though I'd probably take the opportunity if I had it. I suppose you would have to know the culture. Personally, I'd want to teach middle school or older kids. It sounds rewarding and fun.

I never knew that!! I'd heard that said, and other uses of 'chanto', but I had absolutely no clue that it was an onomatopoeia. Kansai has its own too? Now I'd like to hear those. Thanks for sharing the link, OP!

Gosh this is really interesting. I've always been baffled by Kansai dialect -- I wonder why it's so different from standard Japanese? Thank you for posting this introduction! This should make understanding people with this 'accent' a bit easier for me. Thanks again!

スイカ　（watermelon) 何年前、日本語のクラスでこのゲームをしました。　楽しかったですね。

It has totally helped me! Initially it helped me a ton with getting pronunciation down, but after a certain point it was just great for learning vocab. It gets my mind in a framework of 'thinking in Japanese' just by hearing the language spoken for some time. I also translate songs for fun, which helps expand my vocabulary. Really, it's a great learning tool, and also awesome since there are so many talented Japanese artists.