What about something like Vamp though? I mean that is about vampires right? Isn't a best selling youth or teen novels now about vampires?

Browsing the local young adult section today at a local store (after reading this) I saw far worse for 13 and ups in the young adult section in terms of violence in a lot of the stories then "guns" including a few that brazenly talk about genocide as if it is nothing to bat an eye at... so would the "guns" really be a problem or just the title that could cause well meaning but unneccesarily overly protective people to judge it before they read it as some groups did with titles such as Harry Potter?

If voilence or the thought of it in young adult titles is their concern, then along with the series that brazenly dismissed genocide they totally missed a New York Times bestselling series in which the main female lead in the first book actually has to kill someone to save the people she is loves and guards, or do they consider that "justifiable" (and by default "okay") violence?

As to Zero's Familiar, can't similiar be said? I am not familiar with young adult romance novels by any means but don't they have just as suggestive fanservice in them, albeit with the written word (which can be far more tantalizing) instead of pictures but nonetheless fanservice of a type?

At least I can always find most of the novels in the manga section. I need to get the last two Crest of the Stars books. And I'm still going to wait for the other SS light novels.

even series that are in print right now?
like strawberry panic
my barnes and noble said strawberry panic vol 3 would be out in october

Yes, the entire line is on hold. The sales just aren't there, sadly.




It won't. See above.

This is very sad news. I hope you will try again in the near future.

I honestly hope that you DO release them. I've been looking forward to ZnT's release for nearly a year now, and yet, I see yet again that another series I'm looking forward to buying has been put on hold and/or canceled...

I mean, I know companies don't want us pirating and what not, but... When they license, but don't deliver, there's not much choice in the matter.

I sincerely hope that this 'on-hold' status ends, as I honestly prefer a hardback copy to a digital one. It's really sad when companies drop or just hold the license without actually bringing it over, because even though many people would love to buy it, the companies couldn't care about the fanbase, and only care about the money.

Which is one reason why pirating is so bad right now...

I truly hope for everyone's sake that you remember to hold true to the fans, and deliver on your promises. Too often have companies opted to break a promise just because "they weren't making enough money". So then, until I can get the option of purchasing a hard copy, back to pirating I go...

It's not because we don't care about the fanbase...we're fans ourselves! (And that's not an exaggeration on my part.)

The issue is that there is just not enough of a market for the books. And on top of that, these are very expensive books to translate and produce, so when they don't sell... they don't break even.

So it's not that we only care about money, it's that we want to stay in business. The market is in a different place now, and we've had to adapt to it just like everyone else.





Pirating of light novels isn't something that is that big of a concern as the quality of the translations just isn't there. The reason for this is that the translators are inexperienced, so you get uneven quality in the writing and passages where the translator just made stuff up because they were stuck due to a lack of experience with the Japanese language. In a novel, this is a cardinal sin that impacts the accuracy of the translation and clouds the author's original intent. You can't just have a kid fresh out of Japanese class doing a novel, you have to hire a professional translator to do it. The quality just won't be there otherwise.

@Adam Arnold


Yeah. But as fans it seems the only choice other than learning japanese to get a hold on LNs.

I really dislike reading things on my pc. I rather have a real book in my hand than read it on a PC-monitor.
And ebook-readers are too expensive imo.

So what other choice do we fans have?

There is no other choice than reading the fan-translated ones. And even that is hard since there are few people who translates them...



And yeah. I can understand that the LNs are not selling well in the western countries besides france.
But hopefully more readers will get used to them like in france. Even in Korea the LNs had a really bad start and now they are selling well.
I really really hope that the development of the market will show that there is a market for LNs besides the Yaoi-ones and mainstream-ones.

I do believe that this situation is very similar to the situation that manga was in. Back several years ago, manga didn't have a place in bookstores. Now? Light novels are just grouped with manga, even though they're not manga. I believe that similar to the situation with manga, should the Light Novels start to get their own section, they might catch on more.

I mean, think about it. Most people know about manga and anime, but hardly anyone's ever heard of a light novel. This is in large part an awareness thing. Many people who aren't interested in manga who might be interested in Light Novels don't bother, since light novels are just stuffed together with the manga.

I believe the first thing that needs to happen is that companies such as Seven Seas and Tokyopop and others need to work with the bookstores, and have them separate Manga and Light Novels. Doing so would most likely increase the sales of the Light Novels.

Of course, if you just go the "safe route", and look after your pocket book, there's no way of knowing. There is a bit of a gamble involved, but without risks, there won't be reward.

The least you can do is just stop licensing new Light Novels and deliver on the one's you've already promised the fans. I mean, nobody likes a slap in the face, this really does feel like one to me.

They had the Kino no Tabi novel in with the young adult section at my local Borders. But yeah, if they were in with other novels, they might get noticed, while as they're relatively easy to find in the manga section. For me, at least, that's convenient. But it doesn't stop me from checking the other novel sections to see if they have any light novels there.

In the case of books like Pita-Ten and Strawberry Panic, though, you do have to admit that it really makes no sense at all for the books not to be shelved with their manga counterparts.

What I'm trying to say is that just like how 10-15 years ago manga was relatively unknown, the same is true for Light Novels right now. Ideally, a deal would be struck to give them their own section. Unfortunately, most of the bookstores I've been to have no idea what a Light Novel is. I actually had to explain it to them.

So although giving them their own section would probably help, it's only one of a few steps needed. The most important one is to get the knowledge out there about what a Light Novel is. The most likely reason for low sales isn't that they're not good - we all can safely say that they are - It's that not many people know about them. A little knowledge can go a long way.

As far as the light novels you mentioned goes, sure, that may make sense on one level, but if you were to have a light novel section, you may attract people who wouldn't be interested in manga, while still keeping those whom would have bought it anyways. You can't just group all the Japanese stuff together and think it'll be okay. It'd be like not sorting by genre in a bookstore, but instead by country of origin. Sure, it makes sense. But sorting by genre makes MORE sense. Likewise, it'd probably be better if things were sorted in a similar fashion with Manga and Light Novels. You'd still get the people who get manga and light novels. You'd still NOT get the people who wouldn't get anything in non-manga format. But you WOULD get people wouldn't pick it up earlier because it was in the manga section next to it. Logically speaking, by separating manga and light novels, then putting the sections next to each other, you'd thus increase profits.

Though, that's an issue for the bookstores. You could encourage it, but ultimately it's their decision. So although you may have a little influence, it'd probably take a collective effort from the otaku community to get them to consider it.

I'd say that the first, and most important step would be to raise public awareness that they exist, and about what they are.
The second would probably be working with the bookstores to give them their own section.
The third would be to work out the kinks that pop up.

If all that fails, then one could safely assume that there is no real market for them in the US.

I'm not sure if you've actually got any say in Seven Seas, as I am not familiar with the ownership/order of power in the company, but at least for the sake of the fans, if not taking the risk with Light Novels, please release the things you've already licensed.

That's SUCH a shame! I really love Strawberry Panic, and was looking forward to Zero no Tsukaima...

But of course Adam is right, it's better to halt something that's not selling than go out of business altogether. I checked out some of the novels put out by amateur translators, and they're just so bad (Ai no Kusabi will either make you laugh or gag; even if you're a big fan from the OVA those novels are impossible to enjoy with the horrible diction and weird dialogue). I don't want to see some of my favorite stories butchered that way.

Let's hope sometime in the future we'll see the line picked up again. We'll still be here, Adam, when the market opens up again.

Wow, this pretty much summed up most of my opinions about the state of LN's! When it comes to seeking alternate ways to reading LN's, we, as fans, don't really have much of a choice but to read fan translations. Sure, they may not have the highest quality (that all depends on the group itself. I've read some manga scans that had a better translation than the official product... which is a bit depressing if you think about it...), but that's better than reading absolutely nothing. I can understand how a poor translation fogs the writers original intentions, but the way I see it, not releasing the novels at all fogs it even more! >_>

Now, for the bolded. Recently, I managed to get a friend of mine into Vampire Hunter D. He doesn't like comics...at all. ) It's just something that doesn't appeal to him. But he is kind of a book worm (especially for dark fantasy, and the likes). So I lent him my D books, and after getting a taste of D, he has become a fan of it, and has gone on to purchase all the volumes currently released.

Now, for the reason I'm posting this little rant. At my local BN, they stock D under the manga section (something that drives me freakin' insane, BTW). He never would have gone to that section to look for books, because it's a manga section, the name kinda gives a hint of what to expect. The only reason he learned of the series is because I told him about now. Now, this is one customer that gave DMP a fair share of his wallet, which is something he originally wouldn't have done, all because a book is placed in a manga section (which is already crowded as hell, mind you) thus becoming "just another manga", only when this "manga" fails, more money is lost... (just because something is written by a Japanese guy doesn't mean it's manga)

So I'm really for the idea of having a LN section of it's own, that way it won't drown in the manga mass. I don't know exactly how difficult it would be for bookstores to do this (though it doesn't seem that complicated at a distance...), but I honestly don't think LN's will survive unless something serious is done.



Now time for my other LN concern. I fear that LN are slowly inching towards the "point of no return". I know for a fact that everyone here has had a LN cancelled on them (that's what I get for putting any faith on TP...). Now, we have a whole line that's one hold for who knows how long. I fear that this will make even seasoned LN fans jaded. There's only so much we can take before we just stop, you know. I feel that I won't see the end to series such as Ballad, and SP and I won't see the start of the series this very topic is dedicated too. Hell, I don't want to purchase the 2nd volume of SP because I honestly don't think I'll see the 3rd.

Granted one could always import these series, or seek out fan- made translations (I love the fact that LN are pretty accessable! Furigana is your friend ), but that really doesn't help the R1 LN market now does it? So personally I'm am at a lost (I really would like to know if one should seek out alternatives to all these series, whatever they may be...), and I'm sure those who may not know Japanse at all feel pretty screwed by now, and I can tell you from experience that it's borderline impossible to get someone into a series if they don't think they'll finish reading it (word of mouth can only go so far...)

Heh, funny thing is that I read an article about this very problem a year ago, heh. Looks like the prophecy is being forfilled

Now, doom and gloom aside, here is something interesting that I think LN fans should look into. May as well end this rant on a somewhat positive (or at the very least, interesting) note. Granted, these aren't going to be LN from Japan, but it may help spread the word on what a LN actually is (either that or fail )

SniperX, I think most of us agree that the LNs should never have been put with the manga. It just doesn't make sense to put something that book fans can enjoy in a section where they'll never find it. I think I already told the story about how I asked after a Boogiepop LN and was told it was a manga.

Me: No, it's not.
Store person: Yes it is. It's in the manga section, it's labeled as manga.

It's particularly boggling that BOOKS, not even light novels but just books like Vampire Hunter D and the yaoi novels are stuck in the manga section. It leaves us fans to do all the marketing by giving them to skeptical friends who wind up loving them, but at first fight us all the way because they assume we have to be giving them manga.

But there you are. The light novels were put in the manga section, and they didn't work out. *Sigh* With other publishers putting out light novels, maybe they'll have more success. If they do, Seven Seas might have a chance at re-release. Thanks for the links, I'll have to support. The magazine sounds really interesting.

They're in the manga section for two reasons:
1) manga fans are the target audience for the books, and
2) that's how they're brought into stores.

Vampire Hunter D is listed as "science fiction/horror," but it's being sold into stores as a manga. Thus, the manga/graphic novel buyers are the ones ordering it. Many of the manga-themed novels wouldn't really stand much of a chance of getting ordered otherwise.

Nice Faillogic!

Target audience? Well, you do realize that's why I suggested making the new light novel section NEXT TO the manga section. Logically, it makes the most sense.

And IF they're actually brought into the store like that, it's just a simple matter of changing how they're brought into the stores.

I think you forget what it feels like to be let down as a fan. I believe that if a company licenses something, they have an obligation to hold true on that promise they made to fans by licensing. You may call yourself a fan, but to us you sound like a businessman, not a fan. After all, you're just talking about how expensive it is, rather than trying to work something out.

I hope that you're at least WILLING to propose the idea to the people in charge of Seven Seas, because right now, this looks like a bunch of slaps to us fans, as though you're just not willing to care what we think, or even willing to consider simple yet seemingly obvious ideas.

Eh? You know that Adam is the "Senior Editor in charge of licensed properties". I don't think he has to propose the idea to the people in charge of Seven Seas...


My opinion is: I don't really think it would make a great difference if you put the LNs into another section of a bookstore.
Look at Tokyopop. They tried to "mainstream" the layout of some series so that non-manga readers would buy them. Look at the covers of Scrapped Princess, Kino no Tabi, Crest of the Stars etc.
Those series arent that successfull as it seems now.

And just look. Most people have prejudices, naturally. If someone like a normal novel reader would see something like "Ballad of a Shinigami", opens the book and see that it contains manga-illustrations, I believe, he would put the novel back, where it was.

And even in the manga-community a lot of people have prejudices against LNs or something like that. Just read some forums. You read a lot of statements such as "I don't want to read a book! Thats boring!" or "I would rather buy a manga than a LN!" and things like that...

I wasn't aware he was the Senior Editor. Now I know I'm speaking to the right person. Thanks for enlightening me on this. I can actually say "shame on you" to him now and know I'm talking to the right person.

That wasn't in their own section. That was just put where the genre goes. I proposed its own section, and more importantly, I proposed raising public awareness. I even suggested that if NOTHING ELSE, hold true to the license. To the fans, the license is your promise. If you break that promise, they'll start ignoring licenses.

And we have. I don't care for licenses anymore, but for releases. If you license something, I don't care. I'll still keep downloading it. And gradually this is holding true for more and more people, as a higher and higher ratio of licenses are left alone. As such, we lose faith in the companies, and begin to learn to not trust the license.

Which is dangerous, because what follows immediately afterwards is just not caring for releases and full blown piracy.

I mean, even look at current events. Because they only thought of money and getting richer, we in the US just got screwed. More than ANYTHING else, we're begging you here. Don't forget what it's like to be a fan. I've been looking foward to something for nearly a year, since that first release date for ZnT came up. Yet, when the other day I look up the release date for the second, I get nothing but a WTF moment. It's like promising something great, then just when everyone's drooling over it and ready to get it, saying "HA! I was kidding!"

It's a great way to upset people.

I think, but am not 100% sure, that the book suppliers have little to no say as to how the bookstores allocate space. There are exceptions of course, for larger publishers to negotiate prime shelf space or end-caps, but mostly it is the perview of the store to decide where the books will be and how they are organized. To suggest that a Light Novel section should be created is a suggestion to be brought to the bookstores/chains; Seven Seas has little leverage to affect that change.

Creg