AnimeSuki Forums

seaghyn16 · 2009-08-14, 20:07

@Apr:

How many series do you have?

Spice and Wolf is onto 12 volumes now, so 167 novels could still just be...14 series...^_^

??

apr · 2009-08-14, 20:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by seaghyn16

@Apr:

How many series do you have?

Spice and Wolf is onto 12 volumes now, so 167 novels could still just be...14 series...^_^

??

They're not all series, but if I remove all sequels, I have 50 different works. I usually start out with the first two novels in a series, except when I'm an idiot and buy too many. I regret getting 11 Kino novels at once, and since I haven't even started on Spice & Wolf, it was probably not very bright to get 7 in one go.

I wrote a review of Bakemonogatari 1+2 over here, if anyone's interested. It was great, and I made sure to get the rest of the series. There are some other reviews available as well, but I've already posted impressions in the thread.

NeoSam · 2009-08-16, 15:07

To seaghyn16, and the rest of the world

the light novel db has its own site now:
http://www.lightnoveldb.com

The previous light novel db was a subdomain of the lightnovel.org site at: db.lightnovel.org but the new site is its own domain.

The old db site is still working but it will soon be redirecting to the new site.

Everything that was in the old db is of course in the new db, but with the inclusion of nicer shorter url, the new url links look like this:
http://www.lightnoveldb.com/wiki/The_Sneaker

seaghyn16 · 2009-08-16, 23:54

I like it, I really like it

I just have to update it now ^_^

kuroishinigami · 2009-08-19, 07:11

Umm, I've got a question has the Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai series ends in vol 4? It seems like that in vol 3 but I haven't read vol 4 yet(and probably won't in a long while) so anyone who has read it maybe can tell me?

Thx in advance

seaghyn16 · 2009-08-26, 07:07

So I just realized something...

The funny think about the GOSICK novel, is that it's japanese writing is: ゴシック, which ironically also means "Gothic" in Japanese...and the main character is a goth-loli...

^_^

apr · 2009-08-26, 11:01

I received my BK1 package today, so I thought I could give a little report.

I ordered the items on August 10th, it was shipped out August 11th, and I received it today on August 26th. So it took about two weeks. I ordered four items (manga) costing 1828 yen, and the shipping was 880 yen, for a total of 2708 yen ($29). The packaging was superb, and the books actually arrived in a better condition than from Amazon (sometimes), although it took me 10 minutes to get it opened. I used the SAL shipping method.

Had I used Amazon, the shipping would have taken 3 days and cost 3400+4*300 = 4600 yen. In short, I recommend BK1 for smaller purchases, if you're not in a hurry.

seaghyn16 · 2009-08-26, 17:33

@apr, You forgot to mention the new total with amazon, for adding in the cost of the items as well, another 1828 yen, for a total of 6428. BK1 was 2708. That's a big difference. Congratulations on saving money

Also, I wanted to point out something else...had you bought those manga in English, at a bookstore in America, it would have cost you about 9.99 plus tax per book, so just buying 4 manga in english would have cost you 40$US, or around 3,500 yen. You actually SAVED MONEY buying the Japanese versions, and having them shipped to you. It was cheaper than buying them in English!!!

(Of course, they are like 350 or 400 yen in japanese, while in English the cost is more like 990 yen, right?)

So yeah...for people in America that want to learn Japanese and read manga...its CHEAPER to buy it online and have it shipped to you...lol...(through BK1)

But 2 weeks...I'd die ^_^

apr · 2009-08-26, 18:55

I didn't forget it, I was talking about the price of shipping, which is 4600 yen vs 880 yen.

I live in Europe. Localized manga volumes are 600-800 yen here, which is pretty much what I pay to have the Japanese edition shipped to my home. The quality of the Japanese volumes is much higher, though.

Waiting two weeks was more annoying than I had anticipated, since there is no way of knowing where the package is, or if it will even arrive. If it's lost somewhere you'll wait forever.

Onizuka-GTO · 2009-09-09, 22:52

woh what happened to http://db.lightnovel.org/index.php?title=Main_Page ?

has the server gone down or is it something more serious?

Matt122005 · 2009-09-10, 01:32

Oni, the link works here: http://www.lightnoveldb.com/wiki/Main_Page

Also, in case you guys didn't hear, there have been new english light novel sales rankings posted online for the first time. Check it out if you're interested to see how and what light novels are selling in the US: http://ranobecafe.wordpress.com/2009...ing-sept-2009/

apr · 2009-09-10, 15:25

Not very much action in this thread anymore. Did everyone stop reading light novels?

I'd like to recommend a short story collection called Aru Hi, Bakudan ga Ochitekite by Furuhashi Hideyuki. It's got 7 stand-alone stories based around time as a theme, and while the first one almost made me stop reading, the second was quite wonderful, and it kind of continues like that. 2 of the stories sort of rubbed me the wrong way (1+3), but the others were all enjoyable, and 3 were good enough that I would like to recommend them to any translators who happen to read the thread. They're only 30-40 pages long, so they should be much easier to translate than, say, Bakemonogatari, and they're so moving and quick to read that I think they could help pull new people into the world of light novels. I'd do it myself, but I feel I haven't got the skills for it yet, and my English isn't really up to scratch either.

I wrote a longer review on a blog, if there's more interest in the title.

It would be awesome if a studio picked this up for animation, like a 13 episode thing, or even a few OVAs. It's already been out for 4 years, however, so it's pretty unlikely.

Matt122005 · 2009-09-10, 22:19

Apr, yea, I read your review already. I'm going to buy it should I stumble upon it at my local japanese book store.

Thanks for your reviews of light novels, they're very much appreciated.

PS. The new weekly rankings for the most popular light novels are out: http://ranobecafe.wordpress.com/2009...aug-31-sept-6/

Guess what's #1 and #10? lol

kuroishinigami · 2009-09-10, 23:47

Wow for number one. Didn't expect many people like this stupid story lol. I can't wait for my order o arrive, whenever that is.

Onizuka-GTO · 2009-09-11, 17:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by Matt122005

PS. The new weekly rankings for the most popular light novels are out: http://ranobecafe.wordpress.com/2009...aug-31-sept-6/

Guess what's #1 and #10? lol

woah. who would of guessed?

Then again, Bakemonogatari has been climbing Baka-Tsuki popularity charts recently, so I shouldn't be so surprised.

Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu is the dark horse here, in my opinion.

The internal numbers show on average it ranked only 13th as opposed to Bakemonogatari at 7th.

interesting indeed.

Snickripep · 2009-09-12, 06:40

The Shakugan no Shana light novel (the first one, anyway) has been released in English. I picked it up at Borders a few weeks ago. I'm really enjoying it, and I'm not even a big fan of Shakugan no Shana.
If you're looking for an interesting, funny, and action-packed read, check it out.

http://www.borders.com/online/store/...sku=1421511932
http://www.amazon.com/Shakugan-Shana...2755569&sr=8-1
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Sha...1511931/?itm=3

If you finish the first one and want the second one, that has also been released in English.

*Please support the official releases of things like this! If we want more light novels/manga/anime/anything for the everyday otaku, we need to show them that they can make money off of this and that people are interested in buying them!*

Matt122005 · 2009-09-13, 17:38

There's an interesting new article up about Light Novel Book Commercials: http://ranobecafe.wordpress.com/2009...-do-they-work/

What do you think about it?

Hell_ping · 2009-09-14, 09:47

Hmm, interesting article there. However, to me, the commercials make me want to watch a movie or even a film of it instead of reading the novel. And I'm giving my thoughts without reference to any of these books, since I havent read them yet (Stupid A levels...)

The question is: "How does an advertisement work in the first place?", and the answer is that it works by trying to convince people to do what the promoters are trying to promote. Normally, this will work when there is something appealing. Having said that, advertisements try to appeal to us by playing with our senses, its a matter of whether they succeed or not.

For the American novels, no matter how eye-catching the commercial is, one has to remember that it is still made up of text. Sometimes the text just gets too dry and the person reading it may have the sense of feeling cheated. I know I will. One aspect of american novels are that normally, they are non-fantasy, aimed at the young adults or even adults to read. Book of Fate gave me a sense of Da Vinci's Code. Book Of the Dead gave me a feeling that we may be viewing the plot through the eyes of a coroner or a murderer. These are most likely aimed at the mature in mind, not your ordinary readers who can accept almost everything like a Harry Potter story. We may never know how successful these advertisements were in promoting their books, but one thing we do know is that it does succeed, but to an indefinite extent. This is because when people do something, they (almost) always have a reason for it. With the power of the media in today's world, there is a likelihood that people will come across these advertisements and be attracted to it, unless it is something extremely irritating like the recent EVONY advertisements appearing in like 1 out of 3 websites...

For the Japanese ones, normally there isnt much attention paid to it. Since the target audience here would also include the younger ones (11-18), it is supposed to be more attractive than the american counterparts. However, the main reason why not many people recognise Japan for their light novels is because of two things that are more attractive than it. Anime and Manga. These traditional powerhouses are more popular than light novels because visuals and sounds are more appealing to human senses than text. As they say, a picture says a thousand words. It was a nice attempt on the BoogiePop and Zaregoto advertisements, and unfortunately, there isnt any stats to prove that the advertisements worked. The power of the media is still powerful, but unfortunately, if the light novel is not recommended to them, who would even know of it in the first place? Take Haruhi for example. Before the anime aired, how many people even know of the existence of this light novel series? Advertisement is a great way to increase the awareness of something, even if it is a contraption. And it need not be the ordinary ones you normally see on the TV, even an anime series can work like an advertisement. BoogiePop and Zaregoto have extremely interesting advertisements that make it seem like it could be an anime series, and not a light novel itself. But the producers would have succeed in gaining the attention of the audience as a result.

Okay, enough of this AQ like question... Have a chinese site of translated light-novel series, so I might work as a translator once the A's end

Solafighter · 2009-09-14, 10:26

Well i think the best commercial for novels is in magazines and simmilar, because the commercials/trailers for books and novels are almost reviews or rezesions.

These TV commercials are not bad. They show, that novels are popular but for selling them, im not sure.

Matt122005 · 2009-09-14, 12:59

Since this is about RECOMMENDING light novels, I thought I'd let you know that there's a video review for the newly released "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" light novel: http://ranobecafe.wordpress.com/2009...ruhi-suzumiya/

I like the way the review was filmed. At least, to me, it's better than hearing the voice of some raspy guy behind a mic and the image of the book on the video screen. lol

Reviews are always fun, cause they let you hear the thoughts of someone else, and may help your own decision in buying something.

2009-08-14, 20:07	Link #261
seaghyn16 Translator Level 4/10 Join Date: Feb 2008	@Apr: How many series do you have? Spice and Wolf is onto 12 volumes now, so 167 novels could still just be...14 series...^_^ ?? __________________ Rain: Warrior Born on a Rainy Day - novels translation site.

2009-08-16, 15:07	Link #263
NeoSam Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Age: 43	To seaghyn16, and the rest of the world the light novel db has its own site now: http://www.lightnoveldb.com The previous light novel db was a subdomain of the lightnovel.org site at: db.lightnovel.org but the new site is its own domain. The old db site is still working but it will soon be redirecting to the new site. Everything that was in the old db is of course in the new db, but with the inclusion of nicer shorter url, the new url links look like this: http://www.lightnoveldb.com/wiki/The_Sneaker __________________

2009-08-16, 23:54	Link #264
seaghyn16 Translator Level 4/10 Join Date: Feb 2008	I like it, I really like it I just have to update it now ^_^ __________________ Rain: Warrior Born on a Rainy Day - novels translation site.

2009-08-26, 07:07	Link #266
seaghyn16 Translator Level 4/10 Join Date: Feb 2008	So I just realized something... The funny think about the GOSICK novel, is that it's japanese writing is: ゴシック, which ironically also means "Gothic" in Japanese...and the main character is a goth-loli... ^_^ __________________ Rain: Warrior Born on a Rainy Day - novels translation site.

2009-08-26, 11:01	Link #267
apr Pedestrian Join Date: May 2003 Location: Sweden	I received my BK1 package today, so I thought I could give a little report. I ordered the items on August 10th, it was shipped out August 11th, and I received it today on August 26th. So it took about two weeks. I ordered four items (manga) costing 1828 yen, and the shipping was 880 yen, for a total of 2708 yen ($29). The packaging was superb, and the books actually arrived in a better condition than from Amazon (sometimes), although it took me 10 minutes to get it opened. I used the SAL shipping method. Had I used Amazon, the shipping would have taken 3 days and cost 3400+4*300 = 4600 yen. In short, I recommend BK1 for smaller purchases, if you're not in a hurry. __________________ ...in my humble opinion.

2009-08-19, 07:11	Link #265
kuroishinigami Ava courtesy of patchy Join Date: Jan 2009	Umm, I've got a question has the Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai series ends in vol 4? It seems like that in vol 3 but I haven't read vol 4 yet(and probably won't in a long while) so anyone who has read it maybe can tell me? Thx in advance

2009-08-26, 17:33	Link #268
seaghyn16 Translator Level 4/10 Join Date: Feb 2008	@apr, You forgot to mention the new total with amazon, for adding in the cost of the items as well, another 1828 yen, for a total of 6428. BK1 was 2708. That's a big difference. Congratulations on saving money Also, I wanted to point out something else...had you bought those manga in English, at a bookstore in America, it would have cost you about 9.99 plus tax per book, so just buying 4 manga in english would have cost you 40$US, or around 3,500 yen. You actually SAVED MONEY buying the Japanese versions, and having them shipped to you. It was cheaper than buying them in English!!! (Of course, they are like 350 or 400 yen in japanese, while in English the cost is more like 990 yen, right?) So yeah...for people in America that want to learn Japanese and read manga...its CHEAPER to buy it online and have it shipped to you...lol...(through BK1) But 2 weeks...I'd die ^_^ __________________ Rain: Warrior Born on a Rainy Day - novels translation site.

2009-08-26, 18:55	Link #269
apr Pedestrian Join Date: May 2003 Location: Sweden	I didn't forget it, I was talking about the price of shipping, which is 4600 yen vs 880 yen. I live in Europe. Localized manga volumes are 600-800 yen here, which is pretty much what I pay to have the Japanese edition shipped to my home. The quality of the Japanese volumes is much higher, though. Waiting two weeks was more annoying than I had anticipated, since there is no way of knowing where the package is, or if it will even arrive. If it's lost somewhere you'll wait forever. __________________ ...in my humble opinion.

2009-09-09, 22:52	Link #270
Onizuka-GTO Holy Beast ~Wuff!~ Scanlator Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Leeds, UK Age: 41	woh what happened to http://db.lightnovel.org/index.php?title=Main_Page ? has the server gone down or is it something more serious? __________________

2009-09-10, 01:32	Link #271
Matt122005 Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Where I am, what more do you need to know?	Oni, the link works here: http://www.lightnoveldb.com/wiki/Main_Page Also, in case you guys didn't hear, there have been new english light novel sales rankings posted online for the first time. Check it out if you're interested to see how and what light novels are selling in the US: http://ranobecafe.wordpress.com/2009...ing-sept-2009/

2009-09-10, 15:25	Link #272
apr Pedestrian Join Date: May 2003 Location: Sweden	Not very much action in this thread anymore. Did everyone stop reading light novels? I'd like to recommend a short story collection called Aru Hi, Bakudan ga Ochitekite by Furuhashi Hideyuki. It's got 7 stand-alone stories based around time as a theme, and while the first one almost made me stop reading, the second was quite wonderful, and it kind of continues like that. 2 of the stories sort of rubbed me the wrong way (1+3), but the others were all enjoyable, and 3 were good enough that I would like to recommend them to any translators who happen to read the thread. They're only 30-40 pages long, so they should be much easier to translate than, say, Bakemonogatari, and they're so moving and quick to read that I think they could help pull new people into the world of light novels. I'd do it myself, but I feel I haven't got the skills for it yet, and my English isn't really up to scratch either. I wrote a longer review on a blog, if there's more interest in the title. It would be awesome if a studio picked this up for animation, like a 13 episode thing, or even a few OVAs. It's already been out for 4 years, however, so it's pretty unlikely. __________________ ...in my humble opinion.

2009-09-10, 22:19	Link #273
Matt122005 Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Where I am, what more do you need to know?	Apr, yea, I read your review already. I'm going to buy it should I stumble upon it at my local japanese book store. Thanks for your reviews of light novels, they're very much appreciated. PS. The new weekly rankings for the most popular light novels are out: http://ranobecafe.wordpress.com/2009...aug-31-sept-6/ Guess what's #1 and #10? lol Last edited by Matt122005; 2009-09-10 at 22:36.

2009-09-10, 23:47	Link #274
kuroishinigami Ava courtesy of patchy Join Date: Jan 2009	Wow for number one. Didn't expect many people like this stupid story lol. I can't wait for my order o arrive, whenever that is.

2009-09-12, 06:40	Link #276
Snickripep I like MUDKIPZ! :3 Join Date: Aug 2009	The Shakugan no Shana light novel (the first one, anyway) has been released in English. I picked it up at Borders a few weeks ago. I'm really enjoying it, and I'm not even a big fan of Shakugan no Shana. If you're looking for an interesting, funny, and action-packed read, check it out. http://www.borders.com/online/store/...sku=1421511932 http://www.amazon.com/Shakugan-Shana...2755569&sr=8-1 http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Sha...1511931/?itm=3 If you finish the first one and want the second one, that has also been released in English. Please support the official releases of things like this! If we want more light novels/manga/anime/anything for the everyday otaku, we need to show them that they can make money off of this and that people are interested in buying them!

2009-09-13, 17:38	Link #277
Matt122005 Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Where I am, what more do you need to know?	There's an interesting new article up about Light Novel Book Commercials: http://ranobecafe.wordpress.com/2009...-do-they-work/ What do you think about it?

2009-09-14, 09:47	Link #278
Hell_ping 一刀繚乱 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: アッバス Age: 33	Hmm, interesting article there. However, to me, the commercials make me want to watch a movie or even a film of it instead of reading the novel. And I'm giving my thoughts without reference to any of these books, since I havent read them yet (Stupid A levels...) The question is: "How does an advertisement work in the first place?", and the answer is that it works by trying to convince people to do what the promoters are trying to promote. Normally, this will work when there is something appealing. Having said that, advertisements try to appeal to us by playing with our senses, its a matter of whether they succeed or not. For the American novels, no matter how eye-catching the commercial is, one has to remember that it is still made up of text. Sometimes the text just gets too dry and the person reading it may have the sense of feeling cheated. I know I will. One aspect of american novels are that normally, they are non-fantasy, aimed at the young adults or even adults to read. Book of Fate gave me a sense of Da Vinci's Code. Book Of the Dead gave me a feeling that we may be viewing the plot through the eyes of a coroner or a murderer. These are most likely aimed at the mature in mind, not your ordinary readers who can accept almost everything like a Harry Potter story. We may never know how successful these advertisements were in promoting their books, but one thing we do know is that it does succeed, but to an indefinite extent. This is because when people do something, they (almost) always have a reason for it. With the power of the media in today's world, there is a likelihood that people will come across these advertisements and be attracted to it, unless it is something extremely irritating like the recent EVONY advertisements appearing in like 1 out of 3 websites... For the Japanese ones, normally there isnt much attention paid to it. Since the target audience here would also include the younger ones (11-18), it is supposed to be more attractive than the american counterparts. However, the main reason why not many people recognise Japan for their light novels is because of two things that are more attractive than it. Anime and Manga. These traditional powerhouses are more popular than light novels because visuals and sounds are more appealing to human senses than text. As they say, a picture says a thousand words. It was a nice attempt on the BoogiePop and Zaregoto advertisements, and unfortunately, there isnt any stats to prove that the advertisements worked. The power of the media is still powerful, but unfortunately, if the light novel is not recommended to them, who would even know of it in the first place? Take Haruhi for example. Before the anime aired, how many people even know of the existence of this light novel series? Advertisement is a great way to increase the awareness of something, even if it is a contraption. And it need not be the ordinary ones you normally see on the TV, even an anime series can work like an advertisement. BoogiePop and Zaregoto have extremely interesting advertisements that make it seem like it could be an anime series, and not a light novel itself. But the producers would have succeed in gaining the attention of the audience as a result. Okay, enough of this AQ like question... Have a chinese site of translated light-novel series, so I might work as a translator once the A's end

2009-09-14, 10:26	Link #279
Solafighter Hige Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: God only knows	Well i think the best commercial for novels is in magazines and simmilar, because the commercials/trailers for books and novels are almost reviews or rezesions. These TV commercials are not bad. They show, that novels are popular but for selling them, im not sure. __________________

2009-09-14, 12:59	Link #280
Matt122005 Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Where I am, what more do you need to know?	Since this is about RECOMMENDING light novels, I thought I'd let you know that there's a video review for the newly released "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" light novel: http://ranobecafe.wordpress.com/2009...ruhi-suzumiya/ I like the way the review was filmed. At least, to me, it's better than hearing the voice of some raspy guy behind a mic and the image of the book on the video screen. lol Reviews are always fun, cause they let you hear the thoughts of someone else, and may help your own decision in buying something.