Light Novels, Manga, and Web Novels
Looking at the tastes of younger readers!
I’ve found a particular interest in reading web novels/light novels recently. I think it comes from my latest fondness of manga/animes. It also stems from trying to learn about the tastes of younger readers who grew up in this era of paperless reading.
You might ask why the interest in younger readers and the answer is two fold. First, my twenty one year old son and I have similar tastes in reading/viewing (which is scary in a way). That means we enjoy watching and reading some of the same stories where we discuss the storylines and our agreement or disagreement with the finish or the characters. Granted, my bias comes from reading DC comics as a kid.
Second, I’m looking at a particular number, 150 million.
In 2021 Demon Slayer Kimetsu No Yaiba manga sold roughly 150 million units. That’s 10 times the amount of the current American comic book estimates, which is around 15 million units IN TOTAL.
That raw number shows me that there’s something behind the success. This article from 2021 has some insights for you.
This link about book sales in 2023 shows the data.
To give you a bit of my peculiar taste, I’ve recently read 4 volumes of the Eminence in Shadow because I enjoyed the anime so much (along with finding translated copies of the manga). I’m also a fan of Another (take a look at a creepy anime that visually gets under your skin). Also, look at dark fantasy like Berserk manga with it’s awesome drawings and unrelenting story of betrayal and violence. While many might think that manga/anime are for kids, there are more than a few that are extremely violent and dark.
As I started researching into the reasons into the success over more traditional Western comics/animation, three things became evident.
Most of the manga/anime/light novel stories show a sense of right and wrong at a very fundamental level. Your empathy with the characters, in part, comes from knowing that their actions are morally right so you root them on. The same occurs for those characters you find repellent even if they can make a case for their behavior. Obviously, the nuisances can really create surprises in the hands of great writers. While the idea is not terribly different than the old white hat and black hats used in the western cowboy movies, it’s the strong writing that keeps you locked in.
When you compare the hero characters in many manga/anime to many of the DC/Marvel superheroes, the difference can be night and day. One thing that is interesting about the Japanese culture is their heroes will often start off as very weak and grow strong. Even going against impossible odds, they can level up to become as powerful as gods (can you say Harry Potter-like). Fundamentally, I can see a young fan finding more in common with manga heroes than with some billionaire who can have costumes designed by geniuses to take down criminals (i.e. Tony Stark and Bruce Wayne). Yes, Marvel movies are hugely successful (and entertaining) but DC movies don’t show that success (aside from Batman). Overall, their comics/graphic novels should dominate the market if you go by movie success alone. There must be a reason that they can’t overwhelm the manga/light novel published stories.
The mangas/animes/light novels are not heavy with politics or pushing agendas and certain ways of thinking. Yes, they bring in politics to certain stories but they haven’t forgotten the first element of entertainment is to entertain. Furthermore, the writers often leave agenda muddled while concentrating on the excitement, tension, and/or wonder of the storyline. Another difference is seen in how the Western heroes never seem to die. Instead, they are rebooted to morph into complete changes to their origin and ways of thinking to “fix” a perceived bias in their past. I noticed how many Japanese mangas will run as long as it can over huge arcs, then conclude the story. They might create a spin-off series but seldom do they reboot the characters and I can’t think of an instance where the characters were changed from their origin.
So, what does this mean?
Apart from the intellectual exercise, it shows my thoughts around developing a light novel around my stories (or perhaps web novels) has potential. Plus, it gives me ideas around my characters and their motivations/ages.
Also, it’s a way I can rethink my approach to stories which I’m writing, in particular, to get interest of younger readers. Also, maybe it’s time to rethink my how I sell my product. I’ve been looking into more about translation services and other ideas to show my books to a wider audience. Are there other avenues out there which I can promote or sell my product along the same ?
I’d be interested in your thoughts.