A Few Thoughts About Fantitlement
When Yen Press announced that it would be using new art for the cover of Spice and Wolf, the response was predictable: a small minority of outraged fans decried Yen, announcing their intention to cancel pre-orders and boycott the book. Never mind Yen’s plans to give away slip jackets featuring the original artwork; never mind Yen’s desire to bust out of the graphic novel ghetto and sell a few books to fantasy fans — these folks felt genuinely insulted, as their super-cool light novel now resembled something that — oh, noes! — a teenage girl might read.
RAGE summarized many readers’ feelings when he declared the cover too embarrassing for public consumption:
I will not buy this novel unless they release it with the original cover. I will not be caught dead reading a book that looks like a trashy fantasy porno novel in public. Sorry Yen Press, a slip cover isn’t going to do it for me. Half of the reason why one buys a book is for the satisfaction of knowing that a story you love is tangible and proudly on display in your bookcase. Knowing that such an atrocious cover lurks beneath the beautiful original cover would bother me deeply on a subconscious level.
Mike echoed RAGE’s comments, invoking the specter of Twilight and Fabio fans while arguing that “appealing to a wider audience” is somehow fundamentally different than attempting to make money off a licensed property by, well, appealing to a wider audience:
Really bad cover. Instead of manga fans, you’re bringing in Twilight fans and sleazy romance novel fans with this. Don’t say you’re “appealing to a wider audience” because you’re concerned that the novel won’t get the attention it deserves. You’re doing this to make more money. Anyone should be able to see that. There’s nothing wrong with trying to make money, but there is if it’s at the expense of the product. Most fans of S&W would not want to have a book with this cover on their shelves. I certainly don’t… Really though, even if it was a great cover, I wouldn’t be satisfied with anything but the original. Guess I’ll just have to learn to read Japanese, since “adaptation” like this isn’t exactly anything new.
And Daniel voiced a point of view that I suspect informs many fans’ reaction to the cover: he doesn’t like the idea that folks outside the narrow confines of otakudom might want to read Spice and Wolf, as if mainstream interest in the book would make it any less special:
I never liked companies who cater to a general audience, and in their attempt to appease as many people as possible, they invariably drive away the fans who would give them the most business. Yen Press has lost a lot of my respect, not to mention possibly my business. Maybe I’ll buy and/or download a fansub?
I’m always puzzled by fan outbursts like these; why refuse to buy a novel that you’ve been eagerly anticipating just because you don’t care for the cover art? I’m seldom fond of the dust jackets that come with the latest Richard Russo or Ian McEwan title, but I’ve never boycotted a book because I thought the packaging was cheesy. Why not? Because I care about the content. Presumably that’s why so many folks were excited about Spice and Wolf, too: they liked the story. And the characters. And the dialogue. Y’know… the content.
What’s even more bizarre about the haters’ wrath is that these are the very folks who clamored for the novel in the first place. Yen responded to its fanbase, only to be punished for trying to recoup its investment by making the book more attractive to fantasy readers who aren’t interested in anime. If Spice and Wolf doesn’t find an audience, do these naysayers think Yen will reward their scorn by licensing more light novels? The poor performance of The Good Witch of the West, Kino’s Journey, and Ballad of a Shinigami — all excellent, engaging stories — suggests that Yen can’t afford to market their books exclusively to self-professed otaku. Whatever the merits of the cover — and I agree, it does look like bad werewolf porn — Yen could do a lot worse than trying to appeal to the same readers who made hits out of The Vampire Diaries, Twilight, and dozens of other YA series with fantasy/horror elements. Pursuing the elusive and misguided goal of “authenticity” just to please a small but vocal group of fans all but consigns Spice and Wolf to the remainder bin.
My advice to all those folks grumbling on the Yen Press site: buy the book, share it with a friend, write a polite letter expressing your concerns if you must, but stop berating the publisher for trying to make a buck — they’re a business, for Pete’s sake, and need to sell several thousand copies of Spice and Wolf before they’ll turn a profit on it. Please don’t spoil the party for folks who judge a book by its content, not its cover.
Good post. The reaction that strikes me the most is
Don’t say you’re “appealing to a wider audience” because you’re concerned that the novel won’t get the attention it deserves. You’re doing this to make more money.
as if the publisher’s primary concern should be broadening the fanbase of that author, that work or light novels in general as opposed to making a return on their investment (and thus have the ability to continue putting out books we, as fans, can enjoy). Reading their post, while they are describing their plight (that light novels historically haven’t sold) in fan friendly terms, I didn’t get any impression that they were trying to convince us they were making the cover change for altruistic reasons. It’s a marketing decision and they, IMHO, were copping to that. Whether a “werewolf porn” cover will actually move more books is a matter of debate. But considering how difficult it is to survive as a publisher in even a good economy — and particularly of works that have historically attracted smaller Western audiences — I’m with you, they could do a lot worse than trying to get the Twilight crowd to give a light novel a try.
And frankly, it’s an interesting and difficult nut to crack — how to broaden the appeal of a genre that by any rights should be very popular in the West, yet isn’t. While I’m not wild about the soft core image, I say bravo to Yen Press for trying to think outside the box and welcome new readers into our club…
Personally, I don’t like either cover. The new one looks like young adult supernatural romance stuff, but the original one screamed “look, cute underage girl, check me out!”
[...] Dacey examines a raging case of fan entitlement triggered by Yen Press giving a new cover to a light novel in a clearly sinister attempt to make it [...]
Well said, Kate. I, too, have difficulty fathoming a situation in which I would not buy a book I really wanted just because I didn’t like the cover. Yet it’s true, if I don’t know anything about a book, the cover is likely to have some impact on whether or not I decide to pick it up. It’s disheartening that fans of the series can’t understand that. Anime is a niche market, manga even more so, and fans who will buy light novels is even a smaller subset of that. Did they think Yen could afford to license, translate, and print the books just for them?
That is one seriously ugly cover. I half wonder if most of the screaming and dislike isn’t because it is just, plain, fugly. It is, however, exactly like all the other YA novels coming out these days with fantasy/supernatural themes. It’s photorealistic and showing some part of a bare female body.
I can imagine the regular fans being horrendously embarrassed to be seen reading that book. Especially if the reason they reach for light novels is to get away from all the pseudo sex and angst.
But a slip-cover seems the best solution for everyone. Really, all a slip cover needs to be more permanent is a bit of double-sided tape and that cling wrap you need to use a hairdryer on to make it tighten.
@Alex: Nice to hear from you! Yes, I definitely agree. Yen deserves praise for actually doing some marketing and not just relying on the Internet and anime conventions to promote their products. The cover design may or may not be the right way to develop a bigger audience for Spice and Wolf, but it at least demonstrates that Yen is thinking about how to sell its product outside the otaku community.
@Ken @Avalon’s Willow: I’m with you on the art: it wouldn’t be my first choice, either. It’s unattractive and doesn’t give me a very accurate idea of what the book is about. (Unless Spice and Wolf is, in fact, werewolf porn.) But if Yen will be making a slipcover available to fans, what’s the big deal? Readers can make their own covers or buy the book online to avoid embarrassment.
@Melinda: That’s the odd thing about this debate: folks clearly realize that the artwork plays an important element in selling the book to readers who don’t know anything about the story. So why get bent out of shape about the cover if you already know what the book is about?
Another spot on post, Kate. Being a “Fan” is more than just enjoying a thing. There’s a sense of ownership – even if that particular fan has never done a single thing to support the series meaningfully.
I wrote about the darker side of this in my Fan Delusion post on Okazu: http://okazu.blogspot.com/2009/03/fandom-fan-delusion-and-what-fans.html
This sense of possession leads fans to believe that their input means anything. In reality, all any fan of a series can do is buy or not buy a thing. By withholding their money, Fans think they are making a *statement.* All they are really doing, of course, is killing the thing they profess to love.
The thing is – these people were unlikely to be the market of the book anyway. They were less likely to buy the book in the first place, and if the cover is the reason they are justifying not getting it, then that was probably just the most convenient excuse. They will be satisfied with a ripped scan, because they know they are sticking it to THE MAN, you know, the hard working employees of Yen, who are trying to get a book out and not lose their shirts. How dare they.
Honestly, I think it’s too late for anime/manga to ever be successful financially. Right now, every slight failure on a company’s part sends these so-called Fans scurrying back to illegal downloads and every success makes these same Fans derisive and abusive that the company has sold out. It’s a pathetic attempt at blackmail on the Fans’ part and I really hope the companies look at them and say, “Unless you planned on buying 10,000 copies of the series if we do it your way – shut up.”
Cheers,
Erica
[...] [Commentary] A few thoughts about “fantitlement” Link: Katherine Dacey [...]
Hi, Erica! Thanks for the link. I couldn’t agree with your points more; this kind of fan behavior drives me nuts. One minute fans are policing the boundaries of mangadom against anyone who might have a casual interest in, say, Haruhi or Nightschool, the next they’re refusing to buy something they said they wanted because the publisher put a fresh cover on it. Or made a small change to an image. Or substituted a Western pop culture reference for a Japanese one.
I didn’t even touch on the romanization controversy that went hand-in-hand with the Spice and Wolf cover kerfuffle, but some folks were furious that Yen translated Horo’s name as “Holo.” Kurt Hasseler even turned up in the comment thread to explain that the Japanese publisher requested that the character’s name be spelled “Holo” in English, but a few self-appointed experts felt the need to correct him. WTF?! That’s like me writing an indignant letter to Oxford University Press to protest the spelling of Tchaikovsky’s name in a music dictionary. In a word: oy.
I am firmly within the larger camp that says “we’re totally okay with you changing the covers in order to appeal to a wider audience– we just think this particular cover is butt-ugly.” I actually bought the paperback Haruhi novel– with a very different cover from the original Japanese –without batting an eye. I’d forgotten the hardcover version HAD the original one and probably wouldn’t have paid more for it.
And I’m not planning on boycotting the Spice and Wolf novel, either. But I still think the cover looks like a really bad photoshop job.
I guess my point is– yes, there are these fans. But as you pointed out in the beginning, they’re a small minority.
Coming at this from the perspective of a person who reads all of manga, light novels and Western fantasy:
“So why get bent out of shape about the cover if you already know what the book is about?”
Coz the new cover is hideous, embarrassing, and stupid, that’s why. I hate the trend to use covers like that on fantasy/YA books. I don’t want to be seen on the bus with this kind of book-cover; I don’t want to look at it on my bookshelf; I can’t recommend it to someone without saying “but ignore the cover, it’s not like that”. The whole joy of “I got the new book today!” is lessened by the fact that it has to be put in a plain brown wrapper before it can be presented to society. Obviously publishers think this sort of thing helps sales. I can’t for the life of me imagine to whom; no-one I know likes these covers.
Eh, the original cover was boring. It’s just “cute cartoon looking directly at camera.” In beige. With text just slapped on top and not integrated into the design at all.
I like manga art and illustration, but that image is dull, dull, dull. Not only would non-manga fans not pick it up, but I can picture J-culture fans who aren’t yet familiar with Wolf and Spice looking at it, going “ugh, another bland moe title” and walking away.
The current cover isn’t MUCH better (the text is still just SITTING there), but at least it’s got some movement, with the off-centre figure, the blowing hair and flowing tail, and an attempt at dramatic lighting.
I don’t know if the current cover is what I’d pick. That’s mostly because I’m personally bored with photo covers and prefer illustrated covers as a matter of taste. However, I definitely would not have kept this book’s original illustration. I think Yen made a good call, there.
@gia: I’m with you: I wouldn’t have chosen this particular cover design, but I get where Yen is coming from. My main objective was to point out the entitled, arrogant tone that a minority of fans have adopted. It’s childish and abusive, as if Yen Press “owes” them something. Given how many of the same folks also proudly stated their refusal to buy Yen+, I don’t understand why they think Yen should listen to them. As Erica points out in her comments, they were unlikely to buy the book anyway.
@JRB: The cover doesn’t speak to me either (heck, I compared it with bad werewolf porn!), but I question the “no one I know likes this kind of cover” argument. No one I know buys “Hooked on Classics!” either, but the format obviously sells; record stores wouldn’t stock it alongside the uncut, unabridged versions of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony and Wagner’s Ring Cycle if everyone preferred to listen to classical compositions in their entirety.
@Dani: I agree that the original cover design was just too generic to really inspire much interest outside the small group of folks already familiar with the Spice and Wolf franchise. The new version isn’t my cup of tea, but you’re right: it’s at least trying to draw folks in.
Oy indeed, Kate! I’ve just updated my Fan Delusion post with a link to this one. It’s genius.
Cheers,
Erica
Kino’s Journey also had a bland changed “mainstream” cover.
@Erica: Thanks for the linkage!
@Anonymous: That’s true; Tokyopop opted for some pretty vanilla covers for its POP Fiction imprint. (In Tokyopop’s defense, some of the novels did preserve character designs and/or elements of the original packaging, but those books tended to be ones with very limited crossover appeal: Welcome to the NHK, Gosick.) It’s my impression that Tokyopop didn’t do much to promote their light novel line, so I doubt that poor cover design alone doomed Kino’s Journey to obscurity.
“Kino’s Journey also had a bland changed “mainstream” cover.”
Yes and no. The illustration is from the original novel, just not the book cover. But it’s inside of the book, the cover for the “Mother’s Love – A Peaceful Country”-Arc, if I remember correctly.
I thought Tokyopop`s Cover looked pretty good, while I also like the japanese covers, the US ones were a lot more mature and fitting the overall mood of the series (of course, they *are* the covers of the series as well in the japanese version, so it makes sense XD )
@ Katherine Dacey
I’m someone who does have a problem with translations putting in Westernized references – there’s enough problems with people not believing the characters are actually Japanese without westernization adding to that whitewashed point of view.
And except for issues related to immediate jokes and puns – where the beat of the moment would be lost – I think it treats western readers as too stupid/isolationist to accept a culture different from their own.
I had a similar problem with the Harry Potter books adding in Americanisms as if despite all the clamor about how it was encouraging kids to read – they didn’t quite dare encourage an international vocabulary.
—-
Re: The cover – I’ve been having to accept boring photocovers on books I borrow or buy for a while now and I keep sighing and waiting for the trend to fade away. Example the Harry Dresden novels had far more interesting covers, to my mind, before they started coming out in hardback. Now it’s all a representative of the main character with a bit of background, instead of the cover telling a story the way it used to.
Or maybe I should say ‘a more complex story’ because the new Spice & Wolf cover does tell a story. The problem for some is, the story it’s telling says: get your Twilight like, supernartual, romance-angst-titillation over here.
Again I think a slip-cover saves the attempt. But I don’t think it is unfair to say that the press is trying to cash in on a trend. Appealing to a broader audience will keep the business in the black; changing covers in order to do that makes sense. This particular cover, however, gives it all away just which demographic the press is going for – no wonder some fans feel insulted (whether or not that’s an attitude of entitlement), because the paranormal relationship/supernatural thriller scene, while lucrative is still fighting for any kind of respect.
@Minuki: Thanks for clarifying the source for the Tokyopop cover art.
@Avalon’s Willow: You raise some great points re: substitutions and cover art.
I’m reacting to some fans’ “gotcha!” mentality; they clamor for companies to license certain properties, then go bananas when companies make small editorial changes (e.g. substituting the name of an American movie for a Japanese one) in the interest of making stories accessible to American readers. Fifteen pages of translator’s notes might be warranted for Zetsubou-Sensei or Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service, but your average volume of Naruto? That doesn’t serve the series’ fanbase very well, as they’re much less likely to flip to the back just to understand a punchline. So I’m OK with the practice of localization if it’s done well, and on a limited basis.
As for the cover, Yen needs to design one that makes sense for the target audience. They aren’t pitching it to Toni Morrison readers, they’re aiming it at young adults who like fantasy, and this kind of cover is a shorthand way of saying, “This book might appeal to you if you liked [fill in the name of a best-selling fantasy series].” I’m guessing — perhaps unfairly — that many of the folks complaining about the packaging don’t like to think they’re part of that YA fantasy demographic (even if they are).
I think we will have to agree to disagree on some of these points, but I appreciate the thoughtfulness of your comments. Thanks for joining the discussion!
There’s one certain large forum where people are still, after all these years, so angry about stars over nipples and drawn-in panties, that when new CMX titles are announced that they have to chorus in how they’ll never, ever, ever buy a CMX title. Like the TenTen crowd is going to buy Lapis Lazuli Crown… but they still have to moan and complain, every time.
But I can see where CMX didn’t want to have one of its debut titles lost in the shrinkwrap ghetto. These are -business- decisions, after all, manga is a business and the companies would like to make money. Not “hey, wanna mess with fans for LOLZ?” There’s a certain segment of fandom that takes these sort of business decisions to be some sort of great personal insult.
>after all, manga is a business and the companies would like to make >money.
and before they try to make money, they try not to lose money.
Some “fans” really have completely unrealistic beliefs of how much money the anime and manga publishers are earning, let alone light novels … I don`t think you make all that much money with them, they’re publishing them more because they are fans themselves.
But of course, all those series got canceled only because they didn’t earn enough money … not because the companies actually lost money because of them -_-
@ Katherine Dacey:
As long as I’m not coming across as beating folk over the head with a large and heavy club – then I’m good. I appreciate being appreciated
I’m guessing — perhaps unfairly — that many of the folks complaining about the packaging don’t like to think they’re part of that YA fantasy demographic (even if they are).
This bit here just made me think of two people walking out of a theater and one going “That was an amazing kung fu film!” And the other giving a bit of a huff and disdainful sniff and going “I saw a foreign film, with subtitles.”
I don’t disagree that some folk don’t want to see themselves as regular YA Fantasy readers. What I do think is that there is a significant percentage that really doesn’t want to see themselves as in the supernatural romance demographic.
IE: They don’t want to be judged as being someone into vampire boyfriends, werewolf libido, sparkles and desire-made-them-do-it.
Like I said, that demographic doesn’t get a whole lot of respect. And I admit to being one of those who more than occasionally mocks. I’m not sure where we might have been bumping heads on – but agreeing to disagree is fine by me; personal opinion is informed by experience and everyone is different. It’s not the end of the world not to match up.
My first experience with a light novel (I’ve forgotten the name now) was a wonderful experience. I delighted in realizing it was like reading an anime/manga universe and smacked myself on the forehead for not realizing sooner than of course those universes fit into the YA fantasy genre – with some fitting in with more mature topics as well (I tend to see YA as all ages).
@ Minikui:
I’m not sure anyone’s first thought is about the money the company that’s publishing the work might be making. I was too excited at the thought of Tokyo Pop translating Juuni Kokki to think about their monetary reasons for doing so. I was just happy at the thought of getting my favourite work in my language.
And then I learned more about it and realized it wasn’t a translation I would enjoy. My response to not liking it, was to decide to only buy the anime.
But via various actions by Tokyo Pop, I’ve grown aware of the reality that less sales equals less chance of later books being translated; for the enjoyment of those who don’t mind the translation style.
It’s a difficult balance between the right to spend one’s own money how one wishes and trying to support something one believes should be supported. I can’t introduce everyone I know to The Twelve Kingdoms novels, if there are no novels.
Maybe for some folk it is easier to misbehave or act spoilt than to consider encouraging the local library to buy the work even if they don’t buy it privately for themselves.
Honestly, I dunno what you mean. Care to explain in detail? ^^ I read the US versions of 12 Kingdoms and Kino’s Journey and both were really well translated. I enjoyed the read thoroughly … and already used the books as birthday presents for some friends, who also liked them as well.
Guardian of the Spirit’s US version is also quite awesome imho ^^
@ minikui:
You were speaking to me, yes? I’m not sure what exactly it is you want me to make clearer, however.
As for the US versions of the 12 Kingdoms, I found the translation in several areas (names, titles, some descriptions) to be too literal. Alexander is a name common to those who speak english. It means ‘Defender of Men’. But we wouldn’t have writing that goes:
Defender-of-Men was a Macedonian King.
It would be needlessly pedantic and a touch exoticizing; the way many First Nations names were exotically translated with their meanings and not their word sounds – like “Red-Willow-Wind-Song”. And it could also be confusing if you were reading a story about a child, but whose demarcation was ‘Defender-of-men’, there would be subtext there about the child’s warrior aptitude among other things.
I’m big on context expanding vocabulary and concepts and that’s how I read. Such literal translations begin to change the story for me. *shrugs* But I’m aware that not everyone reads like that.
I haven’t had a chance to see the US novelizations of Moribito yet. But I am currently netflixing the official anime dvds.
In this particular case of the book-cover, the original wasn’t much to write home about, but this one is such a dramatic shift in visual mood, that I think it would raise valid questions about the level of liberties taken with the translation inside for anyone familiar with the original. If it’s just the cover though, I personally don’t think it’s a big deal.
I also have to take issue with the direction of a lot of the comments. I’m not really interested in this series itself, but I think with a lot of the series that I have supported for years through tons of actual purchases, my opinion should count for something at least just to show what I’ll buy in the future. If a publisher caters to the particular demographic of fans that would rather read scans for free than make purchases and gets burned for it, sorry, but don’t lump me in with that group and say every fan did that. You should know the sort of thing that I buy, and if you don’t, feel free to ask.
Yes, there is a line to draw between appealing to a supportive fanbase and appealing to new audiences for any sort of growth, but if a publisher doesn’t feel the fans should have any input, that strikes me as a serious indication of a lack of commitment towards giving their customers the sort of content they enjoy.
Sorry if I wasn’t clear. I was asking what you mean by “And then I learned more about it and realized it wasn’t a translation I would enjoy.” … because imho the translation is very well done. The “Alexander” example isn’t very well chosen, because it’s not like they translated Yoko as “sun child” (eventhough that sounds cool XD ). They translated a few names (of pavillons at least I remember ^^), but none of the character’s names I think. And there were quite a few japanese words and so which they explained and even adding the Kanjis. Also quite a long glossary at the end.
>but if a publisher doesn’t feel the fans should have any input, that >strikes me as a serious indication of a lack of commitment towards >giving their customers the sort of content they enjoy.
sorry, but in this case, Yen Press really communicates a lot with the fans, reads all the messages and directly responds to quite a few (and some of them are really -excuse me, but I dunno how to call them otherwise- just stupid, so personally I would ignore them). They even stated several times that some interesting ideas were mentioned by fans and they’re trying to distribute the original cover in other ways as well.
@Avalon’s Willow @minikui Intelligent discussion — and dissent — is always welcome. No need to apologize for that.
@Safety: It’s amazing how long fan resentment lingers, isn’t it? Some folks are still sulking about Del Rey’s treatment of Air Gear, too. Every time I’ve been to a Del Rey panel, someone has raised the issue.
@Jade: In my essay, I explicitly stated that I’m referring to a small but vocal minority of fans who routinely abuse publishers for their editorial and marketing decisions, not all fans. I agree that publishers need to think about their target audience, especially folks, like you, who have been loyal customers.
If Yen Press only catered to folks who already knew about Spice and Wolf, however, it might not recoup its investment. Publishers need to sell several thousand copies of a book to break even on it, and many light novels simply haven’t reached that benchmark. Reaching out beyond otakudom isn’t a diss to the fans; it’s a smart business decision. The bottom line: there’s nothing wrong with giving a company feedback on its products, but Yen doesn’t “owe” its fans anything, anymore than Gap “owes” me a better-fitting pair of jeans because I’ve been buying t-shirts there for years.
[...] dvd thing gets popular. Maybe then readers won’t think they are entitled to riotous outrage. Speaking of demanding readers, it is my opinion that your comics newest update should show in your [...]
I Like Spice & Wolf’s New Cover (And So Can You!)…
I go away for a couple of minutes months, and I almost miss this: Behold! The US cover for the Spice & Wolf light novel. And because I can never say it enough: Yen Press, I love you. Now if……
@Katherine and @minikui Sorry, I didn’t mean to give the impression that anything said beyond the first section of my comment was directed at the article itself. I completely agree with what was said by Katherine, I just wanted to add another perspective that an extreme change in presentation or market -could- be an indication of editorial liberties within the book, but not necessarily the case here. If I was a fan of the Japanese original (and here I mean published Japanese original) and saw the new cover, I’d naturally feel inclined to check out what else they may have changed before I bought it. Just an added perspective. Luckily, we have sites like Manga Critic (shillshill) to help us do that!
The rest of the comment was directed at some of the other comments that, I felt, were a bit broad in maligning fans and suggesting that fans, most of whom are responsible for manga and anime even being in the west, are wholly responsible for the market being held back and losing money. It is not the paying fans who are holding anyone back, it was never the scan fans that supported the industry; I just want this line of argument to be dropped as the straw person that it is before publishers start taking that sort of ‘don’t listen to your fans’ advice.
@Jade: I agree that there are different communities within fandom, and agree as well that there will always be a segment of the fandom that doesn’t realize that their preference for illegal downloads/scans is hurting the industry.
Thanks for taking the time to clarify your position. As I said before, intelligent discussion is always welcome — it keeps me on my toes!
[...] no pleasing some fans. Kate Dacey points out a controversy that has started over Yen Press’ proposed new cover for the light novel Spice [...]
It appears I’m going to be in the minority at this website, but I am one of those who detest what Yen Press has done, and am one of those advocating a boycott of the book.
First, they say this is aimed at expanding to a fantasy audience. Well, it just so happens, I shop the fantasy section of the bookstore often, and I can assert with some confidence that no best selling fantasy series has such a poorly done, blatantly amateurish photoshopped cover. It’s an eyesore, to be sure, and since the target audience is in their teens, the nudity isn’t going to prompt them to advertise the fact that they’re reading it to anyone else.
What’s more, I’ve seen the cover compared to trashy romance novels, and even those aren’t so badly executed.
Another factor was their decision to place the original cover in their magazine. Some think this was their anticipation (by not nearly enough) of fan backlash. Others of us, myself included, suspect a far more cynical motivation. They knew this cover wouldn’t sit well with us, and they decided to milk us for extra money by forcing us to purchase their magazine, and boost its sales numbers, just to obtain the cover we would have wanted in the first place.
And finally, there is this. I have stated at the Yen Press site, and maintain, that the original cover is not that dissimilar artistically from the original jackets to the Harry Potter novels. But Yen Press wouldn’t have been satisfied with that. Basically, they stated that they had no faith in their readership, the existing fans, to support this product. We anime fans are already marginalized in a niche market that is frequently ridiculed and mocked. And by saying that the original cover was not good enough for sales, Yen Press essentially looked down on and belittled their own readership.
So you then tell me I should “support this product and send them a polite letter”?
Why? They don’t have to listen to my concerns once they already have my money.
Withholding my cash until they give me what I want is a far more effective strategy.
There’s a logical fallacy in your argument: you’re using anecdotal evidence (namely, your own interests as a reader and an anime fan) to make generalizations about who might or might not buy this book. As a subsidiary of a major publishing conglomerate, the folks at Yen are basing the decision to change the artwork on real market research, not just a hunch.
Moreover, the “niche market” of anime fans who are interested in Spice and Wolf may not, in fact, be big enough to support both the light novel and the manga. Light novels have not sold well in the US, and any publisher hoping to recoup its investment on the licensing rights would be smart to reach beyond the tiny world of anime fandom to find more customers. What you interpret as crass marketing ploys and a diss to the fandom I see as an attempt to make Spice and Wolf more relevant to folks who would otherwise see the original cover art and dismiss it out of hand.
In the long run, you only hurt yourself by refusing to buy the book. If it doesn’t sell well, Yen will cancel it. And what a Pyrrhic victory that will be for you and the other fans whose principal objection was the cover art.
I wouldn’t view it as a Pyrrhic victory.
Better to see a product’s integrity preserved than see it sullied by cheap tactics that were poorly executed.
And light novels don’t sell in the U.S. because they aren’t advertised, and they are then stuck in the anime/manga section with no one aware that they’re there.
Also, many of the light novels that have failed were for anime or manga series already released, meaning that those who bought the manga would essentially be asked to buy the same story twice.
A notable exception is Vampire Hunter D. 12 of the 20 novels have seen print, all with their original covers, and vol. 13 is due in December. There was no manga for Vampire Hunter D until recently, so no one was being asked to purchase the same story twice. And currently, it will take years for the manga to catch up with the light novels.
Yen Press, with their tawdry tactics, can go under for all I care. Sooner or later, the economy will be good again, and maybe someone who will respect the product and its fans will pick up the license.
Bryan, your comments suggest to me that you don’t know much about the economics of publishing, nor do you have a realistic sense of how many copies a typical manga or light novel sells here in the US. Best-selling manga have NEVER posted Nora Roberts kind of numbers, even when the US economy was good. Neither have light novels. If a manga or light novel sells more than 5,000 copies (roughly the break-even point for producing a book, give or take a few thousand copies), it’s doing well. If Yen can’t turn a profit with Spice, I doubt any other US publisher could, either.
As for your argument about the cover art, you’re forgetting that the original design was a tool for marketing the book to Japanese readers, not a sacred expression of the author/artist’s intent. Changing it to meet the needs of the American market reflects a standard business practice; novels first published in England, for example, often get a slightly different cover for the US market. (And no, I’m not just talking about Harry Potter. The same goes for award-winning novelists like V.S. Naipaul, Salman Rushdie, and Ian McEwan.) I’m highly doubtful that keeping the original cover art AND moving Spice and Wolf to a different section of the bookstore would encourage more sales; if anything, that strategy seems less effective than shelving it with manga, where fans are more likely to know what it is.
The malice in your final comment is just plain odd: why wish a publisher go out of business? More publishers = greater likelihood of seeing good stuff translated for the American market. Fewer publishers = lots of generic shonen/shojo titles, less variety.
I would want Yen to go under because they’ve demonstrated a lack of interest in their fan base, especially with that cheap ploy of trying to boost the sale of their own magazine, and trying to milk us for more money just to get the product we would have wanted in the first place.
A company that abuses its fans and frequent customers has no place in the market. If they’re allowed to get away with it this time, we can look forward to more of the same.
The simple fact is, they tried doing an altered cover of the Haruhi Suzumiya light novels in the past. But at the same time, they also offered the original cover as a hardback.
Guess which one sold.
If you said the original art hardback, give yourself a cookie.
Fans voted with their dollars about which product to support.
So this time, they decided no to offer us a choice. Take your altered cover and be grateful. If you MUST have your original cover, you’re gonna have to shell out an extra $10 for the privilege.
In short, they’d have us paying $20 for a book that isn’t worth $20.
And I understand economics just fine. If they couldn’t make a profit selling the original, uncorrupted product, they should never have bothered to bring it over in the first place.
Yes, it pains me to say that, but if the market won’t support Spice and Wolf in its proper form, then Spice and Wolf should remain overseas, at least in Light Novel form.
Even you compared the cover to bad werewolf porn, and guess what?
Any casual bookstore browser would think the same. The majority of people wouldn’t even pick the book up for that very reason. And the ones who do pick it up will flip to the back flap, read the plot synopsis (assuming one is printed on the back, as with other LN) and put it back.
And if there is no synopsis on the back, then they might buy it, only to find out it wasn’t what they thought they were buying.
And they won’t be back for seconds.
Yen has doomed Spice and Wolf to the same fate as other LN simply because they couldn’t properly market.
You know what might have been an acceptable alternative (too late for Yen Press now), Going to an anime convention, finding the best Lawrence and Horo/Holo cosplayers out there, sticking them on a horse drawn cart in a wheat field, and snapping the shot.
That at least would have given a more correct impression of the book than confusing it for bad werewolf porn.
You know what might have been an acceptable alternative (too late for Yen Press now), Going to an anime convention, finding the best Lawrence and Horo/Holo cosplayers out there, sticking them on a horse drawn cart in a wheat field, and snapping the shot.
In a word, no — that would really limit the book’s appeal to a handful of cosplayers. Why should Yen Press listen to fans when they offer suggestions that reveal that they don’t understand anything about marketing or presentation?!
Now YOUR logic confuses me. A photo of a naked girl with a badly photoshopped tail and pouch is justifiable, but a photo of people who actually look like the characters shot in a wheat field isn’t?
One screams, to use your words, “Werewolf porn”
The other might have shown something more representative not only of the story, but also reminiscent of the Twilight covers (much as I hate Twilight, I cannot refute that it sells well)
For those who said “Support this product” this was posted at the Yen Press recently:
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e62/InTraining/SandWYPSpecialcoveredit.jpg
This is the original cover, from Yen Plus magazine, with a permacrease right down the middle and, according to those who’ve obtained it, printed on low quality paper.
That’s your reward. Enjoy.
I, for one, am now boycotting all Yen Press products.
As I’ve said many times, I don’t understand why the packaging of this product is so important that it trumps the content. I’ve bought countless novels and manga that had ugly covers and never thought twice about it. It seems like the most vocal fans are more concerned with how cool the book will look sitting on their shelves than actually reading it.
That’s a bit hypocritical of you, considering what you yourself compared the altered cover to. “Bad Werewolf Porn”. Your words.
So tell me, if you didn’t know a thing about Spice and Wolf, would you want to buy or even examine a novel you thought was “Bad Werewolf Porn”, based on what? It’s cover!
And then they promise us the proper cover, with far more innocuous artwork, provided we shelled out an additional $10.
And what happens when we get that artwork? It’s on cheap paper, and with a huge crease right down the middle of the image fans had to shell out an additional $10 for. That’s what I call damaged goods.
So now, you have a book that is essentially unsellable. No one will want “Bad Werewolf Porn.” and those who know what it is won’t want their proper cover permacreased.
The thing you don’t understand is that Otaku oriented merchandise is sold for a different reason. You have a valid point that the content is what is important in a book. But Most Otaku have read the book. They’ve read the book several times, and read the anime, and seen both seasons of the anime. Most of the fans aren’t buying the book because they’ve never seen the content, they’re buying the book because of the unstated Otaku rule:
If you enjoyed the series when you read the fan translated version, you buy the official translation to support the author.
The thing with the cover is that it’s a disservice to the original. Not to mention, you left out several comments that fans didn’t care that there was a new cover, but that they felt the cover Yen Press produced was unappealing and didn’t convey the feel of the original.
Anime fans have had to deal with bad and unfaithful translations since anime first started being translated, so they are more sensitive to the subject. Not to mention the cover is completely inconsistent with the art on the inside of the book. It’s not like a regular novel where the art has nothing to do with the actual content, the art of a light novel actually is part of the story, so changing it doesn’t really make sense.
All of those things combined are why Otaku’s are so against the new cover.
@Hiurro: Thanks for taking the time to spell out your position, and not simply reiterate what other have said before you. I wish everyone had taken the time to read the comment thread as carefully as you did. I must take issue with a few things you say, however.
First, I’m well aware of otaku culture here in the US; I’ve been writing about manga and its attendant fan culture for over three years. In my experience, there is a core group of fans who behave as you describe — they’ve seen/read the original in Japanese, and buy the English-language version as a show of support for their favorite creators. There’s a larger community of fans, however, who use editorial gaffes and ugly covers as an excuse NOT to buy the product and read/view an unauthorized version online. (Just read through the thread at Yen; many readers proudly stated that they’d go elsewhere to read Spice and Wolf.)
Second, I state explicitly at the beginning of the article that I’m talking about a small and vocal minority of fans — not all fans, not fans who, as you note above, didn’t like the cover but plan to buy the book anyway. They didn’t post the majority of comments at the Yen blog; the folks yelling “boycott!” did.
Third, I understand your point about the role that art plays in a light novel — it’s meant to be an integral part of the experience, not an add-on. If Yen were only selling this book to otaku, it would make sense to leave the cover as is. But Yen made a marketing decision to pitch this book to fans beyond the anime/manga community. The image they chose is consistent with the cover art on many young adult fantasy novels, and is designed to appeal to folks who may not have any interest in anime. I understand otaku are angry that Yen didn’t make a decision that reflects their taste, but given how fickle and critical they are of ALL American manga publishers, and how quick they are to seek illegal scanlations/subs as an alternative to the licensed product, I don’t see how they’ve earned the right to be so demanding.
Thank you for responding and sorry if I misunderstood your view. The Thing that really doesn’t make sense to me is that if they are trying to appeal to people who don’t have an interest in anime, the inside will remain the same. So the cover will attract people who will be turned off by the inside, and the cover will turn off people who will be attracted to the inside. It just causes some level of disappointment for everyone who buys.
Not to mention the cover makes it look like an offbeat erotic novel. And as I and several of my friends (and I truely believe fans everywhere) have all been accused of liking Hentai simply because we like anime. So for me, this kind of cover really bothers me.
I’m torn, because I want the company to do well, and release the second book and onwards, But I’d rather buy the (in my opinion) much more attractive Japanese version and support the author that way.
@Hiurro: Your comment about hentai makes a lot of sense to me — I hadn’t thought about it from that angle, though I can see why folks would be frustrated by any product that reinforces the misperception that manga + anime = p0rn.
Thanks for taking the time to spell out your position clearly, and for offering a fresh voice to the discussion.
@Bryan
Better to see a product’s integrity preserved than see it sullied by cheap tactics that were poorly executed.
Then you probably shouldn’t read *any* light novel as almost all of them are written by contract writers for money, and not art. Light Novels are largely understood to be crap in Japan. They are, and here I am quoting an embarrassed Japanese friend of mine, when I caught her reading a “Maria-sama ga Miteru” novel, “Very silly. For children.”
Light Novels are YA fiction. The cover is *entirely* appropriate. And btw, way better than the butt-ugly Harry Potter covers used here in the US.
Light Novels are not a high art form, they are as often a ploy by Japanese companies to extend a franchise, as they are awesome source material.
There is no “integrity” here. You are having a tantrum about a kiddy novel that was turned into a comic book and a cartoon. For money.
That’s why I read your blog religiously, Erica — I respect your opinion as an industry professional, as someone who reads Japanese, and as a grown-up who just happens to like comics, too. Thanks for for some badly needed perspective on this topic.
So, the novel finally arrived in our book store.
Care to guess where they put it?
Sci-fi and fantasy? Nope.
Regular novels? Guess again.
Teen novels? Hardly.
Not…the anime and manga section! Why yes indeed.
But, wait, that would make the whole point of altering the cover…pointless! Because, as I have pointed out elsewhere, that section is widely avoided by those who aren’t into it in the first place. And you certainly aren’t going to reach a wider audience there. And you’re not going to reach the core audience there either.
Once again, you’re committing the logical fallacy of extrapolating from one example to make a sweeping assertion. I have no idea if Yen pushed hard to have the book shelved in multiple areas of big chain stores or not, but my guess is yes, given that Kurt Hasseler was the graphic novel buyer for Borders before he was appointed to run Yen, and understands the ins and outs of bookselling much better than you or I do. Remember too, that Spice and Wolf is being sold through other retail outlets such as Amazon, where the book won’t be ghettoized with the manga. In fact, if you consult Amazon, you’ll see that Spice and Wolf has been cross-listed under Science Fiction & Fantasy and Graphic Novels, and is performing well in the Science Fiction category (it’s ranked #49).
I’m honestly not sure why you keep returning to this blog post — by now, I think it would be obvious that we’re never going to see eye to eye on this issue. If you feel so strongly about the cover, why not blog about it at your own site instead? I think you’d find a more sympathetic reception for your argument.
I don’t have my own site, nor would I want the hassle of one. And again, you’re the one with the false logic.
Here’s how it’s actually performing.
#16,239 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
#22 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Manga > Science Fiction
#36 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Manga > Fantasy
It’s supposed “high ranking” you ascribe it is in, what’s that, MANGA.
In short, the so-called “niche market”.
Plus, I’ve seen numerous posts where people are canceling their Amazon orders because Amazon isn’t making the original cover available.
And seeing as how the bookstore I’m referring to is Hastings, a rather large retailer, and that all of their stores will have it stored in the same fashion, that’s one whole retailer that won’t have it available for all to see.
I also called a few other retailers and checked their websites to see how they’re shelving it.
Let’s start with Borders, since you brought them up. They’re shelving it in manga. Since they’re a major retailer, and also own Waldenbooks, guess how many copies will never be where the general public will see them.
Books-a-Million categorizes it as “Juvenile Fiction”, but that’s also how they categorized the Haruhi Suzumiya light novel. Do you know where it was shelved in the actual Books-a-Million stores? Why, the manga section. Since the nearest Books-a-Million is currently an hour and a half away, I can’t visit them in person. But a phone call confirms, yes, it’s in manga.
So, altering the cover does what, again? It certainly doesn’t appeal to the manga and anime fans. And sitting in that section it’s not going to be seen by new readers.
“I don’t have my own site, nor would I want the hassle of one.”
Then please stop hijacking mine to rant about a book cover.
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