A light novel (, Hepburn: ''raito noberu'') is a style of

young adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itself ...

primarily targeting

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

and

middle school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...

students. The term "light novel" is a '' wasei-eigo'', or a Japanese term formed from words in the

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the ...

. Light novels are often called or, in English, LN. The average length of a light novel is about 50,000 words, and is published in the ''

bunkobon In Japan, are small-format paperback books, designed to be affordable and space saving. The great majority of ''bunkobon'' are A6 (105×148mm or 4.1"×5.8") in size. They are sometimes illustrated and like other Japanese paperbacks usually ...

'' format ( A6, 10.5 cm×14.8 cm or 4.1"x5.8"). Light novels are subject to dense publishing schedules, with new installations being published in 3–9-month intervals. Light novels are commonly illustrated in a

manga Manga ( Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is ...

art style and are often adapted into manga and

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

. While most light novels are published only as books, some have their chapters first serialized monthly in anthology magazines before being collected and compiled into book format, similar to how manga is published.

Details

Light novels developed from

pulp magazine Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 to the late 1950s. The term "pulp" derives from the cheap wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed. In contrast, magazine ...

s. To please their audience, in the 1970s, most of the Japanese pulp magazines began to put illustrations at the beginning of each story and included articles about popular

movies A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

and

video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedbac ...

. The direction of light novels evolved as to cater to the newer generations of readers, with light novels becoming fully illustrated in the popular art style. The popular serials then began to be printed in their now known novel format. Often light novels are chosen to be adapted into

, anime, and live-action films. Some of them are serialized in

literary magazine A literary magazine is a periodical devoted to literature in a broad sense. Literary magazines usually publish short stories, poetry, and essays, along with literary criticism, book reviews, biographical profiles of authors, interviews and lett ...

s such as '' Faust'', '' Gekkan Dragon Magazine'', ''

The Sneaker is a Japanese light novel magazine that was published by Kadokawa Shoten between 1993 and 2011. It was launched April 1993 then proceeded to be published monthly for most of its run. The magazine was aimed at a young adult male audience. It seria ...

'' and '' Dengeki hp'', or

media franchise A media franchise, also known as a multimedia franchise, is a collection of related media in which several derivative works have been produced from an original creative work of fiction, such as a film, a work of literature, a television program ...

magazines like '' Comptiq'' and '' Dengeki G's Magazine''. Light novels have a reputation as being "mass-produced and disposable," an extreme example being Kazuma Kamachi who wrote one novel a month for two years straight, and the author turnover rate is very high. As such, publishing companies are constantly searching for new talent with annual contests, many of which earn the winner a cash prize and publication of their novel. The Dengeki Novel Prize is the largest, with over 6,500 submissions (2013) annually. They are all clearly labeled as "light novels" and are published as low-priced paperbacks. For example, the price for '' The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya'' in Japan is ¥540 (including 5% tax), similar to the normal price for trade paperbacks—light novels and general literature—sold in Japan. In 2007 it was estimated (according to a website funded by the Japanese government) that the market for light novels was about ¥20 billion (US$170 million at the exchange rate at the time) and that about 30 million copies were published annually.

Kadokawa Corporation , formerly is a Japanese media conglomerate that was created as a result of the merger of the original Kadokawa Corporation and Dwango Co., Ltd. on October 1, 2014. History The holding company known today as Kadokawa Corporation was origi ...

's publishing subsidiary, which owns major labels like Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko and Dengeki Bunko, has a 70% to 80% share of the market. In 2009, light novels made ¥30.1 billion in sales, or about 20% of all sales of ''bunkobon'' format paperback books in Japan. There are currently many licensed English translations of Japanese light novels available. These have generally been published in the physical dimensions of standard mass market

paperback A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, ...

s or similar to manga ''

tankōbon is the Japanese term for a book that is not part of an anthology or corpus. In modern Japanese, the term is most often used in reference to individual volumes of a manga series: most series first appear as individual chapters in a weekly or ...

'', but starting in April 2007, Seven Seas Entertainment was the first English publisher to print light novels in their original Japanese ''bunkobon'' format. Other United States English-language publishers that license light novels are

Tokyopop Tokyopop (styled TOKYOPOP; formerly known as Mixx Entertainment) is an American distributor, licensor and publisher of anime, manga, manhwa and Western manga-style works. The German publishing division produces German translations of licensed ...

Viz Media VIZ Media LLC is an American manga publisher, anime distributor and entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ M ...

, DMP,

Dark Horse A dark horse is a previously lesser-known person or thing that emerges to prominence in a situation, especially in a competition involving multiple rivals, or a contestant that on paper should be unlikely to succeed but yet still might. Origin Th ...

, Yen Press (Kadokawa's American joint-venture with

Hachette Book Group Hachette Book Group (HBG) is a publishing company owned by Hachette Livre, the largest publishing company in France, and the third largest trade and educational publisher in the world. Hachette Livre is a wholly owned subsidiary of Lagardère Gr ...

), and Del Rey Manga. The founder of Viz Media, Seiji Horibuchi, speculates that the US market for light novels will experience a similar increase in popularity as it has in the Japanese subculture once it becomes recognized by the consumer audience.

History

Popular literature has a long tradition in Japan. Even though cheap, pulp novels resembling light novels were present in Japan for years prior, the creation of Sonorama Bunko in 1975 is considered by some to be a symbolic beginning. Science fiction and horror writers like Hideyuki Kikuchi or

Baku Yumemakura is a Japanese science fiction and adventure writer. His works have sold more than 20 million copies in Japan spread across more than 280 titles. He is published in a variety of formats including feature films, television shows, movies and comic b ...

started their careers through such imprints. Another origin is the serialization of '' Record of Lodoss War'' in the magazine '' Comptiq''. Kim Morrissy of

Anime News Network Anime News Network (ANN) is a news website that reports on the status of anime, manga, video games, Japanese popular music and other related cultures within North America, Australia, Southeast Asia and Japan. The website offers reviews and ...

reported that Keita Kamikita, the

system operator A sysop (; an abbreviation of system operator) is an administrator of a multi-user computer system, such as a bulletin board system (BBS) or an online service virtual community.Jansen, E. & James,V. (2002). NetLingo: the Internet dictionary. Net ...

of a science fiction and fantasy forum, is usually credited with coining the term "light novel" in 1990. After noticing that the science fiction and fantasy novels that had emerged in the 1980s were also attracting anime and manga fans because of their illustrations by famous

manga artist A is a comic artist who writes and/or illustrates manga. As of 2006, about 3,000 professional manga artists were working in Japan. Most manga artists study at an art college or manga school or take on an apprenticeship with another artist bef ...

s, Kamikita avoided using terms like "young adult" because the novels did not appeal to one particular demographic. The 1990s saw the smash-hit '' Slayers'' series which merged fantasy-RPG elements with comedy. Some years later MediaWorks founded a pop-lit imprint called Dengeki Bunko, which produces well-known light novel series to this day. The '' Boogiepop series'' was their first major hit which soon was animated and got many anime watchers interested in literature. Dengeki Bunko writers continued to slowly gain attention until the small light novel world experienced a boom around 2006. After the huge success of the '' Haruhi Suzumiya'' series, the number of publishers and readers interested in light novels suddenly skyrocketed. Light novels became an important part of the Japanese 2D culture in the late 2000s, with series such as '' A Certain Magical Index'' selling large amounts of copies with each volume release. The number of light novels series put out every year increases, usually illustrated by the most celebrated artists from pixiv and the most successful works are adapted into manga, anime, games and live-action movies. Since the mid-2000s, it has become increasing popular for publishers to contact authors of web fiction on their blog or website to publish their work in print form. The material is often heavily edited and may even feature an altered story, which might compel someone who had already read it online to buy the print release as well. The free novel publication website Shōsetsuka ni Narō is a popular source for such material. Popular works like '' Sword Art Online'', '' That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime'', ''

Overlord An overlord in the English feudal system was a lord of a manor who had subinfeudated a particular manor, estate or fee, to a tenant. The tenant thenceforth owed to the overlord one of a variety of services, usually military service or ser ...

'', '' Re:Zero'' and '' KonoSuba'' were originally popular web novels that got contacted by a publisher to distribute and publish those stories in print format. In recent times, there has been a venture to publish more light novels in the United States. The leader of this publisher, Yen Press, is a joint venture between

and Japanese publisher

Kadokawa Kadokawa may refer to: *Kadokawa Corporation, the holding company of the Kadokawa Group **Kadokawa Content Gate and Kadokawa Mobile, both former names for BookWalker **Kadokawa Future Publishing, a subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation and the publi ...

. Other publishers such as Seven Seas Entertainment,

(owned by

Shogakukan is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, literature, comics ( manga), non-fiction, DVDs, and other media in Japan. Shogakukan founded Shueisha, which also founded Hakusensha. These are three separate companies, but are together called the ...

and

Shueisha (lit. "Gathering of Intellect Publishing Co., Ltd.") is a Japanese company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The company was established in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The fol ...

), Vertical (owned by Kodansha USA), One Peace Books, J-Novel Club, Cross Infinite Worlds, Sol Press have all been making an effort to publish more light novels in English. Additionally, light novel authors and authors have been starting to make guest appearances overseas at anime conventions. At the 2019 Anime Expo, one of the biggest Anime conventions of the year, featured creators such as Kumo Kagyu, author of '' Goblin Slayer,'' and Fujino Omori, the author of '' Is It Wrong to Pick up Girls in a Dungeon?''. One popular genre in the light novel category is or "different world" stories. In these stories usually feature an ordinary person that is transported from a modern city life to a world of fantasy and adventure. ''Sword Art Online,'' a web novel initially published in 2002, contributed to the popularization of 'Isekai' as a genre. This web novel became extremely popular, forming various adaptations such as an anime, manga, and even various movies and spinoff series. Because of the success of ''Sword Art Online'', other novels such as ''KonoSuba,

'' and '' Re:Zero'' became increasingly more popular. The success of ''Sword Art Online'' and 'isekai' as a whole contributed to the creation of write-your-own fiction websites in Japan and increasing popularity of light novels in the west as well.

Outside Japan

In Taiwan and Hong Kong

The Kadokawa Group's local subsidiary, Kadokawa Taiwan (), translated and sold Chinese versions of their own light novels, after being established as the first overseas branch in 1999 by Kadokawa Japan. In 2007, Chingwin and

signed an exclusive contract to publish Super Dash Bunko and Cobalt Bunko under the name Elite Novels. Subsequently,

GA Bunko is a publishing label affiliated with the Japanese publishing company SB Creative, a subsidiary of Softbank. It was established in January 2006 and is a light novel A light novel (, Hepburn: ''raito noberu'') is a style of young adult nove ...

and

HJ Bunko is a publishing label affiliated with the Japanese publishing company Hobby Japan. It was established in July 2006 and is a light novel A light novel (, Hepburn: ''raito noberu'') is a style of young adult novel primarily targeting high ...

, which were slowly starting to gain popularity in Japan, also signed exclusive contracts with local publishers. As time went on, the original exclusive contracts were gradually opened to other publishers.

References

External links