news

Hello everyone,

Yey! Finally, the next chapter of Kotetsuko Yamamoto’s A Boring Man. You can download it here. Again, please be sure to read the FAQ before uploading or listing on websites.

Well, I almost forgot about this. I translated it so long ago. I feel miles away from simple, sweet stories now, as I’m drudging through tears, accusations, shouting, denial, pain, etc. (If you don’t know what I’m talking about, just click “news” or “new release” at the top and read my previous post.) It’s not like Atsushi and Satoru don’t cause each other suffering in this chapter, but it seems so innocent compared to my present project. ^__^ I love drama, but, you know, sometimes, I just need a break. You can start feeling pretty depressed when you’re immersed in such intensity all the time. I think I need to mix up the depressing projects with more happy ones.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this. Thanks to Mah-chan for her fabulous editing! This is a continuation of the previously released chapters, so be sure to read those first, if you haven’t already. Unfortunately, Satoru and Atsushi’s story ends here, but, next, we will go back to the beginning of this manga and release the title story (which you can read about in the description.)

And, now, back to the grind… ^__^

Before I forget… it seems to be a little known fact that I have rules about reposting my scanlations or listing them on websites, such as MangaUpdates. If you plan to post this or list this anywhere, please take a moment to read my FAQ page first. Both my rules were violated with Chapters One and Two.

Read the FAQs? Then, to skip to the download, please visit this page.

Just to reiterate, English titles only. That’s pretty straightforward. But, people, please, this scanlation is more like a FREE sample of what you might get if this manga were available in English than anything else. No one, other than the people who own the rights, should be making money off of this. Buying and, particularly, selling this scanlation is not okay under any circumstances. Please make sure all distribution is free. Thank you.

And, now, on to my rambling…

So, wow, so it’s finally done! I’m very grateful to everyone who helped me. I couldn’t have done it without you! And I’m also extremely grateful to all you fans who waited patiently. This time, I didn’t receive any complaints at all about the wait. I really, really appreciate that. You all are awesome! Now, I feel like I need to take a long two or three day nap… but, alas, Chapter Four is looming on the horizon. 160 pages! I’m trying to think, “It’s only four 40 page oneshots.” I’m estimating this will be released in October, but, if Chapter 3 has taught me anything, it’s “you have to go with the flow.” I’ll try to keep everyone updated on our progress, just like I did for this chapter. I hope that made the wait a little more tolerable.

In this chapter, some of you may notice that I use the plural pronoun “they” when I should use the singular “he” or “she.” In a couple places, Imagase and Ootomo talk about a “lover” or a “partner” without mentioning this person’s gender. Unfortunately, English doesn’t have a gender-neutral, singular pronoun that applies to people, so I used the plural instead. I hope you will forgive my bad grammar in those places. You may have to read those parts a little more carefully, since it sounds a bit awkward.

Also, on page 111, Ootomo mentions a song called “Mermaid” by Nokko. When I originally translated that page, I looked online for lyrics, but, to my surprise, I couldn’t find them anywhere. However, I did find a video of Nokko singing the song. So, I spent many frustrating hours, playing, pausing, and replaying, trying to figure out the words. I finally translated it, then realized that I’d been looking under the wrong title! Aaaargh! When I did the search correctly, I found this translation, which is far better than mine. I’m not poetically inclined, so while the basic idea is there, my translation just sounds clunky. Haha, oh, well…

As for Chapter 4, as of today, the rough draft is done! (Yay!) But, when I say rough I mean rough, so I’ve still got a lot of work ahead of me. ^__^ Nevertheless, I’ve started feel sad about this ending already. Hahaha… I guess that’s a little premature, but, in order to make myself feel better, I’ve pretty much decided (about 80% sure) to translate another manga my Setona Mizushiro once Carp is done. (I’ve actually translated the first chapter already.) It’s an old one, so some of you may not be interested. I’ve heard a lot of grumbling about her older artwork. But it’s got a sad and dramatic story, if you like that kind of thing. (More about that later.) But, you know, I think her artwork is changing again. You begin to see it a little in Chapter 3. It’s more obvious in Chapter 4. It’s nothing dramatic. The characters just look a little different to me. Maybe their faces are longer. I just don’t want her to get rid of that one strand of hair that curls up in front. I love that.

Hello again.

Today’s release is a oneshot by Kunie Sakai called “Winter Walk.” Please visit this page to download.

Just a word about this story. This one is kinda hard to classify. It was originally published in a shoujo magazine under the author’s shoujo name, so I’m going to consider it a shoujo/josei release. However, the main character in this story is gay. I know that alone will make some people say “Hey, this isn’t shoujo!” Well, honestly, I’m not sure what it is. While the main character happens to be a gay man, this is not exactly a gay romance. The character’s past (particularly his last relationship) is not insignificant, but the primary relationship in this story is a non-sexual one between this man and a little girl. I might say it’s a story about someone coming to terms with himself in the face of adversity. I found it surprisingly sad and moving.

Thank you, thank you, to Mahchan for editing! In her part of the world, it’s winter, so this story is seasonally appropriate. For those of us in the summer regions of the planet, we’ll just have to use our imaginations to get into the “winter spirit.” ^__^