Anime-style novels?

There are some yaoi-style novels out there. Mojocastle is the only specific publisher of it that leaps to ming right now.

Michael Dracon said:

Are there any good examples of anime-style novels that do not use pictures? I'd like to know a little bit more about how to write the (slightly-)over-the-top things that usualy happen in anime's.

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I've been trying to figure out how to write one of these, too. I think it would be awesome to have an actual bound book with an anime cover and the same zany style for the plot and characters. It's a fun challenge, trying to translate a cartoon's essence into prose. I think I can do it...eventually.

Good luck with yours, and if you post any attempts in SYW I'll definitely take a peek.

My action is pretty over-the-top, kind of like in an anime. I don't picture the characters in anime style though, but I do have the crazy creatures and battles.

perhaps take a look at novels that became, or will become anime.

earthsea by leguinn, for instance.

Try looking for the translations of "Vampire Hunter D".

Be warned, though, those translations need a Lot of editing. But if you can get passed the editing problems (reads like a pro translator who has no idea how to translate a story), you'll be able to see how the story is told.

"Vampire Hunter D" is a series of 12 volumes, at last count, and 2 anime were released a while back: "Vampire Hunter D" (book 1), and "Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust" (book 3).

Also take a look at "Trinity Blood". I don't know if there's an English version of the books available, but that's another trilogy (so far) that has become a manga and an anime.

If you can find it, a third series may be "Dragon Raja" (not sure if this is Chinese, Japanese or Taiwanese, lol!); a series of seven (????) books, I think. It's also a manga now. I've not heard anything about an anime of it, though.

Aside from the Japanese side, you might look for Louis Cha works, e.g., "The Deer and the Cauldron". That's a 5-book series, now a manga available in English. (There's a TVB (Hong Kong terrestrial channel) series of the series (1985/6 or so).)

Also, "Hua Mulan", the Chinese version (Not Disney) was a legend, transcribed to historical format, and later transcribed to manga and a tv series. There should be English information available; and the manga is definitely available in English.

"Journey to the West" is another one to look for. It was originally in book format, became a tv live-action series, an anime / animated series, a manga. This one, however, has two versions: The Japanese version, and the Chinese version. Both are similar to each other, and, if I recall correctly, both are also available in English.

I can't think of any others right now. Hope this list helps a bit.

Oh! The other one you might look at: "Howl's Moving Castle".

Book is by Diana Wynne Jones; the anime is by Hayao Miyazaki. Very different ways of handling the story, but, IMO, both are well worth the time and money investment (just read / watch them as separate products, with the latter Based on the former -- this avoids disappointment and confusion with both media).

Trinity blood does have the English version now. Also check out ToykoPop's listing of novels. http://www.tokyopop.com/manga.php?category_id=11

Also if you check out the YA section of the bookstores, you can sometimes find Anime style novels. I too am interested in them and it seems that the Japanese style of writing is a lot different from ours. I have a copy of the first Trinity Blood series somewhere in this house, I seem to have lost it. It seems like they write each chapter as an individual story, yet it also has one thread that weaves each chapter together. They use minor characters like we use rags. Use them and throw them away. You might want to check out toykopop's forum to get ideas on how to write them. I'm not sure if you want to write them as an American YA or a Japanese YA. You might want to ask the publishers on the forum. They'd tell you what you need to do. But I think for the American side, you'd want to write them as an american YA.

kim

There's a bunch of manga that they change to a novel form. Full Metal Alchemist has a series of novel-styled books and so does...um...uh...

http://www.gomanga.com

Click on "Novels". Their Light Novel line will be coming out this fall. And they'd better read just fine, because I did the English Adaptations on most of them.

Yes, the Japanese style of writing is much different - but just like here, it varies from author to author. I've done series where there was minimal work to be done, and others where the translation reads like a fortune cookie. To keep the author's original intent and make it appeal to English speaking audiences is a fine art, thank you very much

I've enjoyed all the books I've worked on so far.

csinman said:

I've been trying to figure out how to write one of these, too. I think it would be awesome to have an actual bound book with an anime cover and the same zany style for the plot and characters. It's a fun challenge, trying to translate a cartoon's essence into prose. I think I can do it...eventually.

Good luck with yours, and if you post any attempts in SYW I'll definitely take a peek.

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I'm writing a novel (probably two or three actually) that is exactly along this line. I've already commissioned the cover art in manga style, because it fits the story so perfectly. I was just browsing the web when I caught this thread. Funny that people are actually talking about this. I've never really heard people discussing it before. My novel(s) is/are set in Japan (in the future, but you almost wouldn't know it... kind of a nod to "some things never change"), and it has a plot that could be a manga and fit perfectly. I worry all the time in writing it "what will people think, because the plot and characters in some way are so over-the-top?" I worry people will pick it up expecting something sober and totally realistic, and miss altogether what the style of the novel was supposed to be. But I just love the characters and the cast, and so, I thought I might regret it if I didn't try to do this, even if the world might not understand my style, or even if people ultimately dismiss it because of it's 'unrealistic elements'.

One of my biggest challenges in writing it has been, now that I'm trying to edit some of it before I go on, I'm looking at it and all of the old doubts are coming up "what if people think this is too corny, or what if they don't get it?" It's been really hard to know how much of that slightly unrealistic and over-the-top element it can have before people will simply think I was trying at a serious novel and just couldn't write or something. It's meant to be somewhat over the edge where realism is concerned and yet, like anime does almost characteristically, at the same time it tends to deal with serious things or real concepts, even if it takes them on exaggerated levels.

I quit my job over a year ago to give this a shot, and so I'm doing nothing else right now. It's been hard because even among writers, people read it expecting deadpan realism, and so they totally miss the point of it. So I've got no idea at all whether this will actually work in the end, but... seeing a thread like this is just about the closest thing I can come to any kind of encouragement for this. It's the kind of project that mainstream publishers wouldn't touch with a 20ft pole. I guess I figured, hey... I like anime, lots of people like it too... why aren't there books out there like that?

I've actually got a related sci-fi story that is very much the same tone, albeit not a solid Japanese cast. (Takes place in the same universe, and shares some of the same characters, though.) So if it works out, I may go ahead and work through the sci-fi one as well, even though right now, because of it's sheer scope cast-wise, I've had trouble with it for about 5 years now.

If anyone actually sees this, if you want to put in your 2 cents, you can mail me at my 'expendable' email address (it's not my main, but I'll get the messages) at [email protected]. (No spam please.)

I think, after seeing this thread, it's time for me to go back and look at this project again, and remember what it was meant to be, and consider that maybe that's not such a bad thing after all. Anyhow, since I've never been published, the world will probably skin me for my newbie-novel anyhow. lol

Ja.

-Kazu

Just chiming in here, you can find the Vampire Hunter D books at Borders. They're really good.

The_Grand_Duchess said:

Just chiming in here, you can find the Vampire Hunter D books at Borders. They're really good.

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I've read the first four. Everything after book one just had WAY too much rape for me. It's a personal preference. The first one is a lot of fun, though.

I wouldn't say the books were made anime style, but that the films were made to suit the novel, particularly the second one. In fact, I'm not even sure what an anime-style book would be. Would it include the usual anime clichés? If so, which ones? Would it have to be serialized? Anime itself is not a single genre, but an animation style that covers a whole butt-load of genres.

Michael Dracon said:

I know Anime/Manga has a lot of different sub-genres. But my primary reason for asking is the slightly-over-the-top style. Just look at Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children or Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. I want to know how you write people jumping very high or walking up walls and such.

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Well, I don't think one has to go so far as walking up walls. One of the other ways anime was over the top was in plot. (I think even more basic than the 'moves' was the over-the-top plots.) But still, there are a lot of anime/manga that are not even all that much over the top. What makes them differ from movies and other cartoons, is that they almost always have something about them that is kind of silly or unrealistic, and yet... they still often deal with things that in themselves are quite realistic. For instance, an anime in space will sometimes deal with the realistic issues that arise from being in space, or, on the level of characters, most animes do reflect upon human relationships or life at some point.

So I think it's not so much a matter of capturing the over-the-edge moves, as it is appreciating the often unrealistic plots which nevertheless often deal with totally realistic things like relationships or life or even political philosophy.

Your average sports anime/manga will often feature some kid who is ridiculously good at his or her sport. But however ridiculous their game, often it will also go into the lives of the characters, and point out the kind of hard work one realistically needs to achieve the best place in the real world. Whereas cartoons tend to be utterly moronic (even if they try to pitch sappy, bleeding heart things about caring and sharing) and movies (in order for them to be called 'good') often have to achieve total realism. Anime cut down the middle, and gave us something uniquely inbetween. Fun and interesting for it's unrealism, but not afraid to approach serious topics and be realistic in many other ways at the same time.)

Actually if you want an anime style novel you should look at pulp novels.

Look up Remo Williams.

Michael Dracon said:

I know Anime/Manga has a lot of different sub-genres. But my primary reason for asking is the slightly-over-the-top style. Just look at Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children or Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon.

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Just a note: "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" isn't anime/manga. (^_^)

*Thinks of all the Chinese film-makers and directors who would like to strangle joo for comparing their work to Japanese anime/manga. Not sure what is worse, the Japanese comparison or anime comparison to Chinese film-makers.*

I've read some novels that could be called anime-style, but are not. Just remember, there has to be some reference in your book of someone turning 'Chibi' .

One of the best of the upcoming Light Novels, IMO, is Gun Princess. Great fantasy, and I can't wait to see how it all comes out.

I also liked Ballad of a Shinigami; that also has a manga. Great series.