They’re all reborn, what’s wrong with being a little more almighty?

Chapter 223 Zhang Sang Becomes His Excellency

It took Lu Yunxiang ten minutes to finish reading the more than 100 pages of comics. He took a deep breath and asked, "Brother, did you really draw this?"

"Nonsense, it wasn't me who drew it, it was you who drew it!"

"Brother, you are so awesome. This giant is so loud that I feel like I'm in a disaster movie. I can't stop watching it! Did Alan kill the giant that was taller than the city wall?" Lu Yunxiang asked.

"Want me to spoil the story? I won't tell you!" Zhang Wei said with a smile.

"No, brother, just tell me a little bit."

"How about this, when I finish drawing the latest chapter, I'll show it to you first, is that okay?"

"That's fine!" Lu Yunxiang nodded with satisfaction, and then asked, "Brother, you, a giant, have you ever submitted your work to a comic magazine?"

"It has been sent to the editorial department, but no reply yet." Zhang Wei replied.

"Who did you vote for? Shonen Jump?"

"No, I voted for Kodansha!"

"Why don't you submit it to Shueisha's Shonen Jump? That's the biggest manga magazine in Japan. One Piece, Naruto, and Bleach are all published in Shonen Jump. If your manga is published in Shonen Jump, it will definitely be a big hit!"

"The main problem is that the styles don't match! If I submit my style to Shueisha, they may not accept it! In my story, in the second chapter, the protagonist's mother is eaten by a giant. Shogakukan certainly won't accept such a manuscript, so I can only submit it to Kodansha. Kodansha has published works like "Parasyte", which are quite explicit." Zhang Wei replied.

Japan's three major manga publishers, Shueisha, Kodansha and Shogakukan, each have their own unique style of work.

As the name suggests, Shogakukan is for primary school students. It mainly produces children's comics and boys' comics. The scale of the works is not very large, and there are relatively few bloody and violent elements.

The biggest IP of Shogakukan is "Doraemon", and Shizuka taking a bath is the largest scale that can be shown in Shogakukan's children's comics.

Other well-known works, such as "Beyblade" and "Beyblade", do not even have a bathing scene.

Among Shogakukan's boys' comics, the most explicit one is probably "Ranma 1/2". Those who have read it will understand.

Then there is the scene in "Detective Conan" where a corpse falls to the ground with a pool of blood, which is considered a bloody description.

In general, Shogakukan can skirt the rules when it comes to color, but it is quite strict when it comes to blood and violence.

This is also caused by Japanese culture. Japanese culture is relatively open to the issue of color. Japanese elementary school students know more about this than Chinese college students. The society can tolerate children's works skirting the color line.

Or they think that it is just exposure and is not pornographic at all, and that it is not suitable for children if it is in a book with an 18+ rating.

The blood and violence in Attack on Titan are quite direct. In the second episode, there is a scene where a Titan holds a living person and puts him into his mouth. Shogakukan will definitely not accept manuscripts of this scale.

Speaking of Shueisha, it is the largest comic publishing house in Japan. 80% of the well-known comic works we can name are produced by Shueisha.

Shueisha's flagship publication is "Weekly Shonen Jump". From Dragon Ball, Captain Tsubasa, and Saint Seiya in the 1980s, to Slam Dunk, Hunter x Hunter, and Rurouni Kenshin in the 1990s, to the three major popular comics in the 2000s, as well as Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and Jujutsu Kaisen in the 2010s, all were serialized in "Weekly Shonen Jump".

But Zhang Wei knew that historically, Attack on Titan was indeed submitted to Shueisha in the beginning, but Shueisha did not accept the manuscript, so the author submitted it to Kodansha. Since Shueisha did not accept the manuscript, Zhang Wei did not need to go to the trouble.

Some people say that the reason Shueisha rejected Attack on Titan was because it was too large in scale, some say it was because the subject matter did not match, some say it was because the drawing of Attack on Titan was too poor, and some say that Shueisha’s editor was blind.

The editor's blind statement is obviously the most unreliable. At that time, Shueisha had three major migrant worker comics, and "Hunter x Hunter", "Gintama", "Death Note" and "Prince of Tennis" were all serialized. If the editor was really blind, how could he get these three kings and four jokers?

Shueisha's films are actually quite bold. In the "Fist of the North Star" back then, people were often beaten into pools of blood. In addition, films like "Alien", "Tokyo Ghoul", "Gantz", etc., all have many bloody and violent large-scale scenes.

Therefore, the scale is not Shueisha's problem. The scale of Attack on Titan is completely acceptable to Shueisha.

The subject matter is not a problem either. Shueisha is not picky about the subject matter of its works. If the subject matter is controversial, can it be more controversial than "Death Note"? Shueisha even dares to accept "Death Note", so the subject matter of "Attack on Titan" is not a problem at all.

As for the art, the style of Attack on Titan has indeed been criticized by many people, especially the many lines growing around the eyes of the characters for no apparent reason. But this kind of problem is definitely not a problem for Shueisha.

If the author is not good at drawing, Shueisha has a professional art team to help the author optimize the character image, and can also introduce you to comic assistants with good drawing skills.

To see this point, you can compare the Uzumaki Naruto in the first episode and the Uzumaki Naruto during the Chunin Exam, or compare the Kurosaki Ichigo in the first episode and the Kurosaki Ichigo in the Arrancar arc. They are completely two different people.

Those who don’t know might think that the author’s painting skills have improved, but in fact, Shueisha has invested resources to upgrade the style of the work.

Since it is not a problem of scale, subject matter, or painting skills, and the editor is not blind, then there is only one reason why Shueisha rejected Attack on Titan, and that is the disagreement between the editor and the author.

Shueisha is well-known for bullying its customers. Shueisha's editors often interfere with the authors' creations, which is something many cartoonists cannot accept.

The most famous example is Takehiko Inoue's Slam Dunk. At that time, Takehiko Inoue wanted to finish the series, but Shueisha asked him to continue serializing it, at least to finish the national competition and let Xiangbei win the championship. As for what happened after Xiangbei won the championship, you can refer to Captain Tsubasa.

Inoue Takehiko was unwilling, and the two sides broke up, which eventually led to the hasty ending of "Slam Dunk" after the battle of Sanno. Inoue Takehiko also left Shueisha because of this.

Shueisha dares to intervene in the work of cartoonists of the level of Takehiko Inoue, and Shueisha will not let go of young new cartoonists.

The work "Attack on Titan" originally relied on its setting and content to attract readers. Given the nature of Shueisha, it is very likely that they will interfere with the author's creation for this type of work.

If this work was published by Shueisha, it might still be fighting giants on the island now!
……

At Kodansha, Shintaro Kawakubo delivered the manuscript of Attack on Titan to the section chief's desk.

"Section Chief, I received a submission from a newcomer. I think this work has great potential," said Shintaro Kawakubo.

"Submissions from newcomers?" The section chief hesitated for two seconds. According to the normal process, when the editor receives submissions from newcomers, if he thinks they are good, he will directly recommend the work to participate in the Newcomer Award instead of sending the work to himself.

Shintaro Kawakubo sent this work specially, which means he is extremely optimistic about it.

The section chief just glanced at the title of the work, then directly opened the first page and started reading. After a while, he had finished reading all 150 pages.

"Is this really the work of a newcomer? Many winning works of the comic awards don't have this quality! I think this can be serialized directly!"

The section chief turned to the cover and wanted to see the name of this so-called new author.

"Zhang Wei? Not Japanese?" The section chief was stunned. It is not uncommon for foreigners to submit articles, but they are rare.

Shintaro Kawakubo said, "If it was a Japanese, I would definitely suggest to you without hesitation that you give this work a try in serialization. But the other party is not Japanese, should we still give him such a chance?"

"Yes, we at Kodansha have never serialized the works of foreign cartoonists. Not only us, but also Shueisha and Shogakukan have never serialized the works of foreign cartoonists!"

The section chief lowered his head to look at the manuscript and continued, "But the beginning of this work is indeed very attractive. The setting of the work and the current plot direction are very suitable for serialization."

"Chief, I think this cartoonist should have some experience in serialization. Maybe he has already published serialized works in his own country. How about I contact this cartoonist first to find out more about him? If his past works are good, we can consider serializing them for him?" Shintaro Kawakubo asked.

"Okay, let's do as you say!" The section chief nodded.

……

When Shintaro Kawakawa called, Zhang Wei was having an academic discussion with several Japanese scholars and did not answer the call.

When he saw a Japanese number later, Zhang Wei guessed that it was most likely a reply from Kodansha.

Zhang Wei pondered for a moment and felt that he could ask the devil to exchange Japanese language skills. If nothing else, even if he wanted to publish comics in Japan and communicate with editors, he would need this Japanese skill.

"Devil, I want to change my Japanese language ability. It doesn't need to be too professional, just be able to communicate fluently with Japanese people."

"To reach Japanese N1 level, you only need three months of life!" the devil answered.

"What about the other options? Still single and having nightmares?" Zhang Wei asked. He remembered that when he changed his English level, the three options were life expectancy, single and having nightmares. "

"That's right, be single for three years or have nightmares for a month!" the devil replied.

"The cost is much less than English. I exchanged my English skills for one year of life, ten years of singleness, and three months of nightmares. Is Japanese so worthless?"

"Japanese is not as popular as English in the world. No one speaks Japanese except the Japanese. And you only need to communicate with Japanese people fluently, not too professional Japanese, so the cost is relatively low."

Zhang Wei compared the three options and decisively chose to be a single dog for three years.

The last time he exchanged English, Zhang Wei did not choose this option. He was thinking about going to find his wife who was still in high school after his father-in-law and his family moved to Qinhai this summer. Of course, you have to cultivate your own wife from a young age. Just thinking about it is exciting!

Now that his wife has disappeared, the option of being a single dog has no meaning for Zhang Wei. What's more, Zhang Wei is only 20 years old this year. After being single for three years, he is only 23 years old, which is still the prime time for him.

After exchanging Japanese, Zhang Wei called Kodansha back and agreed to go to Kodansha the next morning to discuss in detail.

The next day, Zhang Wei came to Kodansha and met Shintaro Kawakawa.

After the two exchanged a few pleasantries, Kawakubo Shintaro asked, "Mr. Zhang, you speak Japanese so fluently. You must have been in Japan for several years, right? Are you studying in Japan or doing a trainee?"

"I'm currently at the University of Tokyo." Zhang Wei deliberately only gave the address and did not mention that he was an exchange student.

"The University of Tokyo! It turns out that Mr. Zhang is a top student at the University of Tokyo!" Shintaro Kawakubo immediately showed an expression of admiration.

It is not much easier for Japanese people to get into the University of Tokyo than it is for Chinese people to get into Tsinghua University or Peking University. Being able to study at the University of Tokyo itself represents a kind of status.

The Japanese have always admired the strong. Anyone who can study at the University of Tokyo is considered a strong person in the eyes of the Japanese. Facing a strong person, Shintaro Kawakawa instinctively lowered his posture a few points.

Kawakubo Shintaro said, "Mr. Zhang, I've seen the drawings you sent me. I think the story setting is very good and the rhythm is very tight. I guess this is definitely not your first work? If you don't mind, can you show me your previous works?"

"I do have other works, but they are not comics, but novels," Zhang Wei replied.

"Zhang-san, you mean you are a writer?"

"And my novels are selling pretty well!" Zhang Wei continued.

"You are also a best-selling author!" Shintaro Kawakawa immediately sat up straight and lowered his posture a little.

In Japan, writers have a very high status. Japanese writers can be printed on banknotes, and more than one of them has this honor. A famous best-selling author must have a much higher social status than a cartoonist of the same level.

"No wonder the plot of Attack on Titan is so fast-paced, it turns out it's written by a writer!" Kawakubo Shintaro put on a serious face and asked, "Mr. Zhang, what are your masterpieces? I will definitely read them if I have the chance."

"Do you have a computer with internet access? I'll find one for you."

"Online? Are your works published on the Internet?" Shintaro Kawakawa was slightly stunned.

"No, I want to tell you where you can buy my works." Zhang Wei said.

"Okay, please follow me." Shintaro Kawakawa said, and took Zhang Wei to the office and to his computer.

Zhang Wei went directly to Amazon’s US website.

"This is Amazon, Mr. Zhang, your works can be purchased on Amazon!" Shintaro Kawakawa nodded as if he had suddenly realized something.

Zhang Wei said, “I don’t know if Amazon Japan sells it, but Amazon America definitely has it. Here, this is the first one.”

Shintaro Kawakubo looked at the location of the mouse and found that it was Amazon's bestseller list!
Isn’t the first book on the bestseller list the number one bestseller on Amazon?

"Zhang-san, if I'm not mistaken, this is Amazon's bestseller list, right? Is The Hunger Game, which ranks first on the bestseller list, your work?"

"Yes, look, there is a mark on it. The author is Zhang Wei, that's me." Zhang Wei said as he clicked on the page of the book, and the author's name appeared under the title.

"Oh my God, this Mr. Zhang is actually the best-selling book on Amazon!" Shintaro Kawakawa took a deep breath and was stunned on the spot.

In the eyes of the Japanese, the status of writers is already high, and the status of best-selling authors is even higher. Those who can be best-selling authors in the United States must have a higher status than best-selling authors in Japan. And in the eyes of the Japanese, the number one best-selling author in the United States is equivalent to literary masters like Haruki Murakami and Keigo Higashino!
Although I haven’t seen Zhang Wei’s works, since my American father said they were good, then this work must be good!

Thinking of this, Kawakubo Shintaro bowed directly to Zhang Wei, and then said, "Sir Zhang Wei, please wait in the lounge for a while. I will go and ask the section chief to come over."

Shintaro Kawakubo's way of addressing Zhang Wei changed directly from "Mr. Zhang" to "Your Excellency Zhang Wei".

In Japanese, the title "Your Excellency" was previously used for politicians or military generals. Later, people of higher status were also addressed as "Your Excellency".

A moment later, the section chief came to the lounge.

At this time, the section chief already knew that Zhang Wei was the number one writer on Amazon's sales list, so even though Zhang Wei looked very young, the section chief did not dare to neglect him in the slightest.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, the two finally started talking about their work.

"Sir Zhang Wei, we need to understand the work before we can decide whether to publish it in the magazine. So please introduce the subsequent plot development of Attack on Titan." said the section chief.

"Actually, I also brought some of the follow-up content." Zhang Wei said, and took out a stack of manuscripts and handed them to the section chief.

When submitting his manuscript before, Zhang Wei only sent the content of the first three episodes of Titan, which was the second time the Colossal Titan appeared near the city wall. This time, Zhang Wei brought the content of seven more episodes, which means the plot has been advanced to the tenth episode.

The tenth episode is the one where the protagonist Eren turns into a giant for the first time, which is also the first climax of the entire comic.

The section chief took the drawing and found it was twice as thick as the previous one, but he still looked at it carefully.

This time, he watched for half an hour, and when he saw Alan transform into a giant, his eyes lit up and his face was filled with shock. It was obvious that such a transformation was completely beyond his expectations. This also aroused the section chief's greater curiosity.

"The protagonist can become a giant? Why can the protagonist become a giant? How did he become a giant? Does this mean that other people can also become giants? In other words, giants are transformed from humans? Under what conditions can humans become giants?"

One question after another appeared in the section chief's mind.

The next second, the section chief suddenly realized that even he, a professional, was immersed in the plot of Attack on Titan. If he were an ordinary reader, wouldn't he be unable to sleep at night after reading this?
“Perhaps this work can compete with Shueisha’s Big Three!”

Thinking of this, the section chief asked anxiously, "Mr. Zhang Wei, are you interested in serializing this work in our Kodansha?"

"Since I've submitted my work to you, I naturally hope that it will be serialized here. However, as you can see, each episode of my work has many pages, so I may not be able to serialize it weekly." Zhang Wei said.

"That's not a problem. We have Monthly Shonen Magazine and you can publish it there," said the section chief.

Although the sales of Monthly Shonen Magazine are not as good as the three major weekly comics, it is still among the best among the monthly comics. Each issue of this monthly magazine can have more than 800 pages, and it is thick and very readable.

The characteristic of "Monthly Shonen Magazine" is that it has many long serials. "Dragon and Wolf Tale", which is more familiar to Chinese readers, was serialized in this magazine.

The historical giants were serialized in Bessatsu Shonen Magazine, a supplement also published monthly that mainly collected fantasy works.

However, as a supplement, its circulation is relatively small, only more than 20,000 copies, which is dwarfed by the sales of more than one million copies of the three major weeklies.

Now Zhang Wei has managed to serialize his work in Monthly Shonen Magazine, which is definitely much better than serializing it in a supplement.

……

Zhang Wei was fully expecting that Kodansha would serialize "The Giant". In addition to the high quality of the work itself, the timing of publication was also very important.

At this time, Kodansha had been suppressed by Shueisha for several consecutive years and could not even raise its head.

Over the past decade or so, Shueisha has always had hit products, and by 2005, the three major comics had begun to sweep the anime circles around the world.

In addition, the currently serialized "Gintama", "Hunter x Hunter" and "Death Note" are all popular works, "The Prince of Tennis" and "Katekyo Hitman Reborn" are also excellent works. There are also high-quality works such as "Hikaru no Go" and "Yu-Gi-Oh" that have just been completed.

As for Shogakukan, Okamasa Aoyama's "Detective Conan" and Rumiko Takahashi's "Inuyasha" are enough to stabilize the sales of their weekly magazine.

As for Kodansha, its last hit work was "GTO", which was completed three years ago.

In 2005, Kodansha had only two works that were barely worth mentioning, one was "Ghost Eyes Mad Blade" and the other was "The Shining Duo". But these two works were not as good as the three major migrant workers' comics, and even compared with the few small kings of Shueisha, they were several levels lower.

Kodansha now wants to continue to produce a photo work to compete with Shueisha. Even if it cannot reach the level of the three major comics, it must at least be able to compete with the three little kings.

Zhang Wei's investment in Giant to Kodansha at this time was just the right timing, and it was like providing timely help.

It is too early to submit the work. Kodansha does not yet feel the survival crisis and will not give Attack on Titan enough support.

It is also not a good idea to submit your work too late, because in 2006, Kodansha had a hit work "Fairy Tail" start serialization.

Fairy Tail helped Kodansha stabilize the situation. If Zhang Wei waits until this time to submit his work, it would be like providing timely help.

(End of this chapter)