Tokyo life starting with painting

After confirming that the person over there was Higashino Tsukasa, the author of "Midnight Ring", Hosokawa Koharu did not hesitate and simply introduced himself: "Hello, Mr. Higashino, I am affiliated with Urashima Publishing House and publish the weekly "Abominable Cold" Manga magazine editor Hosokawa Koharu.”

The person on the phone seemed to be talking to the person next to him. It took almost five seconds before he answered:

"Hello, Editor Hosokawa, my name is Higashinoji."

This voice sounds a bit young, like a young man who is not very old.

Hosokawa Koharu felt strange.

It may be a bit bad to say this, but most of the authors who draw horror comics are middle-aged comics authors in their thirties, and they all have some life experience.

After all, letting some young people with no qualifications draw horror comics generally doesn't have that flavor.

But it's not easy for her to ask about her age. After all, this isn't a household registration check. Her task is just to talk to Higashino about "The Ring".

"I have briefly read Mr. Higashino's comic "Midnight Ring". Can you please spare some time recently? I would like to meet you in person to discuss matters about "Midnight Ring"."

"I'll probably have time around four o'clock tomorrow afternoon."

Around four o'clock in the afternoon? Is there any job?

Hosokawa Koharu didn't particularly care. The comics industry had been sluggish recently, and some of the authors she knew had gone to construction sites to take on side jobs.

Just after the Asian financial crisis in 1997, Japan's economy suffered a heavy blow. In this situation where everything is in dire straits, having a job is already very good.

Going to the construction site is nothing more than moving and transporting bricks, which is quite normal, and the wages are paid daily, which is very convenient, especially suitable for cartoonists.

The comics industry has been in a slump recently, and many cartoonists are still working on the construction site and have become permanent employees.

Maybe this teacher Higashino is also like this?

She took notes very ably and then replied:

"I understand. Can we do it at 4:30 tomorrow afternoon in our editorial office?"

"Okay, see you then, Editor Hosokawa."

The author of "The Ring" said politely and then hung up the phone.

Hosokawa Koharu couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

The deal was finally settled and the process was uneventful.

"How is it? Editor Hosokawa? What does the author of "The Ring" say?"

The male editor who had been staring at her for a long time asked inexplicably and eagerly.

"Well"

When Hosokawa Koharu was about to speak, he realized that it was not just the male editor who was staring at him, but the other editors who were staring at him with shining eyes.

It was as if he was staring at something rare.

Hosokawa Koharu really didn't know whether to cry or laugh.

As a colleague in the horror comics editorial department, is it a bit unreasonable to be frightened like this by horror comics?

However, he is no better.

Hosokawa Koharu looked at the TV tied with a large iron chain in front of him and coughed twice.

The time came two days ago.

At that time, Hosokawa Koharu had just brought the manga manuscripts that had been mailed this week from the mail office downstairs to the editorial office.

This can be regarded as Hosokawa Koharu's job. Although she is a new editor, she still values ​​these new contributors.

Walking upstairs, what comes into view is the logo of Urashima Publishing House - a light gray island rock.

It is said that the first president wanted to make Urashima Publishing House the largest in Japan, so he designed this logo that looks like an island rising out of the sea and becoming the highest peak.

The previous editor-in-chief even felt that he was the reason for the declining sales of "Abominable Cold". He felt sorry for the new president, and even led all the editors to kneel down in front of the logo to admit their mistake, which was just short of kowtow.

However, Hosokawa Koharu didn't feel much about these passionate legends.

She has the lowest qualifications and status in the editorial department. Every time she is ordered to go up and downstairs to get the comic manuscript, she has to see the "isolated island" sign five or six times a day.

I'm tired of watching it, how can I get excited?

Moreover, she has never lacked enthusiasm for work, so she thinks it is better to forget about this kind of chicken soup for the soul.

If you really want to drink chicken soup, you'd better hire a delivery person. Running up and down every day is so tiring.

Hosokawa Koharu entered the editorial office carrying the manga manuscript.

The working environment in Urashima's editorial department is still okay. Every editor has a 2003 laptop in front of them, but they don't use it very much, so they only take a look at it when calculating comic sales data.

There is a landline phone next to each computer, which is used to switch lines at the front desk and communicate with comic authors. On the wall not far from the office area are colorful posters from the weekly "Cold", and there is also a TV for editors to watch news reports during their free time.

After greeting the senior seniors one by one, Hosokawa Koharu rubbed his temples and began to take out the manga manuscripts he received from the folder one by one.

She was going to start looking at the manuscripts.

If there is a good idea, as the review editor, Hosokawa Koharu can find the author in advance and serve as the editor in charge of his manga.

If a good manga is cultivated, Koharu Hosokawa, who serves as editor, will have a particularly bright face, and may even be named in the manga magazine——

Although this is true, Hosokawa Koharu actually has no expectations, because the comics sent by mail will basically not have any good manuscripts. Experienced authors discuss directly with the editor and then finalize the draft. Only pure newbies will send manuscripts to the editorial department by mail.

But the level of wild newcomers? Everyone understands this.

Hosokawa Koharu even received something drawn by elementary school students and junior high school students - it didn't look like a horror comic, but more like the science fiction comic "Alien".

Therefore, even though Hosokawa Koharu has been in office for a month, she is still empty-handed. She is not responsible for the works, not even the two or three pages of short comics sandwiched in the magazine.

Very true.

But there is nothing we can do about it.

She is just a new editor. Unlike the senior editors, who have experienced comic book authors coming to them to submit manuscripts, she can only live by receiving manuscripts mailed by newcomers every day.

This is called the settling period in the Japanese workplace. Hosokawa Koharu estimated that it would take two or three months for him to sink.

She shook her head and continued to turn over the manuscript.

After flipping through the pages, a piece of paper slipped from her hand.

This paper doesn't look like original paper. The original paper for comics is very thick.

So what is this?

Hosokawa Koharu picked it up and muttered the sentence above:

“Editors with a history of heart disease or epilepsy should not read this page.”

Um? ? ?

Hey, it also comes with a movie ending reminder?

Hosokawa Koharu laughed as he watched it.

The author of this comic is so interesting, and he came up with such a fun and deceptive gimmick.

Hosokawa Koharu was talking to herself here, and the male editor next to her also looked back at the note in her hand, and then said cheerfully:

"The new comic book authors nowadays are quite interesting. They still carry this kind of note. Are they trying to create a gimmick?"

"But it's really useful. When he said that, I really wanted to take a look."

Hosokawa Koharu responded to the male editor, and his fingers that were counting the manga manuscripts stopped.

She planned to read the comics that the editor of 'Heart disease and epilepsy' should not read.

As for whether you are really scared by horror comics?

This is a joke.

To put it bluntly, who among the editors present has not read dozens or even hundreds of horror comics? We are all experts in horror comics, why do you, a newcomer, act so tall in front of us?

This is not arrogance, but accurate self-perception.

If a random horror comic could scare an editor into epilepsy and cause sudden death from a heart attack, then this industry would probably have to carry more than ten people to the morgue a day, and even death would not be enough.

The author of "The Ring" is boasting too much. In the final analysis, he underestimates the editing industry.

""Midnight Ring""

Hosokawa Koharu looked at the manga title on the brown-yellow sealed file bag and muttered.

The title of this comic is quite easy to understand.

But the name sounds like a poorly drawn horror comic with a TV theme.

She shook her head.

Alas, when I think about it this way, I no longer have any sense of expectation.

But you still have to watch it.

Hosokawa Koharu tried to cheer up, holding the thick comic manuscript paper and reading