In the manga industry, artists and editors are more like comrades-in-arms, fighting side by side.
The term "veteran manga editor" or "renowned manga editor" doesn't refer to years of experience, but rather to the number of acclaimed and outstanding works produced by the artists they've collaborated with.
By this measure, Misaki was undoubtedly one of the most exceptional editors at Hoshimori Publishing Group.
Even setting aside Rei's 5 Centimeters Per Second, the sales performance of the manga series she had previously overseen surpassed that of many editors with seven or eight more years of experience.
While Sakura Weekly was only a third-tier magazine, its weekly sales still reached 800,000 copies. In Japan, many magazines struggled to sell even tens of thousands of copies per week.
The Tale of Sorrow manga series, which Misaki oversaw, averaged 400,000 copies per volume. The standalone edition of 5 Centimeters Per Second had already surpassed 550,000 copies in total sales since its release, and achieving a million copies per volume was only a matter of time within the year.
Yet as Misaki entered the conference room, a sense of unease settled in her heart.
Including Misaki, there were nine people in the conference room, indicating that nine works were being reviewed for serialization.
Each of the ten chairs was placed before a table piled high with original manga manuscripts—the works under consideration for serialization.
The editors attending the meeting were no pushovers.
Among them were two editors who had previously overseen serialized works for Hoshimori Publishing.
Misaki's past achievements held little weight in the face of such experienced colleagues.
However,
A knock sounded, and Ryouichiro Shido, one of the directors of Hoshimori Publishing Group's Editorial Department and the editor-in-chief of Fantasy Realm Weekly, entered the room.
Of course, his influence was limited to Fantasy Realm Weekly.
He glanced at the attendees before his gaze settled on Misaki.
Everyone present was well-acquainted with him, having worked together in the Editorial Department for many years. Though there were hierarchical distinctions, their relationships were generally amicable.
Misaki had joined the Editorial Department just two years ago. Her performance had been impressive, and she had previously worked under Moriyama Kaito.
"Alright, let's begin," Ryouichiro Shido announced, clearing his throat.
The serialization meetings at Hoshimori Publishing Group followed a similar format across all their magazines.
The attending editors quickly reviewed the manga submissions, then shared their opinions.
In truth, the opinions of ordinary editors carried little weight. The discussions were merely a channel for the editor-in-chief to gauge their staff's perspectives.
The ultimate decision on whether a work would be serialized rested with the editor-in-chief of each magazine.
For Sakura Weekly, the decision lay with Director Moriyama Kaito.
For Fantasy Realm Weekly, it was Director Ryouichiro Shido who held the power.
At Shido's signal, the editors took turns picking up the manga manuscripts stacked on the table and began reading.
After about five minutes, they set down the manuscripts and briefly discussed them for about a minute.
Then, following Shido's instructions, they picked up the second manga submission.
As time passed, Misaki's expression grew increasingly serious.
The works submitted to the Serialization Meeting spanned a wide range of genres:
Fantasy adventure Suspense Horror Survival Psychological thriller Romance
Every genre was represented.
As expected of a magazine with triple the weekly sales of Sakura Weekly, the quality of the works at this Serialization Meeting far surpassed those published in Sakura Weekly.
But...
Misaki took a deep breath. She had complete faith in her manga, Tonight.
Whether in terms of art or story, she was certain Rei's manga wouldn't lose to any of these works.
An hour later, when the editors reached the seventh submission, many of their expressions shifted slightly.
Tonight, Even If This Love Disappears from the World!
The long title didn't matter—it was the art...
Was it too good?
How many sleepless nights had the manga artist sacrificed to produce these few chapters at such a level of quality?
They continued flipping through the pages.
Due to time constraints at the Serialization Meeting, only the first three chapters of each manga had been submitted.
Five minutes later, many editors reluctantly put down the manuscripts, their interest piqued.
"Shirogane?" Ryouichiro Shido asked Misaki.
"Could this be a new pen name for a famous mangaka?"
"No, the author is a newcomer, still in high school. This is his second manga work," Misaki replied.
But immediately, she noticed Ryouichiro Shido's slightly furrowed brow.
At that moment, the other editors at the meeting chimed in.
"Isn't he the author of that super-short manga, 5 Centimeters Per Second?"
"Ah, I remember now. It only ran for five chapters before it ended."
"Although the collected edition sold quite well—it might even break a million copies—Shirogane is still just a newcomer who's been in the manga industry for less than half a year, right?"
These editors were ostensibly discussing Shirogane, but in reality, they were subtly revealing his basic information and flaws to Ryouichiro Shido.
After all, they were competitors, and there was no room for sentimentality.
The reason they had begun discussing Shirogane was because everyone had realized that his manga, Tonight, was truly exceptional.
Both the plot and the artwork were remarkably polished. The only way to find fault was to nitpick at minor details.
As Misaki listened to these comments, her fingers gradually clenched into a fist. She retorted softly, her voice laced with sarcasm:
"Didn't Hoshizaki Aira start serializing her work on Monogatari IC when she was still in high school? And Kentō began serializing his manga in his second year of high school, while Seki's works were published in all six major magazines during his freshman year of college—and they all achieved remarkable success."
"Do you really think a newcomer like Shirogane can compare to those three?" an editor asked with a smile during the meeting.
"Why not?" Misaki replied, returning the smile. "The Hoshimori Publishing Group supports new talent, especially young shōnen and shōjo manga artists, precisely so we can cultivate industry stars from within our own ranks, right?"
"Alright, let's end this discussion here," Ryouichiro Shido interjected. "Next, let's review the next work."
Misaki's gaze shifted to Ryouichiro Shido, a hint of understanding dawning in her eyes.
An hour later, the editors left the conference room.
Misaki returned to her office and began researching her internal connections within the Editorial Department on her phone.
By afternoon, she had pieced together the full picture.
The Hoshimori Publishing Group's two secondary manga magazines, Sky Shadow and Fantasy Realm, had historically seen Sky Shadow consistently lag behind Fantasy Realm in sales by several hundred thousand copies.
However, two recent popular manga series in Fantasy Realm had ended poorly, triggering widespread fan backlash and mass abandonment.
Its weekly sales had plummeted from 2.6 million copies to 2.3 million copies.
Meanwhile, Sky Shadow had seen its weekly sales surge to around 1.9 million copies, thanks to several ongoing series reaching their peak.
With this information, Misaki could now roughly guess Ryouichiro Shido's intentions.
He was now focused on avoiding mistakes rather than achieving success.
It was clear that Ryouichiro Shido, the editor-in-chief of Fantasy Realm magazine, didn't believe Shirogane, a newcomer with only a five-chapter historical manga to his name, could produce anything worthwhile.
While it was highly likely that 5 Centimeters Per Second would sell over a million copies per volume, Shido clearly looked down on such short-form works.
The popularity of short manga was too often a matter of chance.
Who knew how a longer serialization would fare?
Fantasy Realm's sales were already struggling, with Sky Shadow magazine threatening to overtake them. If Rei's manga were serialized in Fantasy Realm, and the inexperienced artist proved incapable of handling a longer series, leading to a rushed or unsatisfying ending, it would undoubtedly cause the magazine's sales to plummet further.
"What a shortsighted fool," Misaki thought, her "idiot allergy" flaring up.
Capable leaders often eagerly anticipate the emergence of promising talent among their subordinates.
Incompetent leaders, on the other hand, prioritize stability above all else.
Fine, cling to your stability, she thought. But remember, a boat that doesn't row against the current will drift backward. Keep playing it safe, and don't be surprised when Sky Shadow surpasses our sales.
Misaki sighed softly.
Though she had a rough idea of what to do, she would have to wait for the results of tomorrow's Serialization Meeting.