Category:Light Novels: Difference between revisions

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[[File:rsz 14778387398 90167f775d 9720.jpg|link=Haruhi Suzumiya|right]]

[[Literal-Minded|A ''light novel'' is a novel composed entirely of beams of light.]]

No, not really, although [[Rule of Cool|that would be awesome]]. While related to [[Manga]] and [[Anime]], light novels are actually prose, written in short paragraphs for fast reading. (An example of the light novel style, in [http://www.fredart.com/envelope/01-j.html Japanese] and [http://www.fredart.com/envelope/index-2.html English].) Light novels are very popular in Japan, chiefly among teenagers and young adults, but due to the amount of translation involved, [[No Export for You|very few]] of them make their way to English-language markets. This may start to change, however, as ''[[Haruhi Suzumiya]]'' sold better than expected, and Yen Press has created the successful strategy of marketing them to the people who read novels and not just anime/manga fans. There are also a relatively large number of translated [[Yaoi]] light novels.

The term light novel is a misnomer. While many people believe that the word "light" in the name means the novel is '''short''' (and they usually don't last much longer than 200 pages) or that it uses '''manga-style illustrations''', the truth is that this actually refers to the text inside. Modern light novels use simpler, easier to read everyday kanji as opposed to "hard" novels, which generally contain much older words which, even for Japanese readers, may necessitate keeping a dictionary on hand to understand.

Light Novels commonly get adapted to Manga and Anime, and more often than not are promptly ''[[Adaptation Displacement|displaced]]'' by said adaptations outside Japan for the reasons stated above.

There are [[Fan Translation]] sites all around the internet for novels which don't get exported outside of Japan, such as [http://baka-tsuki.org/project/index.php?title=Main_Page Baka-Tsuki]. The rest are usually individual projects.

Chinese-language literature has a somewhat similar phenomenon, particularly in Taiwan. Although the term "light novel" is not typically used in China for such works, for convenience they will be listed here.

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[[Category:Japanese Media]]

[[Category:Literature Genres]]

[[Category:Works]]

[[Category:Light Novels]]