Light Novels | Anime-Planet Light Novels A light novel is a Japanese novel Early works of Japanese literature were heavily influenced by cultural contact with China and Chinese literature, often written in Classical Chinese. Indian literature also had an influence through the separation of Buddhism in Japan. Eventually, Japanese literature developed into a separate style, although the influence of Chinese literature and Classical Chinese remained until the end of the Edo period. Since Ja…Japanese literature
Regarding Chinese Light novels, my top 5 light novels would be:
Light Novels (often shortened to the slang term “ranobe” by their readers) are a special type of short-form print medium that is aimed at adolescent or young adult readers, and predominantly sold in Japan. And no, the books themselves are of course not anime in the stricter sense, as the term “anime” primarily describes animated video material.
Reading has quickly become one of the most effective means of escape and enjoyment these days, so what better time for anime and manga fans to dive into the world of light novels? Like manga, light novels also represent the source material for a lot of anime, but the latter has only started catching on in the West over the last five-10 years.
In short: Light Novels are usually shorter and they also contain few illustrations. In addition they are easier to read in Japanese when compared to a normal novel. This is particular because the text contains much simpler and easier to read modern kanji.
Light novels still feature some artwork but more as an additional feature than part of the story. The artwork is very similar to the more common manga style, however, the illustrations are not key to the story. Instead, the story is kept short and light at a slower pace.
The average length of a light novel is about 50,000 words, close to the minimum word count expected for a Western novel, and is published in the bunkobon format (A6, 10.5 cm×14.8 cm or 4.1"x5.8"). Light novels are subject to dense publishing schedules, with new installations being published in 6-9 month intervals.
While a sizeable number of anime are adapted from manga, an increasing number of anime are also being adapted from light novels, most notably from the isekai and fantasy genres.
As the name suggests, a light novel is just that; The story itself is rarely more than 50,000 words and is divided up by a slew of stunning illustrations. Light novels are often confused with manga because of their sporadic pictures.
What is the difference between a novel and a light novel? In short: Light Novels are usually shorter and they also contain few illustrations. In addition they are easier to read. This is particular because the text contains much simpler and easier to read modern kanji.
Book Length by the Numbers A 50,000-word manuscript is 200 pages.
Pocket1· 3/29/2021. LN is officially licenced, All manga is based of LN and all anime is based off of manga+LN. WN is the unofficially licenced volumes, that doesnt mean fan made, it means that the producer hasnt turned it into a book yet.
They're fun to read!! Easier to read through (I've heard light novels compared to pulp fiction before) i.e. you can finish them faster than regular novels. Resemble manga/anime in storytelling and tropes used.
about 50,000 wordsLight novels are often called ranobe or, in English, LN. The average length of a light novel is about 50,000 words, close to the minimum expected for a Western novel, and they are usually published in bunkobon size, often with dense publishing schedules.
They are typically not more than 40,000–50,000 words long (the shorter ones being equivalent to a novella in US publishing terms), rarely exceed 200 pages, often have dense publishing schedules, are usually published in bunkobon size, and are often illustrated.
The foundation of the term “light novel” dates back to 1977 when Japanese literature started to diversify. At the time, Japanese author Motoko Arai's published first-person novels that were written for youths. The novels' contents were appealing to young readers, and the descriptive words were written in slang.
In the same way that Hollywood pulls from comics and novels (and old films) for their films today, anime pulls from manga and light novels. By Sage Ashford Published Jul 20, 2019. Share.
Where Sword Art focused on surviving in a world where death was the end, Log Horizon took the other direction. With death meaning respawn, the characters are forced to learn everything from how to cook actual meals to how to create a working economy. But what makes the series stand out is its usage of actual, in-depth MMO mechanics and strategy for its combat scenarios, lending a truer life feel that Sword Art never even tried to aim for.
The series follows Keita Amano, a young boy who finds himself invited to his high school’s video game club by Karen Tendo, the most beautiful girl at his school.
Reincarnated as a Slime takes the isekai genre and has fun with some of its tropes. Its main character is Satoru Mikami, a salaryman who dies as a 37-year-old virgin and is reincarnated as an invincible slime known as Rimuru, capable of consuming anything.
If Fate/Stay Night isn’t one of the best light novel anime series, it’s certainly one of the most popular ones on this list. It got its first adaptation back in 2005, but the popularity of the franchise dictated that this wasn’t nearly enough, leading to the series getting not only a prequel in 2011, but a remake in 2014. Since then, the franchise has continued to chug along, giving us plenty of new video games, manga, light novels, and multiple animated versions of the universe’s fabled, ever-occurring Holy Grail War, even spinoffs featuring popular characters from the franchise.
Comment. To be into anime is to at some point watch a series that's based off a light novel, novels typically aimed at young adults in Japan. In the same way that Hollywood pulls from comics and novels (and old films) for their films today, anime pulls from manga and light novels. This has especially been true in the last two decades, ...
Re:Zero is basically if Groundhog’s Day somehow became an anime. It’s lead character Subaru is a guy from the real world who enters an alternate, fantasy-like universe with one unfortunate ability: he can come back to life after he’s killed.
What's A Light Novel? Light novels are some of the most common sources of anime adaptations today. While light novels have served as a basis for anime for many years (think of titles like Slayers and The Record of Lodoss War ), they have become institutionalized over the last decade or so.
Your average light novel anime adaptation today follows the same principle. A light novel series typically experiences a spike in sales after an anime airs, which gives publishers an incentive to invest in costly anime adaptations even if the show itself fails to recoup its production costs. For example, the Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? series (which is published by SB Creative, the publishing branch of SoftBank) sold over one million print copies in 2015, easily justifying the anime investment. In an industry where print and disk sales are contracting across the board, the media mix strategy functions as life support.
The typical distinguishing traits of light novels are that they are short (usually around 300 pages per volume) and contain manga-style illustrations. However, many regular novels have manga-style illustrations, while some light novels don't have illustrations at all.
Some authors take this to superhuman levels. Kazuma Kamachi, the author of A Certain Magical Index, has published a novel a month for 24 months. That takes some serious dedication, to say the least.
Because the author turnover rate is so high, the light novel industry actively encourages submissions from new authors in the form of light novel contests. The Dengeki Novel Prize, established in 1994, is easily the most famous of these contests. The contest is held by ASCII Media Works, which is owned by—you guessed it— Kadokawa. It receives thousands of submissions every year and has propelled the career of many popular authors, including Reki Kawahara of Sword Art Online fame.
This becomes clear when you look at the medium's history. The term “light novel” was apparently coined by Keita Kamikita around 1990.
Kadokawa continues to be the indisputable leader of the light novel industry today. In 2011, Kadokawa owned 48% of the light novel market. After Kadokawa acquired Media Factory as a brand company in 2013, their share of the male-oriented light novel segment rose even higher. Chances are that Kadokawa or one of its brand companies was involved in the production committee of almost every light novel anime adaptation you can name.
In the western culture light novels are normally called Japanese Novella.
The reason because light novels are styled like anime or manga is because of their history and they are actually from Japan.
A light novel is a style of Japanese novel targeting teenagers and young adults. These novels contain mostly illustrations in anime or manga style. They are usually published in bunkobon size (A6 – 105 x 148mm). Light novels are not very long. The length is comparable to a novella in US publishing terms.
In short: Light Novels are usually shorter and they also contain few illustrations. In addition they are easier to read. This is particular because the text contains much simpler and easier to read modern kanji.
This term originated in Japan as a 和製英語 ( wasei eigo [meaning Japan-style English] = Japanese-invented words that "superficially appear to come from English, but in fact do not" ). Wasei eigo differs from 外来語 ( gairaigo = loanwords or real “words from abroad”) and Engrish (misuse or accidental corruption of the English language by native speakers of some East Asian languages).
I guess novels would printed in the A5 format, but a light novel would be printed in the Bunkobon format , which would be the A6 format.
Since the target group of light novels are primarily middle and high school students, it wouldn't surprise me if most of them are. They aren't exclusively used for anime or manga adaptations though. If you read further on the wiki page it is mentioned that popular movies as Star Wars have also influenced the content. But they do mention that
Some companies have begun publishing works in English, but they've been slow to catch on, partly due to lack of awareness, but also because anime and manga adaptations of the same material tend to cross over first. But despite this lack of notoriety, light novels are quite readily available for international fans.
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is best known for its anime adaptation , but the light novel is where it all started. The story follows high-schooler Kyon as he is dragged into the shenanigans of his classmate Haruhi and her SOS Brigade as they investigate mysterious goings-on, all while Haruhi is observed by various organizations because of her reality-warping abilities.
In Japan, a light novel is a novella-type story printed in conjunction with illustrations. The novels are mostly geared towards young adult readers of both sexes though females gravitate towards the medium most often. As the name suggests, a light novel is just that; The story itself is rarely more than 50,000 words and is divided up by a slew of stunning illustrations.
Light novels are often confused with manga because of their sporadic pictures. Many light novels feature illustrations done in the style of traditional manga, and the publications mimic the art style on purpose. Back in the 1970s, light novels got their start when Japanese pulp magazines wanted to appeal to readers who were abandoning them for manga. As such, the stories began putting illustrations as a preface before the art naturally became integrated with the entire light novel.
The unique style of manga dates all the way back to the 19th century and came into global popularity back in the 1950s following the end of World War II.
Outside of animation, Japan has a massive market geared towards comic readers. With manga and light novel sales rising each year, more artist are spreading their stories across the mediums to the confusion of some fans.
In terms of content, manga can be about anything. Japanese readers have readily accepted manga as a universal reading platform, so audiences can expect to see more genres represented in manga than seen in Western superhero romps. Typically printed in black-and-white, manga features detailed characters and dialogue-centric narratives.
Eye-catching title aside, Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai is a pure coming-of-age story about young love, teenage insecurity, and supernatural difficulties. One day, Sakuta sees his popular senpai, Mai, walking around in a bunny costume at a library, however, he is the only one who seems to notice her.
A light novel and anime classic, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya follows Kyon as he is pressured into joining the SOS Brigade by Haruhi, a strong-willed girl who is far more important than she initially appears.
An oldie but a goodie, Slayers by Hajime Kanzaka debuted in 1989, and it is still technically ongoing today. The light novel has spawned five anime series, all of which are entertaining. The show was at its best during the '90s, with 1995's Slayers delivering a near-perfect mix of parody, action, and world-building.
Ever since Sword Art Online 's massive explosion in popularity, anime has been bleeding the isekai well dry, often using light novels as launching pads. There have been quite a few memorable shows since SAO changed the game, but KonoSuba stands above most of its contemporaries due to its willingness to poke fun at the genre's tropes and cliches.
Based on Isuna Hasekura's light novel, Spice and Wolf follows the travels of Kraft Lawrence, a merchant with aspirations of opening a store, and Holo, a wolf goddess who has been around for a few hundred years. Together, they travel across a Medieval Europe-esque world towards Holo's homeland, growing closer to each other along the way.
Baccano! is overwhelming, too ambitious for its own good, and difficult to follow at the best of times. It is also nail-bitingly suspenseful, gloriously animated, and endlessly rewatchable.
Published by Type-Moon and set in an alternate reality to the Fate franchise, Kinoko Nasu's The Garden of Sinners follows a detective agency that specializes in supernatural cases. However, this description does not begin to reflect the light novel and anime's depth, complexity, and creativity.
A light novel (ライトノベル, raito noberu) is a style of Japanese young adult novel primarily targeting high school and middle school students. The term "light novel" is a wasei-eigo, or a Japanese term formed from words in the English language.
Most light novels are published by Japanese writers, with very few exceptions. For example, Yū Kamiya, author of No Game No Life, is a Brazilian-Japanese writer who lives in Japan and publishes his novels through major Japanese publishing labels.
The average length of a light novel is about 50,000 words, close to the minimum expected for a Western novel, and they are usually published in bunkobon size ( A6, 10.5 cm × 14.8 cm), often with dense publishing schedules. Light novels are commonly illustrated in a manga art style, and are often adapted into manga and anime.
The 1990s saw the smash-hit Slayers series which merged fantasy-RPG elements with comedy. Some years later MediaWorks founded a pop-lit imprint called Dengeki Bunko, which produces well-known light novel series to this day.
For example, the price for The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya in Japan is ¥540 (including 5% tax), similar to the normal price for trade paperbacks—light novels and general literature—sold in Japan.
Sword Art Online, a web novel initially published in 2002, contributed to the popularization of 'Isekai' as a genre.
These have generally been published in the physical dimensions of standard mass market paperbacks or similar to manga tankōbon, but starting in April 2007, Seven Seas Entertainment was the first English publisher to print light novels in their original Japanese Bunkobon format.
A similarity between light novels and manga is in how they are published. While many light novels are released in the form of complete books, you can also expect them to be released in a serialized format in magazines. As with manga, these magazines typically feature various light novels and they continue their stories throughout future issues.
In Japanese, a light novel is known as a raito noberu, which is a Japanese term formed from English words. Light novels can also be referred to as ranobe or simply LN. No matter what they’re called, light novels are typically held to similar standards, with a relatively short length and frequent publications within a series.
So what’s the difference between manga and a light novel? Both manga and light novels are books that feature illustrations, but the difference lies in their format. Mangas tend to be more similar to western comic books, whereas light novels are like novellas that feature illustrations, typically being longer than manga but shorter than full-length novels.
You can expect a light novel to come in at about 50,000 words, which is on the lower end of what you’d expect to see in a Western book. This is why light novels are typically compared to novellas instead of full-length novels, as they can be read in a similar amount of time.
Along with it being tradition to print manga in black and white, it also has the advantage of cutting down on the costs of producing the actual books since no ink needs to be used . This also allows manga to be produced much faster since the artists don’t need to go through and color the panels.
These frequent publications are a well-known hallmark of light novels, with some being published as often as once a month. As you would expect, this puts immense stress on the authors of the novels, and authors tend to have a high turnover rate, meaning that publishers are always looking for new writers.
Manga is also frequently interlinked with anime, and manga can be produced as an offshoot of an anime series or vice versa, depending on which gained traction in the public eye first. This isn’t too different to Western comics, in which we’re seeing more and more comic book story arcs transformed into shows (e.g. The Boys, Invincible, etc.).