Hello, fellow manga readers. I feel a little awkward doing a status update post since I've been inactive for so long. I also feel a little guilty, since I wrote a post back in 2018 saying that I view scanlation as a hobby I'll continue until I die... I still do truly believe that. I love manga, I love translating, and I love sharing manga with the internet. If that's the case, then why have I gone awol for most of the last 2 years?
A part of me wishes to divulge everything that I've gone through these past few years. I was in a rut for most of my young adult life, but then I finally decided to step outside my comfort zone. The universe, perhaps bemused by my desperation, tossed a coin my way, and I've since experienced things I never expected to experience. I find myself relating a good deal with Lenin's quote above these days, though to be a little less dramatic, it's more the case that after a stagnant decade, I'm finally living through a dynamic decade that I know will determine almost everything important in my life. And that's why I just can't seem to find the time and energy to translate or make posts these days. It's not that these things aren't important to me. If anything, it's the opposite. It's precisely because translating manga is important to me that I can't do it when my time and energy is too divided these days.
But I know what I'm going through right now won't last. This is not a statement of pessimism. We all go through urgent and less urgent phases in our lives. It's inevitable that I'll transition into a less urgent life, and I can return to translating and sharing niche manga with others with similar tastes as me. Until then, I'll still maintain this blog, delete spam comments, and respond to any inquiries.
P.S. In case it's not obvious from this post, I did not quit manga because of what happened to Vinland Saga. That was simply a coincidence with the life-changing events of my life.
Don't worry man, we'll be here waiting when you have the time.
ReplyDeleteYour translations have opened my eyes to so many works that I would've never known about without you, so thank you. We'll all be waiting for your eventual return, but take your time and do you until then <3
ReplyDeleteI will miss you my friend. I always come back once a month here to check how you are. Hope everything's fine. I'd also love to know what's happening to you but I guess that stuff is better to be left private. See you soon!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteGlad you're doing well! Take care and try to make best of what you're currently doing
ReplyDeleteTake care Hox. Happy to hear that you're well. I myself will be eagerly anticipating for the anime adaptation of Anna Komnene in 2032. Until then!
ReplyDeleteLive your life! Take care and best wishes with all of it.
ReplyDeletecoincidences are interesting, aren't they? i've been feeling lost and uninterested in things for a long time, but i recently got back into reading manga online since that was something that got me through some hard and lonely years when i couldn't afford anything more than an internet connection. it's difficult to decide where to start with manga since there's so much of it, so i thought i'd start by looking up the translation groups i'd liked the works of, and one of the titles i first thought of was Soil. that's a series that means a lot to me but i'd never really thought to look up who'd worked to translate it despite that, and after following some links i found your blog.
ReplyDeletethat's not an interesting story or anything, but i was surprised you'd made your first update here for quite a while shortly before i first visited, and i thought that should be a sign that i should thank you for making it possible for me to have read a story that meant so much to me. i don't know how much translators like yourself get appreciated for what you do but it's always made me very happy to read stories that will never be formally published in english. i'm just very grateful to you for that and i hope you're doing well.
Good to hear about you after a while, man.
ReplyDeleteDon't worry about this, just take your time and take care of yourself in the first place, and live your life and enjoy it the way you think it suits it better for the moment. If you want to return, we'll be welcoming you with open arms whenever you decide to come back, and even if it doesn't end up happening, it's alright as well.
You've done a lot for this community and I myself will be forever grateful for your stuff because I loved a lof ot these manga you translated and plenty of these are among my favorites, specially Ashita no Joe, Punpun and Sangokushi, that were all life-changing experiences for me, and I don't think I'm exaggerating at all.
Take easy and take care, man. You're the best!
Glad to see you're still kicking. Hopefully we'll see more Shiji when there's time!
ReplyDeleteHappy to hear you're doing well!
ReplyDeleteYou too, huh? The exact details probably aren't the same but the feeling of everything that would determine my all for me has definitely been happening since the start of the pandemic myself. I get it. I'm only now able to sit down after almost three years and get back to stuff I had to abandon a while back. People waited patiently for me, people will wait patiently for you, too.
ReplyDeleteYour blog and recs helped me when I was getting assistant instructor status at my dojo I had before the pandemic, as I needed a basic crash course in classic Chinese lit/history, and your info helped guide me to stuff like the Moss Roberts 3K translations. I myself can only read Japanese so having someone vouching for good translations helps. So you know at least someone out there appreciates what you're up to.
We'll be here.
Have a great life. I miss those book posts.
ReplyDeleteBest of luck Hox, and thanks for all the fish (so far).
ReplyDeleteTake your time. You have already made an incredible contribution to the hobby. Wish you all the best in this phase of life
ReplyDeleteIt's great to hear back from you. I love your translations and it has introduced me to many manga I would have never expected to read.
ReplyDeleteI certainly understand life can sometimes be slow or fast. Live how you want and enjoy it. You've already given a lot in return since the past decade so thank you.
Best wishes!
Even if you end up being done, you're already one of the greatest manga translators, official or unofficial, I've ever read. Have fun, brother. As somebody who finds himself (hopefully) at the end of a similar years-long rut, I can relate.
ReplyDeleteGood to hear from you Hox... What did happen to Vinland saga?
ReplyDeleteHuzzah!
ReplyDeleteTake care, mate. You did great for scanlation and it's always nice to read from you. Whenever you fell like translating something, we will be here to read it
ReplyDeleteI just want to read more of your rambles about books.
ReplyDeleteI can only say, my 20s were also very tumultuous and the type of manga you translated were an indelible addition to my life. Thank you for your translations.
ReplyDeleteI randomly typed ho today and this bookmark poped and made me remeber the amount of great manga I found here. I perfectly remeber been keen on those that were not picked up as mainstream at that time. So thank you for that. I hope to comeback some other day and see more of your work.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the hard work.
Hope you're doing well, Hox.
ReplyDeleteI will always waiting for you. No matter how long and how hard my depression
ReplyDeleteHey Hox! I remembered to pass by as I'm finally finishing Soil after a long break from it and most manga. Just want to say thanks for all the work and care you put into this hobby, much to our benefit. I hope you're doing well and finding enjoyment in this dynamic decade! Cheers! :)
ReplyDelete