A Japanese light novel author shares that when they debuted, the publisher “forced” them to take a pen name! Although they were very resistant to it before, they have now become very grateful!

If the company you work for insists on strict oversight for every little matter, would you feel dissatisfied? Recently, the renowned Japanese light novel author Wakatsuki Hikari shared her experiences from her early days in the light novel industry when she was tightly constrained by her publisher. At that time, the publisher not only forced her to choose a pseudonym, restricted her online statements, but even required that the letters sent by readers be opened and checked by the editorial department first.

She was quite resentful of the publisher’s actions back then, but looking back now, she finally understands that it was actually a way to protect the author. Let’s take a look at her story together—

Twenty-three years ago, when I first debuted, an editor from the Sorbonne told me:

● Do not reveal that you are female; we will give you a pen name that is hard to identify by gender.

 ● Do not disclose personal matters such as marriage or childbirth on social networks.

 ● The fan letter will be opened by us before being handed to you.

At that time, I thought they were really annoying, but now I understand that they were protecting the writers.

Recently, Ruyueguang shared her experiences of being strictly managed by the editorial department when she debuted as a writer at the French Academy Press on Platform X, sparking widespread discussion.

Her work “Am I an erotic light novel writer in high school?“

And “The Legendary 300-Year-Old Little Queen Sets Out on an Adventure with a Reliable Adventurer into the Dungeon“

 It is evident that she has achieved considerable success in her creations.

If the moonlight is mentioned, not only was her pen name imposed on her by the publisher at the time, but her comments on BBS were also strictly restricted, and fan letters were opened and checked by the editorial department in advance. Such strict management made her extremely resentful of their actions, and she even once developed a dislike for her pen name.

However, as she accumulated years of experience in the light novel industry and witnessed many writers get caught up in disputes, she gradually changed her perspective. She now understands that the close management by publishers and editorial departments is actually creating a safe writing environment for authors.

 Ruoyue continued to speak…

 At that time, I really felt they were quite annoying.

When I heard the phrase ‘We will help you choose a pen name,’ I was very shocked. But now I actually think this pen name is pretty good.

Perhaps choosing a gender-neutral pen name for writers is the policy of the French Academy.

Most of the readers of the French Academy are well-educated, but to prevent the rare troublesome individuals, the editorial department has implemented such a high level of vigilance.

At that time, I truly did not understand those practices and felt displeased. However, it wasn’t until I left the French Academy that I realized the good intentions behind it…

In this era of rampant social media, perhaps we need such publishers even more to protect writers?