Editing HanTsuki:Volume 1 Afterword

When we moved to a suburban place, we found a lot of wild cats nearby. Sometime after, they gradually began coming to our place. Nevertheless, we had already two cats in the house, and these two kinds of cats began their scaring war naturally. The wild cats would screech with hoarse sounds in a condescending tone, the first cat in our house would surprisingly make an especially adorable purring sound in response. 

Didn’t you feel any threat, our first cat?

The second cat, on the other hand, had no intention to make a threat, putting all his concentration on staring blankly at the wild cats (which were still supposedly threatening them)...

My sweet cats sound fine, don’t they?

So my cat talk ends here.

This first volume of Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora was written according to the short novel published in the twenty-second release of the dengeki magazine! The story I expected to end in one single script was surprisingly awarded the first place (I’m touched!). Thus came the publishing plan of this light novel, and, thus, this book could be in your hands. Nevertheless, there were quite some hurdles during the process this story was published in the dengeki hp.

“Please write a short one...about fifty pages when printed in a light novel”

This was what I was asked to do.

“I understand...around fifty pages.”

Answering flatly was simple, but I ended up writing endlessly. The plot I had preemptively thought of sprang to my mind continuously. When I had come to my senses, I had easily broken the fifty-page limit and had no traces of ending.

When I had completed it after much effort, I counted the page numbers...to find things out of hand, as I had written double the page number...in fact...it was triple...what could I do...

Holding my head in agony for a while, I could only give in and phone the editing department.

“Um...I carelessly wrote a long story.”

“I expected this to happen, as you’ve been writing this for some time by now. How many pages are there approximately?”

“Ac-Actually it isn’t much. I think around a bit till two-hundred.”

“... (shocked)”

The length of the published script was prescribed. Although there is a bit of changing offered, it wasn’t enough for my outrageous work. (Hashimoto is such a jerk. Wuaghh) Helpless, I could only cut my work in tears. But even after cutting, it was still too long to be published on that release of the magazine, not even in the next magazine. I had to wait for two releases until it could be published successfully.

This was when I began thinking whether this could be published as a light novel. After all, removing so many stuff, even parts where I wanted to write down no matter what, I hoped I could retain the longer version. (Albeit, I like the short version to be published on the dengeki hp. I think the short version is a wonderful piece of work too.)

I’m really grateful of the readers who voted for “Hanbun” in the survey in the twenty-second release of dengeki hp. You have my gratitude. Thanks to you, this book could be sold in bookstores now. 

As for the content, I want to slightly complement some settings to the story. This story uses my old town Mie Ise. But since I had left Ise for a long time, the description in the book might be different subtly from the Ise nowadays.

Also, although Yuiichi and Rika started off by living in a hospital, that hospital had some distance from Ise. Perhaps the Ise in the book wasn’t the actual Ise but the Ise in my memories. 

This tory would keep going on in short terms. I believe there would be other scenes in Ise, such as the “O abdomen cafeteria”. The “O abdomen cafeteria” is situated behind the station, much like the eating-place students registered. The amount of rice served was a great lot.  That restaurant was one that when touching the word ‘big-sized’, it would mean the serving is definitely unable to finish. Looking at those who work themselves out by trying to finish it, and their rice that hadn’t a bit indication of decreasing, someone might suspect, in tears, “there must be some conspiracy.” But for some reason, the rice with eggs covered always had a thick taste of peppers. Last time, when I ran there to eat after a long time, the amount was still too great, the pepper taste too thick. Hell, why would anyone dump so many peppers there...

Also, some old lady in the shopping street was extraordinary. She would teach us Okonomiyaki, and in a very exaggerated fashion.

“Remember that you have to spread the flour blob to this size. Look carefully.”

The old lady would then stick her hands onto the teppan, which was already lit with fire. Her hands would make sizzling sounds—her hand was burning...burning. Yet the old lady didn’t seem to care a bit. 

“Do you understand? The size has to be around this.”

I-I understand. Now please take off you hand (Cold sweat trickling). Did that old lady understand? 

Finally, here is my word of gratitude. Thanks to Yamamoto, an illustrator I first worked with. I still have much to learn from you. Thanks to the person <!-- don’t know pronunciation of name--> who designed the moon in the story published in dengeki hp. Then, thanks to Tokuda, the editor, who take all-round care of me. I’m sorry for my unruliness. I’m serious: you have my heartfelt gratitude. And to the readers now holding this book...I believe some of you are reading Hashimoto’s book for the first time; some of you had read before. I’m really grateful. If possible, I hope to listen to our opinion and do my best to reply.

Some scenes, though insignificant and trivial, are memorable when left. Some thought as gone, the various memories and traces of relevant feeling would revive from the depths of our heart when we’re unaware, leaving a deep, warm sensation. Anyone would have such feelings. I have, and you must have as well. What I want to continue writing in my story is this. For the first line of the new opening of the next volume is already set, the next volume would have an early release (probably).

<div align=right>2003 Summer</div>

<div align=right>Tsumugu Hashimoto</div>

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