Kami-sama no Inai Nichiyoubi:Volume7 Afterword
Afterword[edit]
—I want to save the world.
The story that ended and began on that white, smoky hill is now in its seventh volume. Thinking back, I've come a long way. While it’s too early for me to be deeply moved (after all, the series hasn't ended at all) but I'll let myself be carried away by the atmosphere and be deeply moved.
Let’s talk a little about myself once in a while.
This time, I'd like to write a little postcard.
(*I was careful not to spoil anything, but I think it's best to read this after reading the main story.)
If a story is a single thread, and you pinch and pull on one of them, the other books bound together like a spider's web will be pulled and lifted up. The books spread out like a web in every direction, and soon they become a tapestry of colors, each with its own personality, reflected in your eyes.
What you see is a series of books that you have read in your life. It is the pattern of your own world that you have discovered.
Now, fortunate to say, ‘Sunday Without God’ has become a part of it.
What do you think? What does the thread ‘Kamiinai" depict in your world?
Is it a piece of the beard of a terrifying monster? Or is it the tip of a white blade drawn by a warrior?
Maybe it's the green eyes of a girl with a silver shovel.
Or ugly misplaced threads that were not woven together, the dirty color of a stain that you wish you can get rid of.
Or the white that fills the blank space.
One thing I’m very grateful is that I’ve received letters from many readers, like ‘I've read through every volume many times’ or ‘The most eyecatching part is the summer green’ or ‘this is the feeling I got from my first volume’, and I’m really glad for them. I’ll like to use this chance to express my thanks I'm playing the most prominent role in the summer greenery," or "That was my first one. (Note. (Note: "Summer green" and "the first one" are not written in the fan letter, of course. The poem part is the author's own translation. ) I wish you and the world of books you encounter a vivid green.
I pray for you from beyond the yarn and ink.
Now, of course, I do have such personal tapestries exist as well, and I used to enjoy looking at the patterns and nodding my head and saying, "I think I like such like something similar to this thread," or "I see, I am interested in this pattern," and then searching for the thread I wanted.
However, as you all know, it's not always easy to find the ideal book or the ideal yarn. Even if I were to be delighted on first glance, I might discover on closer look that the color is off, or that it is not long enough.
So I would say the notion of ‘why don’t I spin it myself’ might be more common than I thought.
And the yarn I spun for many years is called ‘Sunday People’. (Yes, this was the title when I submitted Kamiinai. (Incidentally, when some senior writers played a game of guessing the winning work by looking at the titles of the finalists' works, some of these titles were unanimously rejected by the writers. This work was one of them)
This is the story of Kaminai, which was created in search of an ideal thread, but the strange thing is that the ‘ideal’ quickly slips away the moment it takes shape.
There is a saying, that there is a book for an entire form. It refers to how the book captivates you the moment you read it, and you will reread it many times in the rest of your life. I'm sure you have a book that you can read dozens and dozens of times, a book that you would take with you to a deserted island.
My position as a reader and a writer is different, but every story I write is also a book of my life.
But no matter how ideal a book is, people don't read it hundreds of times, or thousands of times, or the next ‘one more time’ after thousands. They won't read it again, and go to a new one.
I think it's the same with writing.
When you arrive at your destination, the scenery changes.
Just like Ai is now.
That's where she, I, and you are right now.
What does she see in her eyes? I shall leave this for volume 8. This will be the end of I'll tell you what I see in her eyes after volume eight, and that's all for now in this postcard.
—Oh? That’s quite a nice way to end the topic. Thank goodness. I've been wondering how to do so. I just kept writing and writing, telling myself to stop, but it was difficult to erase them all because the next morning was the deadline…no, it's already this morning. woaahh.
Ahem.
Now, I've written about this at length, what do I want to say? The answer is ‘this story will continue’.
Well, the editor-in-charge felt a sense of danger, thinking ‘this 7th volume feels more like a finale than I thought’ So while writing this finale, I had to emphasize that there would be a continuation. In that case, I felt that I should start from the content, and to sort out the entire work, but somehow while writing, even the afterword felt like it was the end, and I felt like I was shooting myself in the foot…how did it happen? I should work on writing an afterword that didn’t feel like an end.
Alright, let’s have a change of mood to how it usually is. But well, if we’re back to how it’s usually like, I’ll be talking about waist pains or stretching, so I should leave that aside.
Unfortunately, I’m afraid I don't have much to write about. And yet, I still have a lot of pages to write. For some reason, the afterword this time is the longest at nine pages, and yet the deadline is the shortest. Please look at your right hand. The sun is starting beginning to rise. Wahhh~, it’s the morning of the deadline! I'm melting~.
Speaking of which, I've been talking about the compilation of the series since the fourth volume, but thanks to you, I've finally finished it. (No, the series will continue, though.) The reason why this happened is because my original plot was that volumes 5, 6, and 7 would all be in one volume, which made no sense~ yep, I really wanted to punch myself. Seriously, what was I thinking? I said that, but It would be hilarious if I wrote something like "I want to punch you ......" in the afterword of volume nine or so. Ahaha.................. Should I take a pause and punch myself now?...nnnHmmm.
Oh yes, I should write this down.
As I mentioned earlier, I would like to thank those who sent me letters. Thank you very much. I haven't been able to reply to many of them, but I have read all of them, and they have been a source of inspiration for my daily keyboard work. In this job, sometimes I don't know which direction I'm facing. Your letters are a great help to me as they gently push me forward.
Thank you very much.
Now, it's time for the promotion.
Ta-da! Those who are far away, listen to the sound! Come closer, and see for yourself! Get your copy at your local bookstore! Congratulations! The second volume of the ‘Kamiinai’ manga by Abaraheiki-san is out! It’s released in the same month as this volume! Woohoo! If you've already read the first volume, you'll know that there are some shocking scenes. I'm sure some of you are wondering the same thing as I am, ‘Is it okay to draw such scenes......?’ but don’t worry, there are beautiful pictures, there shouldn’t be a problem (By the way, why do I use a lecture style when I advertise something?)
Well, enough with the jokes.To be honest, I've only seen the serialized version in the magazine, but I can see the ‘mood’ sensei gave through the illustrated pages. I think it’s something that’s very easily neglected. I love how Shino-san’s illustrations are basically adding colors to the gales, but Abara-san’s mastery of light and shadow is also amazing. I hope you enjoy it.
And there's more! The e-book versions of the novel and comic are also available. You can purchase them at ‘BOOK☆WALKER’ from your phone. I don't think anyone is going to download the seventh volume of Kamiinai even if I advertise it here (maybe that will happen if you’re reading this afterword in the bookstore, but that will hurt the bookstore. It’s quite a dilemma). There are many other titles available on Bookwalker, so please take a look at them. It's very convenient.
That's all! I'll let you know when there are more projects. Please continue to take care of me.
......Yes, in the near future. Fufufu.
Last but not least, a 360-degree omnidirectional acknowledgement. Thank you very much for all your help, editor-in-charge K-san aka Katie-san. My buddy Ibaraki-san, who has been working with me for three years, this cover is great too. Thank you very much. Once more, I'd like to say thank you to Abara-san. Thank you very much.
I’ll like to thank from this corner, all the people who have been involved in the book
And of course, to you and your books.
Thank you very much.
See you soon, bye bye.
Kimihito Irie
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