Otakus in America are in elementary school and graduate school. They are doctors, lawyers, store clerks, teachers, artists, writers, managers, and everything in between. We come in all shapes and sizes, all backgrounds of life and from across the country.
In other words, we are becoming as diverse as the original Japanese target audiences.
It's great to be an otaku today, though I’m certainly not as hardcore as some fans. My shrines to Tenchi Muyo have been packed in boxes, but my dining area still features a beautiful Vampire Princess Miyu poster, and action figures are scattered around my house. We grow up, we get new interests, but we’ll always be otakus at heart. We’ll see someone with a Naruto t-shirt and give them a smile and a nod, that is, if we don’t have time to start up a whole conversation about the inherent coolness of ninjas.
When I started doing columns here at theOtaku.com, it was great because suddenly I was in touch with my audience. People from all walks of life, all demographics, could give me input, correct my mistakes, and point out something I forgot to factor in.
I’m excited about Version Vibrant, and I can’t wait to try out my columns again. I do plan to put in more information and news updates about topics I find interesting, as well as focus on my columns about aspects of otaku life. I plan to set up a tagging system to identify different topics, so if you’re only interested in one thing, you can just check on that.
Some of the topics I’m planning to cover are:
Anime Conventions
AMVs
Otaku Socialization
Cosplay
Parents - both for parents and teens (or adults) dealing with parents
Writing
Publishing
Artists Alley
Making a difference in the anime world
Plus, interviews as well as whatever readers suggest I cover!
First I plan to republish some of my earlier columns, as well as some things I’ve been publishing on my website in the meantime.
As always, check out the site at http://www.otakusurvivalguide.com
