VIZ announces Haikasoru SF imprint.
For those of you who don’t know, VIZ is best known for their anime and manga licenses. They hold some of the big-name titles, like Bleach and Death Note. Now they’re investing in bringing over Japanese SF novels to English-language audiences. And the first few books are targeted at younger audiences. No word yet on whether they’re accepting titles from all over the world or just Japan, but any news about fresh investment in the publishing industry is good, especially when the target is a youth market. I’ve been saying for years — as I listened to authors and fans mourning the loss of young readers — that the kids who once read SF are now reading manga and watching anime. It seems that VIZ came to the same conclusion.