Chapter 107 Copyright Adaptation
When I woke up in the morning, Gao Jialin was the only one left in the bed. Tsuboi Chinatsu had long disappeared. Only the faint smell of perfume in the air could prove that what happened last night was not a dream.
I got up, washed, and changed my clothes when the doorbell rang. I opened the door and saw Yasuki Wada, Chinatsu Tsuboi, and the translator were all outside, followed by the hotel waiters pushing two food delivery carts.
"Sensei, the hotel has prepared two types of breakfast for you today, one is Japanese and the other is Chinese. You can eat whichever you like." Chinatsu Tsuboi introduced seriously, as if what happened last night had never happened.
It turns out that women are born actors. It’s good this way. It’s easier and more enjoyable to get along with others when there are no other thoughts.
"Let's eat Chinese food today." Gao Jialin sat down with satisfaction and began to enjoy delicacies such as xiaolongbao, siomai, shrimp dumplings, etc. It was okay to eat Japanese food occasionally, but he still preferred Chinese food.
Yasuki Wada handed over a newspaper with both hands. "Sensei, the Yomiuri Shimbun published your interview in full today. It is expected that the sales of Showa U.S. Tale will rise again in the next few days. It is almost certain that you will break the records of I Am a Cat and Rashomon. The only suspense now is when you will break them."
"Thank you for your hard work," Gao Jialin said politely.
The reason why "Showa American Story" can sell so well is that it caters to the needs of the times. Now is a time when Japan's economy is booming, and such a work satisfies the vanity of Japanese readers.
The second is the distribution capability of Tokuma Shoten. They have been engaged in the book distribution industry for more than 20 years and have successfully released best-selling works such as "Legend of the Galactic Heroes". They have extensive personal connections and distribution channels, and can spread "Showa American Tale" to every corner of Japan in a very short time.
If we cooperate with another publishing house, it won’t be so convenient. The book may have been popular for such a long time, but the bookstores in Hokkaido may not have got the supply yet.
"This is what we should do. According to today's schedule, you need to go to Kinokuniya Shinjuku store to hold a book signing event. Readers all over Japan are looking forward to this day! People have started queuing outside the bookstore since the day before yesterday." Yasuki Wada reported respectfully.
"Oh, so today will be very hard, right?" Gao Jialin's hands began to tremble. After signing so many autographs, his hands must be swollen, right?
"Thank you for your hard work!" Yasuki Wada immediately bowed his head and almost hit his head on the table.
"As long as the readers are satisfied, the hard work is worth it." For the sake of money, Gao Jialin endured it.
At nine o'clock in the morning, Gao Jialin, accompanied by Chinatsu Tsuboi and a translator, arrived at Kinokuniya Bookstore at 3-17-7 Shinjuku. This bookstore has eight floors and a wide variety of books. It is one of the most famous bookstores in Tokyo and even in Japan.
"Are there... too many people here?" Gao Jialin was shocked when he saw the long queue outside through the car window.
From the bookstore entrance to the street corner, there was a dense queue of people, at least a kilometer long. And this was only what was visible. Who knows how many more people would be queuing around the corner? "Sensei!"
"Sensei!"
When they saw Gao Jialin getting out of the car, there was a huge cheer. These people looked at Gao Jialin with admiration and greeted him loudly. Gao Jialin just waved, and their cheers became even louder.
The store manager, who had been waiting at the door for a long time, rushed over and greeted Gao Jialin respectfully, "Sensei, welcome to Kinokuniya. Please rest assured that we have arranged for someone to remind readers in line. You can just sign in at 11:30."
Three and a half hours, that's tiring enough, Gao Jialin muttered to himself, but he still had a smile on his face and kept waving to the enthusiastic readers. If he wanted to make money, he still had to do these superficial work.
After entering and sitting behind the autograph counter, Kinokuniya was very well prepared. More than ten security guards were arranged around to protect Gao Jialin, and more than ten different models of Montblanc pens were placed on the table.
According to convention, these will belong to Gao Jialin once they are signed. Judging from the models, they are all high-end Montblanc products, and the total amount is not a small amount.
"Let's start!" Gao Jialin put down the teacup and ordered.
"Okay!" The store manager made a gesture, and the security guard at the door began to let people in.
One by one, enthusiastic readers came to Gao Jialin excitedly, holding the books in their hands, and handed him the new books they had just bought with both hands, asking Gao Jialin to sign them. Gao Jialin signed his name on the title page with great speed.
"Arigato, thank you for your hard work!" The lucky person who got the autograph quickly bowed and expressed his gratitude.
By eleven o'clock, the Kinokuniya staff began to persuade the people at the back of the line to disperse.
At 11:20, there were only a few dozen readers inside the store still queuing. Gao Jialin finally breathed a sigh of relief. But when he thought about the fact that he still had to go to Osaka, Yokohama, Nagoya and even Sapporo for signings, his fingers couldn't help but tremble.
After the signing, Kinokuniya invited Gao Jialin to enjoy delicious food at a nearby famous restaurant, and then returned to the hotel to rest.
When I woke up from my nap, a new wave of guests arrived. This time, they were representatives from Weekly Shonen Jump. As soon as they entered the room, they came to me and said, "Sensei! Please, please give the manga adaptation rights of Showa Umekoku Monogatari to our company!"
"Hurry up, get up. It's not a festival now. What are you doing here?" Gao Jialin brought the visitor into the conference room and watched him bargain with the temporarily hired Japanese lawyer.
"Weekly Shonen Jump" was very sincere and offered very generous conditions right from the start. They would select the best cartoonist to be responsible for the comic adaptation of "Showa American Story", and Gao Jialin would have the final say.
These alternative cartoonists will first come up with some drafts for Gao Jialin to choose from. Whoever gets Gao Jialin's approval will be qualified to draw. If there is a problem in the middle, Gao Jialin can also replace the cartoonist.
The remuneration for the adaptation was 30,000 yen per page, all of which went to Gao Jialin. The painter's money was calculated separately. In the future, Oda Eiichiro's remuneration was only 50,000 yen per page. Considering the development of the times and factors such as inflation, this price is definitely a sky-high price now.
If a single volume of comics is published in the future - given the hot sales of "Showa American Story", this is almost certain - Gao Jialin can still get 10% of the royalties, which is also a treatment only top cartoonists can get. The proportion that Akira Toriyama got from "Dragon Ball" is also the same.
Moreover, Akira Toriyama had to share the money with his assistants, but Gao Jialin took it all and didn't have to share it with anyone else.
Gao Jialin remained calm throughout the whole process, and waited until the other party finished speaking before saying, "I have another condition."
(End of this chapter)
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