Acclaimed light novel editor and anime producer Kazuma Miki discussed changes in the publishing industry since joining in 2000 to the present. Miki is credited with editing several hit titles, such as Sword Art Online, A Certain Magical Index, Shakugan no Shana, and The Irregular at Magic High School. He’s also the founder of Straight Edge, which manages and supervises/produces authors and works, respectively, from the initial IP (light novels, manga) to anime adaptations, games, and more.
In 2000, while there were concerns that magazine publishing was in danger (Japanese print publication sales revenue has steadily declined since the 90s and fell below 1 trillion yen in 2025 — the first time since 1976), Miki felt that manga and content-related publishing were safe. Looking back, he feels that scouting creators through new talent awards at traditional publishers, the typical form of exposure for new creators, worked due to a lack of other means of exposure. This naturally gave editors significant say over developing creators.
When asked whether anything had changed about how Miki discovers and trains new talent, he replied, “Especially now, it all starts with whether the other party accepts the stance of ‘we’ll nurture you.’ In the past, new talent awards worked because media outlets were limited, but now we live in an age where authors announce their work individually, and if they’re successful, they can get scouts to come in droves. Even if you say ‘we’ll nurture you,’ people might just say ‘no thanks.’“
Miki continued, “That’s why you first need to communicate your own necessity and what you can contribute. Editors and producers are no longer needed unless they clearly define how they approach content and what benefits they can provide. I think this will continue to happen in the future. Both the company and I are constantly on edge.“
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With the rise of self-publishing websites like Shosetsuka ni Narou and social media platforms like X (Twitter) and Pixiv, authors can now gain attention without the exposure of traditional publishing awards. Editing departments are now fiercely competing with each other to recruit creators, shifting the leverage the other way.
Miki adds that “In fact, with the rise of sites like Kakuyomu, the scouting battle has intensified.” See upcoming anime originating from Kakuyomu works here. Readers may be familiar with Shosetsuka ni Narou as the birthplace of titles like That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, The Apothecary Diaries, OVERLORD, The Irregular at Magic High School, Mushoku Tensei, Re:ZERO, and numerous others.
It’s a good interview, covering the histories of Miki and Tatsuo Sato (who founded MediaWorks), discussions over the role of AI, how Miki came to connect with Sword Art Online‘s Reki Kawahara, and recent trends.
Source: Dengeki Online
© Reki Kawahara / KADOKAWA / SAO Project
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