NOVEL WEB Chapter 3: Heading for Publication (Continuation)
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Chapter 3: Heading for Publication (Continuation)Yundian Bookstore, Blue Sky Bookstore, Fantasy Literature, Sakura Library, and Red Maple Literature. These were the names of the five major serialized light novel bookstores in the provincial capital of Nancheng. Basically, the headquarters of these five book clubs are all in the central area of the city, north of Nancheng, so Xia Yan doesn't need to travel all over the city.
After spending an hour taking the bus, Xia Yan first arrived at the headquarters of Hongfeng Literature. Naturally, the two-hundred-meter-high office building in front of him could not be the office location of Hongfeng Literature. Its office area is limited from the 19th to the 21st floor.
Before coming here, Xia Yan repeatedly checked the status of five light novel labels through various channels. After registering at the reception, I entered the elevator a little nervously.
It was ten o'clock in the morning, and the flow of people in the office building was not too complicated. Xia Yan was the only one in the elevator. He pressed the button for the twentieth floor anxiously right before the elevator door closed.
A pair of white and slender hands reached out and blocked the elevator door. The elevator door slid open after touching something. Xia Yan looked around and saw a girl wearing a cap and a mask walking into the elevator with a pile of translucent plastic bags containing documents, and then hugged the file bag in her arms. chest.
After she came in, she stood a little far away from Xia Yan in the elevator. The girl is about 1.6 meters tall, with black hair reaching her waist. She wears a light red sportswear on her upper body and slightly looser beige trousers on her lower body. She wears a cap and a mask so that her appearance is not visible, but only her eyes are exposed, and her eyes are clear. With her delicate skin and overall facial contours, Xia Yan could basically tell that she was a very beautiful girl.
Her finger pressed the button for the nineteenth floor. Xia Yan didn't intentionally spy, he just noticed these details normally. But with one glance, he saw some document information in the translucent bag held by the girl. On the first page, there were some large words written with colored markers: "Yesterday's Starlight!", followed by a pile of paper documents.
I contacted her again and pressed the elevator button to the nineteenth floor. Oh, yes. It should probably be sent by the same people as me. Xia Yan thought to himself. Well, yesterday's starlight? What kind of novel?
Some thoughts flashed through Xia Yan's mind. Perhaps it was because he was looking at the girl's portfolio documents a little uncontrollably, and the girl became more vigilant and adjusted her posture slightly.
On the way up the elevator, the atmosphere in the elevator was inexplicably strange.
"I'm sorry. I just want to remind you... If you want to submit articles to Red Maple Literature, you have to go to the 20th floor. The 19th floor is where the operations department and senior editors work. The 20th floor is where the editors accept submissions from new people. That's the place." Xia Yan spoke first in an attempt to ease the embarrassment.
After all, it was indeed a little impolite of me to keep staring at the portfolio someone was holding in front of their chest.
As soon as he spoke, the girl's vigilance really relaxed most of the time.
"Thank you." After a few seconds of silence, the girl raised her hand and pressed the lit button on the 19th floor of the elevator to turn it off.
Her voice was crisp and her tone was a bit cold, but after she responded to Xia Yan, most of the strange atmosphere in the elevator dissipated.
"You're welcome." Xia Yan smiled politely.
Then the two of them were speechless.
The twentieth floor arrived quickly. The two of them walked out of the elevator one after another and walked down the corridor. The corridor was covered with posters from beginning to end.
These are all illustrations of various light novels that Red Maple Literature has made famous in Southern Province over the years. The works on these posters are the face of Red Maple Literature. Any one of them is a novel with a total sales volume of hundreds of thousands, or even more than 100,000 copies. There are millions of copies.
There are some works here, and Xia Yan has a complete collection of books at home.
After walking through the corridor, Xia Yan finally arrived at the office lobby of Hongfeng Literature.
Once inside
It was very lively.
After all, this is an area dedicated to new submissions, and in the world of light novels, who has the most people?
Yes, there are the most newcomers. Even on such a cold day as February 3rd, there were seven or eight people lined up in the waiting room.
In the central area of the writing room, piles of novel manuscripts sent from various places or sent by the creators on the spot are being carefully reviewed by the reviewing editors.
"Are you two here to submit articles?"
The receptionist, who had long legs in black stockings and a professional OL skirt, came to her with a smile. She had worked here for many years. The purpose of Xia Yan and the girl who was traveling in the elevator was clear at a glance.
"Um."
"That's right."
The two almost spoke at the same time.
The girl in the red sportswear and mask looked at Xia Yan's face again.
It turns out that he also came to submit articles.
"Please come here..." the receptionist said with a smile.
"There are seven people in front of you two, but don't worry... our on-site review editor will find you in twenty minutes."
"Twenty minutes?" the masked girl confirmed.
"That's right. Twenty minutes!" After the receptionist confirmed, she led the two to the waiting room and left.
"Twenty minutes, seven people." The masked girl looked at the room directly opposite the other exit of the waiting room.
The shadow reflected on the frosted glass showed that there was only one review editor on site.
Simple information reveals the cruelty of this industry.
Red Maple Literature has dozens of periodicals of various sizes, large and small, and each periodical has only a dozen slots for novel serialization.
In most cases, only when the old serials are finished will new positions be filled.
And these limited serialized slots are competed for by a large group of creative boys and girls in Nan Province, who are influenced by various two-dimensional literature and want to bet their careers on light novel writers.
Most people's submissions are cannon fodder and garbage.
Experienced editors only need one or two minutes to read a few thousand words to determine the fate of a submitted novel.
The masked girl held the transparent bag in her hand and used a little more force.
As for Xia Yan,
he looked around in his seat and asked the receptionist to pour him a cup of hot coffee.
There is nothing to be nervous about. If the masterpiece created with hard work and courage is rejected in one minute, it must be a huge blow to the creator.
But Xia Yan is not the real creator of the Youth Journey plot, so even if the Youth Journey plot is rejected, he will not be too sad. If Red Maple Literature is not good, then go to the other four to submit.
"Xia Yan," the receptionist gestured for Xia Yan to enter the reception room.
It wasn't even twenty minutes, only fifteen minutes. After the first seven people left the reception room dejectedly, it was finally Xia Yan's turn.
"Here I come." Xia Yan was refreshed, holding the photocopied document of Youth Journey excitedly, pushed the door and walked in.
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