And I have no tote bags or mugs, either.
It’s been several months and it’s the start of a new season, so please indulge me if I take a few moments to remind everyone, especially new readers, of the various options available to support LiA. As ever, this is strictly voluntary – there will be no tiers or premium services here. Veterans of the site know that I put the equivalent of full-time hours into maintaining it, and every little bit helps in justifying that time even as I try and scrape together a living here in Japan.
All of the links are in the sidebar, of course. First, we have Patreon, where readers can sign on as monthly patrons of LiA in whatever amount they like (you pledge by the post, and set a monthly cap on your patronage). You can also use Paypal to subscribe monthly, or to make a one-time contribution via the link in the sidebar.
Of course you can also click on whatever ads interest you, and then there’s Amazon. I’ve set up the LiA Amazon Store as a sort of one-stop collection of Japan-themed items that overlap with what this site covers. But the easiest way to help is to use the LiA link to portal into Amazon or Amazon UK. This requires nothing except using LiA’s links to access Amazon for stuff you plan to buy anyway – you get the full-featured Amazon website, absolutely unchanged from what you’d get if you entered it conventionally. The only difference is that you help support LiA at the same time you do your online shopping.
Thanks sincerely to all of you that have already contributed – you have my utmost gratitude. And as always, thanks to every person who visits the site and every person who joins the discussions!
Nadavu
April 8, 2014 at 3:36 pmDear Enzo,
I used to be a regular over at Random Curiosity, but that was always something of a mixed bag; every author was different, some I liked and some less. I don't remember which series it was, but in 2011 I took notice of your reviews and followed a link here to lostinamerica. It's probably not exactly as it happened, but in my selective memory, the first post I saw was Hourou Musuko 100, and that was a deal maker for me. In actuality, when I realized that nearly every show I would probably watch was already covered here, I had little inclination to look in different sites since. That is not to say that I agree with every word you type, but honesty is something that is hard not to appreciate, and I can always rely on you to let me know where quality resides, regardless of genre. The list of great anime I would not have watched if it weren't for your conviction is growing in, I suspect, about the same speed it takes them to produce those over in Japan.
I can't even begin to grasp the amount of work that goes into maintaining this site. For you to have done this for 4 years now (4, right?) is something that would earn my utmost respect even if I didn't care much for the end result. And seeing as how the end result is, in fact, what it is, I can only offer you my sincere gratitude and hopes that this service you provide will become self sufficient soon.
In the meanwhile, I'll try clicking the Amazon links more often.
これからもよろしくおねがいします
admin
April 8, 2014 at 11:23 pmThank you, Nadavu – I always appreciate your comments both here and at RC. Obviously a site with multiple viewpoints is inherently different than one with a singular one – each has its advantages, as you point out. I find it interesting to be a part of both, though the readership here obviously overlaps with my tastes to a far greater degree.
As to LiA becoming self-sufficient, that's a dream I've had for a long time, but realistically I consider it a long shot. The goal for now, really, is for it to be able to justify the time I put into it, at least a bit.