Kentaro Miura, Creator of "Berserk", Dead At 54 & Why You Should Have Posthumous Plans For Your Work

If you're a regular here, then you already heard the news. If not, let me catch you up.

【三浦建太郎先生　ご逝去の報】
『ベルセルク』の作者である三浦建太郎先生が、2021年5月6日、急性大動脈解離のため、ご逝去されました。三浦先生の画業に最大の敬意と感謝を表しますとともに、心よりご冥福をお祈りいたします。
2021年5月20日　株式会社白泉社　ヤングアニマル編集部 pic.twitter.com/baBBo4J2kL

— ベルセルク公式ツイッター (@berserk_project) May 20, 2021

And if you don't read Japanese, then Dark Horse has you.

Kentaro Miura passed away on May 6, 2021 from acute aortic dissection. He was 54. Miura-sensei was a master artist and storyteller and we had the great privilege of publishing several of his finest works, including his masterpiece, Berserk. 1/

— Dark Horse Comics (@DarkHorseComics) May 20, 2021

That's the start of a tribute thread by Dark Horse. Pursue as your leisure. Fans across the world in multiple places, across all media, have their own grieving rituals.

In typical custom, this news was kept under wraps for a time so that family may grieve in private before the official announcement. It is, as of this post, unknown what will become of Berserk as it is now unfinished. This has not gone unnoticed, and colleages of Mr. Miura have been implored to check in on their own health and make plans for postumous publication in the case of unfinished work.

追悼。ちょっと描画真似してみたけど三浦先生はほんとに線が繊細だなあ。キャスカにはね…幸せになってほしかったんですよ… pic.twitter.com/LkCIu9WwfR

— 広江礼威 (@hiroerei) May 20, 2021

Translated: Vinland Saga manga creator Makoto Yukimura wrote: "I just learned about Kentaro Miura's death. At the same time, my fans are tweeting about my health. Thank you very much. I will take care of my health and will surely complete the Vinland Saga series. I'm very shocked. I can't put it into words. It was a tremendous job. I think drawing was his life."

This is not an uncommon concern. The creator of Hunter X Hunter, Yoshihiro Togashi, has had similar concerns said of him as his audience doesn't want to see what has now befallen Miura's audience--and Ken Ishikawa of Getter Robo before him--happen unto him. George R.R. Martin has had such conversations, wanted or not- especially after fellow author Robert Jorden's death left The Wheel of Time unfinished.

And I can confirm that question I've had that put to me, and not just today.

This being a blog about writing and the business thereof, I think you can see where I am going here.

Yes, I do think that plans should be drawn up regarding what happens to one's intellectual property after one dies. If it is decided to finish any unfinished projects after death, then resources should be secured and a successor hand-picked and read-in before the fact so they can seamlessly take over if you are disabled or dead. It is uncommonly done because few authors--whatever the medium--ever reach a position where that is actually a practical concern.

This is no longer something that should be left for others to decide. Authors should presume, for these purposes, that their creations are valuable and therefore should make the necessary moves to protect it after they are gone. It does not matter if they are now or not; the future is uncertain, and more than a few authors' works didn't achieve any fame, popularity, or respect until well after the fact. Ceading control to someone with little or no incentive to heed your vision and protect it is how you end up with heirs selling birthrights for pennies or worse, and the resulting defilement that follows.

We do not know what will become of Berserk. It is entirely possible that it will be left fallow for a time, only to later get a new anime adaptation that fills in gaps--this was the case for the unfinished Getter Robo Arc--and that may not receive the desired positive reception. These decisions should be made by you while you live, and not left to others who may not care about them whatsover. It is a necessary part of the business, and too few of us are prepared for this. That has to be fixed, now.

The Business: Upstream Reviews, For Indie Readers By Indie Authors

Add this to your regular blog rolls, RSS feeds, or trips around the Internet if you're a regular reader of science fiction, fantasy, or horror: Upstream Reviews, brought to you by veteran authors Rob Krose and Declann Finn.

Welcome to Upstream Reviews, where we know that culture is upstream from politics, and we act on it.

In recent years, you may have heard from mainstream thinking that there is no such thing as a “conservative creative.” The idea is that no one makes entertainment unless they’re left-leaning, to the left of chairman Mao.

Usually, this claim is made by those people who refuse to look at fiction, because “fiction is irrelevant.” Then they go out and try to sell their own product.

At Upstream Reviews, we will go out of our way to bring you the best in Conservative entertainment. And only the best.

Because we’ve made our own platform, and we’re not going anywhere.

Our review philosophy is simple: no pandering leftwing garbage.

If we review a book, it’s because we think it’s worth reading. And we prioritize books and authors that go against the culture tide of relativism, cynicism, where Leftists rewrite storytelling to fit their own image. If there’s politics in it, we will discuss them. If there’s no blatant politics, we’ll explain why the book alone fits in with the rest of the right / right-leaning works.

On very rare occasions, we may review a book because it is so vile it needs a stake rammed through its heart like the abomination it truly is.

You can read "Conservative" as "Not pozzed by the Death Cult or run by its SJW shocktroopers" because that's typical of what Upstream features in its posts.

Upstream does two things as regular features: Classic titles being featured (as of this post, the most recent is "The Lathe of Heaven" by Ursula K. LeGuin), and independent or small press titles that aren't getting attention from the SJWs that dominate BookTube/BookTwitter and other mainstream social media or bookstore marketing (as of this post, the most recent is "Fatemarked" by David Estes). There are weekly roundups on Sundays, and the occassional non-fiction work gets attention when it's appropriate, but it's those regular features that you'll be coming back for.

Do I recommend it? As part of your larger set of media feeds to keep you up to date on what's out there and what's the best of what came before, it certainly is, especially if you're budget-concious and prefer to read digitally. Check it out.

Signal Boost: Adam Lane Smith Presents "Diamond Jack"

The man behind Deus Vult Wastelanders and Maxwell Cain is back with a new science fiction series, and he's crowdfunding what it takes to finish the job on Kickstarter. Behold Diamond Jack and the Neon Knights.

Yes, there's a money quote:

Q: Wait, you write masculine Christian fiction? Is that even allowed?

A: Too many authors are afraid to portray unapologetic Christian belief as true. Deus Vult Wastelanders takes the words of the Bible as absolute fact and goes from there, imagining what might happen if demons invaded Earth and it still wasn't the final apocalypse. Christians living in hard times need to see heroes living in even harder times and still holding up the torch. Deus Vult Wastelanders has this in spades. Some people may not like the masculine portrayal of unapologetic Christianity, but it's time to bring it back into the spotlight so people see we're not a religion of cowards who compromise our principles at the first sign of hardship.

If you think he can't deliver, go to the Amazon links above and read the samples for the Wastelanders books. He delivers, and he makes fans of Berserk, Warhammer, and similar very masculine fiction applaud. No soyboi faggotry or soft-jawed Churchianity here. This is the sort of stuff you could believe an actual Crusader appreciating.

He's got a successful track record, so you're in good hands if you back this. Back Diamond Jack today.

The Business of Writing Talks Blockchain & NFTs

Joe Salari of "The Business of Writing" brought Kate Baucherel on to discuss how Blockchain may impact authors. They cover NFTs, crypto, and how other technologies tied to the blockchain may change indie publishing.

Ultimately, I think the impact will be less than a lot of enthusiasts would like and not in the favor they would rather it take.

The current benefit for indie writing and publishing is that is actually pretty simple to do, both in the writing and the business end of things, such that one man can handle it all himself without being an expert in more than writing, keeping up with effective promotion, and handling one's personal finances. All things blockchain greatly increase the level of complexity involved, and doing so to people generally disinclined to be IT experts.

Conditions--political, financial, technical--would have to change radically for any of this to go in the enthusiasts' favor, especially as more and more drawbacks to a digital-only economy get exposed and exploited to screw over the common man with the consequence of shifting commoners back to favoring physical media and hard currency transactions for their affairs.

Right now, it's a shiny widget--a toy--and nothing more. Until it finds a useful, practical, everyday use-case of application that normies can comprehend and employ it might as well be Faster Than Light travel or full-body cyborgs. We're not there. We're not even close. We are unlikely to get there before those threatened by this set of technology either turn it to their favor or shut it down. Favor that which adheres to the KISS principle instead.