It's been largely forgotten but right NOW is when the Tokyo 2020 Olympics was supposed to be. 

Which puts our book about it, Tokyo and Olympics Guide, in the odd position of being written as a realistic story... but oddly transformed into a fantasy story. Since our characters are walking around in a Tokyo that failed to come into existence, and sitting watching the beginning of a games... that never took place.

Though, if the games happen next year the story will catch up with itself...and become a reality again. 

Omoshiroi!

https://seanmichaelwilson.weebly.com/tokyo--olympics-guide.html

Manga Drawing for WellbeingIf you are stuck at home, and have a little more time on your hands, perhaps you are thinking of developing or honing new skills. The Japan Society has many resources online for those interested in finding out more about manga, or hearing from artists.
As part of this programming, we’re delighted to be able to offer our first online manga workshop with UK-based manga artist, Fumio Obata, which will focus on the healing aspects of creativity and being mindful of your surroundings, something much needed in times like these.
The workshop also reflects on Fumio's recent work, The Garden, created in collaboration with writer Sean Michael Wilson and published in May this year by Liminal 11.

This trendy focus on 'leaders' is, in itself, undemocratic.

We need a future in which everyone is involved in making a good society and work place...not just the 'leaders', surely.
People who organise these very common, 'future leaders of society and business' type courses and events seem to think its a positive contribution to a more progressive world, or better business anyway.

They dont seem to focus on the basic structural elements going on in the very idea of their being leaders. It means everyone else, apart from that small percentage of leaders, is a follower, a subservient, a 'do what the leaders decide' robot....how democratic and empowering can it be when from 80% to 99% of people are pushed down like that?

Sometimes these things say that a good leader needs to be accessible and listen to staff, to play their part in enabling others and improving society, etc... if that is the actual aim then why not make ALL staff equal? Why not make it a workers cooperative in which every single member of staff gets an equal say in how the organisation is run, what it produces, how it connects to the wider community and environment...and in how the profits are shared?

Why not a society in which there are no hugely powerful leaders or an inflexible hierarchy which holds most of us down at a powerless bottom?

THAT is a really progressive work place and society.
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Lead that!

We have just entered our comic to WEBTOONS short story contest.
Please have a look, press LIKE or rate it... part of the criteria for getting one of the prizes is audience engagement. And that's you!

Nice.

https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/once-upon-a-time-in-morningside/list?title_no=470619

Some things to say here:

1. One of the researchers here makes a good point: is anyone actually saying Churchill's statue should come down?

2. I can see a lot of annoyance at the 'left' there in comments. What should never be forgotten is that the basic aim of the left is to make life better for the majority of people, to make society work for the 99%. That IS the actual aim, even if you dont like some methods or wish to focus on negative aspects. The fact that, along the way, some silly things are done, some people focus too much on X aspect, and that authoritarian elements creep in, etc...does not make the basic aim invalid or negative. 

​Most left wingers are not authoritarian in approach, they are open to debate and reasonable in consideration of issues. Those who call themselves left but act in authoritarian ways (along gender or race or environmental or any other lines), are, as Orwell said in the 1940s when he wrote against blind USSR supporters, acting against the basic aims of the left. Solution to that is not to damn the left altogether, but try to get it, and us all, moving in a better direction. Characterised by developing the tendency to think for ourselves, to analyse critically, to act according to evidence, to treat everyone with respect (all people, of any gender, ethnicity, age, class etc - and even on social media!).  All as part of the basic aim of making society better!   

3.  The aim of people who focus on such statues or the historical figures is NOT to forget history or to pretend it did not happen or to change what happened. Its a total waste of time by anyone who opposes their actions to say that this is what they aim for. The aim, even if badly expressed or communicated, is to express a disagreement with the actions and ideas of these past people, to say they do not reflect our current values, and to say that we should not celebrate those people now with public money or in public displays or festivals etc as if what they did and thought is completely fine and unproblematic. That, at the very least, a more balanced account should be given, especially in schools, festivals and on public monuments, by the addition of further information reflecting current values or further research. 
Or, some think various statues should be taken down from public places, for the same reasons as above. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sg-jFXv4cMo

My interview today in Kumanichi newspaper, advertising pianos by the look of the image under me!
Just joking - its about my books, Japan, the UK, etc. I'm holding a copy of our new book, THE GARDEN.

My wee ‘ADVENTURES IN DIY GARDENING’ is the post on the blog of our lovely publisher today, in connection to the release our new book, just out:

​ THE GARDEN
​
https://liminal11.com/.../05/21/adventures-in-diy-gardening/

​One of the problems with the recent Marvel movie success is that it has not helped comic book sales that much. Now i dont work for Marvel and only know a few people who do, so I have almost no inside knowledge, but from what I’ve seen they have not gone out of their way to channel the movie attention into increasing comics sales. There must have been some effort made, but I think a lot more could be done.

Off the top of my head how about these efforts?

1. They get displays of comics in cinemas, so that when people go in and come out they are encouraged to buy comics related to that movie and other Marvel comics. Have characters dressed up as the Hulk and Captain America etc doing the selling and promotion. Presumably something of that type has been done, but I’m talking about doing it 1000s of times in theatres all over the world.

2. They could have a big visually interesting announcement type clip or even mini documentary at the beginning or end of the movies saying ‘Please check out the original comic books where these characters adventures continue to…’ etc. I haven’t seen anything of that type.

3. Give a free comic with each cinema ticket. Again something like that must have been done a bit, but i mean a lot more, a big campaign.

4. With the cinema ticket give a discount coupon for next purchase of a comic on amazon, etc.

5. Get the ‘stars’ of the movie to do promotional talks, videos, events in colleges etc encouraging folk to read the comics. I have not seen anything of that type (though there may have been some).

6. To broaden the consideration even more: why not GIVE a certain percentage of the huge profits they make to the comic book industry in general? Set up a fund that any creator or company can apply for to help them make their next comic book. Just saw that the Spider man movies made 3 billion dollars. Surely 0.1% of that could go to such a fund, no? Which would already be about 10 times the grant money available for comic creators from various sources. It might mean the hugely rich funders will have a few less sports cars and private jets, though, which is of course a big loss to the world!
But just possibly worth it if 100s of creators get to have a decent living while actually making the comics you get millions from the movies versions of.
​
etc… surely there is a whole load more could be done.