Sword Art Online Alternative – Gun Gale Online - Volume 7 - Chapter Aft

AFTERWORD 
Gun Gale Diary: Part 7 
Hello, everyone. I’m the author of this book, Keiichi Sigsawa. 
It’s been a year and three months. Has anything changed in your life? 
Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online (hereafter, “the series”) has reached its seventh volume! I’m so happy. 
And that means this “Afterword Gun Gale Diary,” where the author can write whatever he feels like, has also reached its seventh installment. 
For the afterwords of the previous six volumes, I discussed how this series came about, my favorite guns, the length of my second toes (which I spoke about quite a bit), my recipe for pork sukiyaki, the tools one needs to change a tire, and even a very simple three-minute method for creating world peace. It’s been a wide-ranging segment beloved by all. This time, the topic of choice is “this series is becoming an anime.” 
Why am I talking about anime? I think you’re already aware of this, aren’t you? 
Yes, as of this writing (June 2018), the televised animated series is airing weekly! 
The Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online (hereafter, “Anime GGO”) started in April and is now in its later stages. 
The release date for this book in Japan is Saturday, June 9th, so if you bought this on that date, your TV station or streaming site is going to be airing the show starting at midnight. Have fun! You can also see it in other places, and there will eventually be Blu-rays and DVDs available. 
To an anime otaku and writer like me, getting an animated adaptation of one of your works is among the greatest of joys. This one is coming just after last year’s adaptation of another series of mine, Kino’s Journey -the Beautiful World- the Animated Series (hereafter, “Anime Kino”), and let me tell you, having consecutive anime adaptations is a whole lot of work. 
Among my fellow authors, it’s said that there are two good options for how to be involved in their anime. One is “to consider your job done after handing over your original work and patiently wait for the finished product to air in a total hands-off approach.” The other is “to become a member of the staff, attending meetings and checking the product, as well as offering new ideas and fine-tuning the end result.” 
Since Anime Kino last year, I’ve chosen the latter. 
So I went to the script meetings, the voice recordings, even the sound effects dubbing sessions, as though I was going to receive a prize for perfect attendance. As of this writing, it’s still perfect. 
This has led to a huge increase in workload and created an extremely busy time for me. 
Of course, this is a good problem to have, but on several occasions, I’ve thought, Why did it have to be two series at the same time (airing only three months apart)?! 
For the second half of 2017, I was simultaneously writing Book Kino, attending to work for Anime GGO (checking scripts and storyboards), and also working on Anime Kino (voice-over and effects dubbing, writing exclusive stories for disc releases). It was sheer madness. It felt as chaotic as a festival celebrating Obon and New Year’s simultaneously. 
There were times when I got an e-mail saying “Check over this by the day after tomorrow,” and I panicked because I couldn’t tell which thing it was referring to. I can only pray I never actually responded to the wrong person by mistake. 
By the time this book comes out, my days of being terrified of e-mail notification sounds are over. At least, I think they’re over. I hope they’re over. Perhaps I should be preparing for the worst, just in case. 
But even so, it’s a wonderful thing to have an anime. 
I’m reflecting now on what a lucky author this Sigsawa is. 
And this time, it’s a spin-off. Unlike Kino, this isn’t a series I created entirely by myself. 
From the day Reki Kawahara gave me permission to use the fictional world he birthed and carefully nurtured, I swore to myself, “I can’t do anything that will soil the good name of his series. I have to create a story that will be loved by as many people as possible.” Even if the descriptions of guns get a little overwhelming. 

Now that it’s being animated and seen by many more people than before, I feel utterly relieved. 
I would be delighted if this little story finds support, huddled in its own gunpowdery corner of the ever-expanding Sword Art Online universe. 
In Anime GGO, you’ve got Llenn moving and talking and jumping and leaping and shooting like crazy, and it’s so adorable. I could practically ask them to change the title to LCO (Llenn’s Cute Online). 
I can feel the love for Llenn exuding from her actor, Tomori Kusunoki, and the creative staff. Thank you so much for your work. 
Those of you who have seen the anime, or are about to see it, please love our little pink demon. Also, I thought M was cute, too. Especially when he cries. 
The staff put a lot of work into the details and depictions of the guns. 
There are lots and lots of firearms that make appearances in the series, starting with the main character’s partner, P-chan, the pink P90. 
Of course, it’s got to be animated, so the linework can’t be too fine. There are places where we had to alter or simplify the designs. All of those changes were made at meetings where I was present and signed off on them, though, so rest assured that I agreed they were acceptable. 
As an example, the stock of Pitohui’s favorite gun, the KTR-09, has a very complex shape, so we simplified its look. As a matter of fact, both versions are actual existing options. We just went with the simpler model. There are other changes like this, so if you’re a gun freak like me, have fun checking out the details. 
But that’s enough discussion about the anime. 
To talk a little bit about Volume 7 here, after the changeup I threw with the previous volume, I’ve decided to get back to serious business with the fourth Squad Jam event. 
Whoops, was that a spoiler? It was there in the title, you know. 
I’ll also admit that writing this volume was very difficult! I was balancing it along with all my anime work. 
Normally, my books come out in March of any given year, but this time, it ended up in June for a few reasons. 
First of all, the bustle of the anime process was going to delay the book by a month. 
Then, because of personal business at home, I was unable to put together enough quiet time to concentrate and write, which caused another two months of delay. 
I used to think that a professional writer should be able to write no matter what, but the truth is, when you can’t do it, you can’t do it. I explained the situation to the editorial department, and they understood. I’m very grateful for that. I don’t think I’ll ever forget this extremely busy and difficult time in my life. 
Still, I barely managed to complete the book to get it out while the anime was still airing, so I’m breathing a little sigh of relief right now. Man, that was a close one. Then again, this is just the first part. The story has more to go. 
What will happen in the second half? 
Will the fourth Squad Jam wrap up safely? What will happen to Llenn—and what will happen to Karen? 
Will the second half of this story, containing the answers to those questions, be given a release date by the time this book is on shelves? Or will it still be forthcoming? Everything is shrouded in mystery. 
That’s all for this time. Let’s meet again in the concluding volume of SJ4! 
By the way, next time, I intend to fill this segment by writing passionately about “why it’s so hard for your right and left hands to engage in a handshake.” Look forward to that. 
Keiichi Sigsawa