Doujinshi, at least the way I'm using the term, are Japanese fan-manga. That's not the only definition for the term. Sometimes doujinshi prose, or illustration books, not manga stories; sometimes they're self-published original work, not fanwork, or sometimes they're something in between (Naoko Takeuchi put out a doujin artbook for Sailor Moon, featuring art by other manga-ka); and sometimes they're produced in English, though much more rarely. They're not just tentacle pr0n, and they're not just about yaoi paddles and the red-hot man-loving (though those are nice too), though I can see how the casual con-goer might get that impression. Like fanfic, it covers a wide range of topics, and like fanfic, it is really freaking hard to find the good stuff for this pairing and this fandom. Over time, with the help of luck, stubborn determination, and occasional screaming in fruitless wrath at some Yahoo! Japan auction bidders with similar tastes to my own but, apparently, much more money, I've managed to win obtain some Locke x Terra doujinshi. (Okay, the screaming is really about the doujinshi I want but can't get, but it's still a part of the process.) I can't really read Japanese - I recognize maybe three kanji, and I have a shaky and incomplete grasp of kana, though I can read enough to recognize the characters' names - but to some extent I can usually follow the story through the art.

The difficulty I've had finding Locke/Terra doujinshi is one of the main reasons I'm featuring scans, but this wasn't the simplest of decisions. Doujinshi aren't exactly the same as fanart, but they're not the same as commercial goods, either. They're published, so it's not like I'm taking something anyone could look at for free on a website and slapping it up on my own with no credit. But they're not mass-produced, and I would guess most doujinshi circles don't make very much of a profit, though I have no way of knowing. This isn't the same as scanning pages from a manga or an artbook because "it's free publicity, other people will buy it now." It doesn't have much benefit for the doujin creators; fans may not be able to buy their work even if they want to. But that's actually why I finally, always, decide scans are pretty much okay. Okay-ish, at least. This may be the only way people who don't know me personally will see these books; they're not available otherwise; and in my experience, doujin scans are like a free hit of crack, in that they just make you want more. Whether any of that benefits the creators I don't know. But they won't be up forever, and I won't put up anything I can't at least credit by circle, artist, or both.

I'll feature interior scans from one doujin at a time, rotating them out every month or two. At some point I may add a cover gallery with some info about the ones not currently on display, but that would involve even more work, so it can wait.

The featured book this month is "Something There," by the Secret Circle, lead artist Kanta.