Blooks in Japan

I learned a lot today about blogs, blooks and Japan from a free feature at WSJ.com. It appears that the Demon Wife blog (Jitsuroku Oniyome Nikki) has spawned comics, a TV programme, a video game and now even a book or, as it was spawned by a blog, a blook.

It also seems that this is following in the foosteps of the "Train Main" or Densha Otokoa saga which has generated $11 million in 'other media' sales.

If you're ever feeling hard done by, consider just this tale from the Demon Wife blogger Kazuma: "Then there was the shopping trip when the demon wife ordered Kazuma to give blood in order to get the free-parking voucher available to blood donors."

The more you look into this stuff, the stranger it gets. But the whole topic of online media giving birth to 'old media' products is something which I find increasingly interesting. I've just written in more detail on it for EPS and, if you subscribe to their services, you should see a piece on it shortly.