I know that headline reads like it’s a joke or a typo, but I swear that the following is a true story.
Becoming a civil servant in Japan is kind of a big deal. The job and hours are steady, the pay is decent, and there’s room for advancement up the ladder based on your years of experience. While it might not sound like the most exciting “dream” job, if you’re looking to become an average salaryman with a family to support, it’s a pretty sweet gig to land.
Unfortunately, competition for these jobs is fierce and after going through a sometimes grueling application process, only a few lucky people will actually get into this career path every year… which is probably why Hiratsuka City in Kanagawa Prefecture was so surprised when they received an anonymous tip saying that one of their employees was moonlighting as a light novel author.
Now, this might not have been such a big deal. Despite what government contracts have to say about moonlighting, there’s no rule that says that employees can’t take up writing as a hobby. The issue actually arose when it was revealed that he was using his sick time to work on his novels (which I understand because deadlines are a beast), which were apparently quite popular as he had already published four volumes. Those publications earned him around 3.2 million yen (US$28,000). So, left with little recourse, the city suspended the employee for six months without pay as punishment.
This is where the story takes an interesting turn, however, because rather than just gracefully accepting his punishment and using the next six months to write, he essentially told his job to shove it and quit instead. I’m guessing his words were a lot more polite, but speaking as a professional writer, if I were in his shoes, I would’ve been doing a happy jig on my way out the front door.
The initial report doesn’t mention who the light novelist in question is nor what title he is the author of, but I know that I’m now very curious to find out the answers to both of those questions!
Source: Crunchyroll News
