So about 4 or 5 months ago, the bimonthly publication "Otaku USA," put out a call for photo submissions from its readers for a cosplay edition of their magazine. Being a loyal reader of 2 years, I took a chance and submitted a couple photos, one of myself individually, and one of Justin and I in our Final Fantasy VII cosplays. Then, I waited. I would eagerly check my messages each day to check for confirmation that they got my submissions, and with each passing day I got more nervous. Did they not like them? Did they even get the message I sent? Gradually, I forgot about the whole situation.
Then, one fateful day in mid-July, I suddenly got a response. They were requesting formal permission to use both of the photos I submitted! Naturally, I was ecstatic and said YES! I spent the rest of the day on cloud nine, and couldn't wait to tell Brenton, Justin, my parents, my friends.... you get the idea. Now, the wait was on for August 27th, when the print edition would be released. I was so excited the morning of that I got up early and went to Wal-Mart before work to pick up all the copies they had on the shelves. Mission success! Here, have some pictures of the magazine and inside. I will have more to say after that.
See us?! They put Justin and I on the right page with some other great Final Fantasy cosplays, and put me in my Erza Scarlet cosplay on the left bottom side, next to fellow Fairy Tail member Gajeel :D
In case you haven't picked up on it already, I'm pretty dang happy they accepted both of our submissions. We've made it into some fantastic cosplay videos before, which we've definitely been totally psyched about, but there is just something about being in a print magazine, a nation publication, that makes my heart skip a beat. To be honest, sometimes I have these nagging moments of self-doubt where I tell myself it was just a call for photos, an open submission.... but then I think, so what? They obviously thought they were good enough to be published, and that alone makes me really happy. Not just Justin and I, but my whole family and friends supported me in making all of these cosplays, whether it was accompanying me while shopping for materials, helping me spray paint parts, making the huge Buster Swords, or making sure we made it through the convention hall unscathed or not knocking anyone else out. So I am grateful and honored to have had our photos accepted.
That leads me to say first to my family and friends, thank you for your love and support, and I hope to continue to earn and receive that. Second, thank you to Justin for being an awesome cosplay partner, spending long hours on our feet holding twenty-plus pounds of prop weapons. Last but not least, thank you to Otaku USA for the opportunity to be in this great cosplay edition. Not only are Justin and I in the same publication that has some of our cosplay idols gracing the pages, but we also learned of new cosplayers to learn from and admire!
Justin also has a few thoughts he'd like to get out! Read on~
It's pretty exciting to be able to be recognized as your character, let alone to be recognized for how well your cosplay was made! One thing that always makes a cosplay better is having both the support from friends (and family) who will be there dressed up with you. It is both a surprise and an honor to have been published in Otaku USA magazine, but we would have never have been there if it wasn't for the positive feedback that we get from fellow cosplayers and anime lovers alike!
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And that is what we both have to say about our appearance in this magazine! We hope you enjoyed our thoughts and feelings, and will continue to look forward to our future cosplays and interactions. We appreciate your support!
Sincerely,
Alycia and Justin of Heart and Soul Cosplay
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