Posted by stan sakai on January 02, 2002 at 6:08 AM:
In Reply to: Re: Need some japanese words for my stories posted by Aaron Digulla on December 30, 2001 at 10:03 AM:
: 1. When Usagi and Tomoe marry will she become "Usagi Ame" ?
I have been inconsistent with names, especially this instance where Tomoe's name was taken from the name of a Japanese candy. In Japanese, the family name is given first so she should actually be Ame Tomoe (family name being Ame). I chose her name (Tomoe Ame) because there was, in history, a warrior woman named Tomoe Gozen (Gozen being an honorific meaning "Lady"). And I ate Tomoe Ame candy as a kid.
Usagi should actually be referred to as "Miyamoto-san" (Miyamoto being his family name). I call him "Usagi-san" to make him more accessible to western readers and, besides, it is "Usagi" and not "Miyamoto" that makes him unique.
: 2. What is Jotaros full name ? Kenichi Jotaro ?
I never gave Kenichi a family name. I avoid using too many names to avoid confusion among readers (and myself).
: 3. What's the correct term for a fencing school ? If Usagi would open his own school, how would he name it ?
I believe any hall of martial arts is called a "dojo". I'll have to look into this further. Anyone else have an answer?
: 4. When I write stories about Usagi, are there any legal rules I must take into account (copyright and whatnot) ? I looked at the UY Fan Artwort site but could not find anything.
I'm not a copyright expert but there should be a tag saying "Usagi Yojimbo is a trademark of Stan Sakai" and, if art is used, "copyright (year) Stan Sakai"
: 5. Can I use some of the pictures from the UY Character page in my stories ? If so, should I link to the original pictures or should I copy them to my own page or should I put links to the originals in my texts ?
Again, I am no means an expert in this field but, I think, you can use those pictures. If the art was drawn by someone else, though, you should ask their permission.
: Thanks a lot,