D'awww big bummer, but I hope we can get 6 translated soon! I'd love to read it. Also, I think I do remember Alxsome chick. If I'm not mistaken, in one of my FMA artbooks Arakawa drew her, Al and Ed.

^The second probably. I have the first artbook, and the only artwork they have that's not from the manga/anime is sweet lil' Armony.

Yep, I have both artbooks. It's in the 2nd one.

As a matter of fact, there IS some implied EdxWin in the fourth novel. It's early EdxWin though...but at least it's from Ed's point of view, which is a plus.

Ooooh dammit! I want to read it now! What exactly does it say? Can you recall?

If the whole FMA manga was adapted as a regular sci-fi novel and published...what would you think? (Personally, I'd run to the bookstore and buy it before you could yell "shrimp", lol...) *bookworm drool* The idea hit me recently and I wondered what other fans would think of it.

While I'm on the subject, I'd like your opinion on something.

A while ago me, my little sister and my mom - who all used to HATE anime - converted to Fullmetal Alchemist. I got into it first and then the ripple just kinda spread, lol. Anyway, we all fell in love with the anime months ago, and recently I've finished catching up with the manga.

The manga is great too and I'd love to share it with the others, but my little sister isn't allowed to read it (the strong language is the main issue) and my mom...well, I tried introducing it to her but she found it too difficult and confusing to read. (No one in the family except me has ever read manga before. We're bookworms, not manga geeks lol.)

So what I'm thinking of doing is taking the manga and start adapting it as a plain ol' book, as a surprise Christmas present for my mom and sister. As you know, the manga's WAY different from the anime and really, really GOOD...I want the rest of my family to enjoy the story as much as I am!

I'm also thinking of sharing it with other FMA anime fans who've found it hard to read the manga (or don't want to read it) - or ANY fans who'd be interested in reading it; maybe even post it up on a fan fiction site or something. But I'd like to hear what you guys think about the idea. I know, it's probably stupid and I'm wasting your time with this dumb, pointless topic, but all the same...you've all loved the manga longer than I have. I don't think I'd want to do this unless you all felt okay about it, lol.

Just so you know, I'm a firm believer in staying true to the original source and I won't do anything stupid (except edit out the stronger cuss words and smooth out some of the awkward english translations). And if for some weird reason you're wondering how well I can write or what my style's like, you can check out my short story, Ode to Joy, and see what you think.

So...yeah. (Arrgh, now I feel totally stupid and embarrassed about this...) Please talk to me and tell me what you think of the idea!

You should check out the FMA Novel thread --> http://www.fullmetal-alchemist.com/forums/...?showtopic=8218

Oh cool! I had no idea there were FMA novels! Thanks pointing me over there.

But wait...are those graphic novels or just plain books? (I'm never sure, lol.) Also, are they adaptations of the manga? Anime? Or are they something completely different?

Gah, I should probably be asking these questions on the other thread, lol... *eyes the Admin signature and hopes she's not posting anything mind-numbingly retarded...*

They're just like normal novels with mostly words, with some pics here and there.

If I'm not wrong, the novels have a different storyline from the manga/anime (though the anime uses some of the plots in the novels e.g. the Tringham brothers and the red water), but are based on the manga's characters plus some new ones unique to the novels.

I can't be too sure since I've only read the first one though |P

Personally, I would love to see the entirety of Fullmetal Alchemist manga converted into novel format. While, there are a number of Fullmetal Alchemist novels as Asunder has pointed out, I believe that some of them present scenarios that diverge from the original plot-line of the anime and manga. I read the first two novels, but I found them to be aimed at a much younger audience- the language used was rather basic, and I really didn't find any great depth to the novels unlike the work of Hiromu Arakawa, which actually makes me sit down and think about morality and issues in everyday life that we all struggle with. I do not want people to discard the novels, but I just think that a great deal of substance is lost when these novels are translated from Japanese into another language. Still, I am sure that they are highly enjoyable reads for many people, especially when they are read in their original Japanese.
I would love to see the plot of the Fullmetal Alchemist manga adapted into novel format, even if it is not by a professional author. It would definitely be a rather lengthy task to say the least, but I think that it would be wonderful if someone undertook it. Of course, I am sure as there are numerous writers out their, with numerous creative styles, there will always be more than one way to interpret Arakawa's manga. I definitely say: "Go for it, and start writing!" I would love to see your work throughout the process.

~I do not know if this should be moved to the Fan-Fiction section. Perhaps more writers would be interested..

Ooooh, interesting...so THAT'S where the Tringham brothers originally came from. Thanks for the info!



Edamame, I could hug you. Seriously, lol. I know it's stupid, but I was so afraid that any other fans who saw this would either ignore me or say something like "This is stupid" or "Who cares? Just do whatever you want already". It's SO NICE to get some input and encouragement on this. Thankyouthankyouthankyou!!

And I'm not a published author YET, but I'm reeeaaally hoping to be someday! (And to think it was fan fiction that started me writing in the first place, lol...)

There are pros and cons to this idea (hooray for Captain Obvious!!!)

Pros - It would be freaking amazing. I mean, come on, how awesome would it be to get to do a school book report on Fullmetal Alchemist w/o your teacher asking, "Is this a comic book?" It'd also be really interesting to hear how someone else interprets the manga. The way they describe thoughts and actions, since everything would be in more detail. Those kind of things. It'd be fun to read for the same reason we read FMA essays, too, in that respect.

Cons - They could mess it up bad, it could take away from the original work, and IMO the worst of all... *insert dramatic drum roll here* I don't know how many of you are still in high school, but it's not going to be fun to walk into class and have all those people who called anime "weird" just last week ranting about how awesome the newest book they've read is. I know I sound childish, but it was the same with Twilight: I read it two years ago and people like cheerleaders and jocks said it was weird and emo and right before the movie came out, they suddenly LOVED it and were it's biggest fans and wouldn't shut up about it (while totally missing the point of the story) when before they bashed the book all the time. Now, what would you think if this happened with FMA? Everyone who said otakus were strange before are suddenly walking around talking about how much they love Edward and how Winry's a b!tch because "ZOMG Edward's MINE" and went on and on about how much they loved the book while not even understanding half of what they're reading?

I know I sound retarded and the whole, "I read it first" thing is lame, but it would bug me to hear everyone talking about it all the time when before they thought it was strange. It's kind of hyprocitical to hate it when no one read it, and then sudenly love it because "Everyone else is reading it".

I hope this made some sense to someone out there LOL

If you were to write it like you said you would, though, Dearheart, I would read it for sure!

Hello, I am new to posting to the forums, but I like to browse them.
I think that it would be cool to read FMA in novel format because I like to read.
I understand what RoyXRiza fan is trying to say.

Yeah, I can definitely see where you're coming from. But if it was an adaptation and not just something based on FMA, I don't think they'd stray TOO far from the original manga. There's a big difference between "adaptations" and "based-ons".

And as far as Twilight goes, I hated both the book AND the movie. The book was TERRIBLY written (jungles of long, fancy adjectives, bad grammar, a Mary Sue and a Gary Stu as the main characters...yeeeaah. I get enough of that on FanFiction.Net). And, eh... *cough* The movie made me laugh for all the wrong reasons.

Erm, no offense to any Twilight fans who might be reading this, ehehe...

Thanks again for the input, everyone! I've decided to try this out and see what happens! I've already finished the prologue, and I'm going to tackle the rest of chapter 1 tomorrow! (Whew, this is a challenge already...but that just makes it more fun!) Let's just hope I can put a good dent in it before Christmas... *bites nails*

And hi there, FMAobsessed! I'm a newbie too. Good to meet you!

Hi Dearheart it is good to meet you too. I have browsed the forums for a while, but I never knew how to post on threads until today. I am a blond when it comes to computers.

I liked Twilight but I am not offended by what you wrote. I read it before most people in my school did then it got really popular. The books did have their annoying tendencies though.

But I wish you luck in writing your FMA manga novel. It sounds difficult to do because you would have to explain all the scenery and character descriptions. In the manga all that is shown through the pictures.

LOL, I used to be a computer blond too. (It's a good thing my dad is part computer-geek.)

And as far as the manga/novel thing goes...believe it or not, that's the easy part. Describing things has always been one of my strong points. The hard parts for me are figuring out what POV to use (point of view) and where to tweak the dialog.

I didn't even think about the POV. First person is the one that use "I" right? I think that maybe you should do it in a third person aspect. Because a lot of times in FMA the chapter will sometimes switch focus to a different character instead of just focusing on Ed and Al.

Yeah, there's first person (I said "blah blah blah"), second person (You said "blah blah blah") and third person (He/she/it said "blah blah blah").

(I always use third person, unless I'm doing an artsy-drabble-type-thing and want to set a certain mood.)

But then you have to take into account who's POV it is. The storyteller? A main character? A minor character? It's tough to balance all that out. But again, the challenge just makes it more fun.

I thought that second person was (you said) while third person was (he/she/it) said? Maybe you could start in a character's POV like Ed's and then switch when different scenes come up when Ed isn't there. Does that make sense?

You're right, it's THIRD person that's he/she/it. Thanks for catching that. (Bleh, my brain is all mushy today...) *edits post to prevent further embarassment*

And yep, that's pretty much what I'm doing with the POV. Great minds think alike.

HI everyboby!
First, you really don't know how much I've had to thank the gods for this site.
(ok,cut the crap, go on XD)
Well, I'd truely love you twice if someone could tell me something more accurate about the 4th novel,please. It's quite obvious that it's a hungry edwin fan who's speaking here (sorry for my bad english)

wow thanks for the info.... now i need to go and get them now.


darn it

i need a job.

Wait... what's the difference between these and the manga?
Are these actual books?

I'm confused.. but they sound really cool!

To put it simply , they're speen-off , or side-stories of the series turned to novels. As they say, there' are also some original illustrations in it. Unfortunately, they were not pubblished yet in my Country, so I've to be content with summaries and spoilers around the net...Please , if anyone knows about the 4th novel, spit it out!

i read one of the novels. it was called the abducted alchemist but the circumstances of edwards capture were a little to convinient for the story. it had plenty of slapstick humour and recomend it to everyone here

I think the Novels are ok, I have and have read all of them published in english so far however I belive the novels lack alot of the humour that we get from reading the manga. For one Ed seems all in all to poliet and dosent seem to have his outburst or cunning as much as he does in the comic. Roy is another thing, his character in the novels seem to be more hard working and I get the impression the author wants to shed a more responsible light on him which makes it a little less appealing if you have watched the anime or read the manga, as I'm used to laid back I dont want to do work unless I have to Roy.

Another thing is that I believe the author dosent really show the relationship between Ed and Al that well. After looking back on the books I get the feeling that she's trying to focus everything on mainly Ed and Roy and not really the others around them who play quite a big part in the story.

Also there is a problem with some grammar and spelling mistakes in the translated novels. (This is saying something as I am really bad in spelling!)

On a whole I would give the books a 6 1/2 out of 10.

KiaraBloodAlchemist I agree with you, but she did a good job on giving Al some things to do in Valley Of White Petals. The reason why Roy was more hardworking than usual in one of them was because he really /does/ care about people so when he saw how bad off they were firsthand he had to help out. Also those losers down in Southern Command were messing with them in that other one.

I really like the novels, but since I've seen "The Other Brothers Elric" so much I never actually read Land Of Sand. I own all the others though.

What you say about THe Valley of White Petals is true and I guess that can be explainsed with Roy however I really do whish there was a bit more humour in the books. Other then that really good reading you know!
I cant wait till the rest of the novels are translated.

where can i find these novels for download?

Giii~, I don't think we have any place for downloading these novels. One FMA novel, the latest one with Havoc, Roy, etc. (in Japanese) was available for legal free reading on GanGan Net for long time, but I just checked, and I don't see it now. Sorry!

^ That novel is still on Gangan Online:

http://www.square-enix.com/jp/magazine/gan...SWF_Window.html

^ Michiyo-, you are AWESOME! Thank you!!