Who: Cassie Richoux
Contact me at crichoux @ gmail.com

I am currently a graduate student in publishing, working for Ooligan Press (our student run press, with 6-10 books a year) in Marketing and Children’s Acquisitions. I also intern at Bowler Hat Comics, working initially with the press in general and now focusing on marketing.

What: Writer, publisher, reader, designer, and otaku. Books have always been my passion, from devouring every book in sight as a child, to filling up at least a third of a moving truck with boxes of books as an adult.

Where: Portland, Oregon.  In my cozy little house, with a dog literally on my feet and a cat keeping a spot on my bed warm. And with a roommate who is willing to put up with inane questions at three in the morning, as long as she wasn’t already asleep.

When: Right now and for as long as I can stay funny and intelligent enough to write these guides.  Heck, as television has taught us, I’ve probably got a few more years even after I stop being funny.

Why: Some years ago I was working on a rather unexciting bachelors degree in English, when I had the sudden realization: most writers need day jobs.  Well, shit, I’d have to find something else to do while writing.  Something that might get me meeting people and interacting with the world.  I’d read about writers who wake up at 5 am every morning to write, and well, I’m not that dedicated.

I just love stories. Hence, the realization that publishing would be the right field for me.  I initially wanted to be an editor, like everyone else, but I’ve realized that I love marketing and design far more.

So someday, I plan to run my own small press.  For the moment, I have the Otaku Survival Guides, my creative and marketing outlet.  I’ve spent so many years initiating friends into the world of conventions and even worked on founding and managing Anime Nebraskon. Writing guides to the different aspects of conventions just seemed like the next step.

Of course, my passion for publishing managed to work itself into the mix as well, and I hope that my guides to publishing are just as useful.  They have a definite otaku, artist, and genre slant, so I feel like they fit into the series nicely.

How: With a laptop that rarely crashes (knock on wood), a desktop that only crashes sometimes, and a notebook that has many pages that are illegible to anyone but me. Plus, with the help of dear (and unsuspecting) friends, a bit of luck, a friend that’s great at editing, Z’s awesome art, the art of those I have yet to meet but I know will want to work with me, and, well, a major loss of energy and finances.  I suppose as long as I can pay the electric and internet bills, I’ve got hope.