Anyone who knows anything about the Japanese manga world knows mangaka (the people who draw/write manga) are often under incredible pressure to produce a new chapter/volume of their work.
That pressure often leads to immense burnout, both physical and mental, with mangaka then taking months and sometimes years off work just to recuperate.
Case in point, Yuri Is My Job! mangaka Miman, who took a hiatus several months ago, is now apparently going on an indefinite hiatus due to her mental health.
According to Ichijinsha Comic Yuri Hime magazine, the Yuri Is My Job! hiatus will be continuing long-term due to mangaka Miman’s mental health issues.
Miman herself issued a statement saying her mental health has now become so bad, she is finding it almost impossible to continue creating the manga.
To have that kind of reaction to a job shows just how intense the pressure can be in the manga world, while it also points out the immense mental fortitude of those mangaka who manage to create ongoing manga series for years, sometimes decades.
Miman’s Yuri Is My Job! was first published in November 2016 in Comic Yuri Hime.
It has been published monthly ever since up until May this year, when Miman first went on hiatus.
Yuri Is My Job! English language manga
There are now 13 volumes of the Yuri Is My Job! manga currently out, alongside an anime adaptation, which premiered in April, 2023.
Kodansha is publishing the manga in the west, with 12 of the 13 Japanese volumes already out in English.
They explain the manga’s plot like this:
Hime gets roped into working at a weird café where the waitresses pretend to be students at an all-girl boarding school. She’s strangely taken with her partner Mitsuki, who’s so kind to her in front of the customers. There’s just one problem… Mitsuki really can’t stand her!
Hime is a picture-perfect high school princess—she’s admired by all and never trips up! So when she accidentally injures a café manager named Mai, she’s willing to cover some shifts to keep her facade intact. To Hime’s surprise, the café is themed after a private school where the all-female staff always puts on their best act for their loyal customers.
However, under the guidance of the most graceful girl there, Hime can’t help but blush and blunder! Beneath all the frills and laughter, Hime feels tension brewing as she finds out more about her new job and her budding feelings…
We will keep you posted here at Leo Sigh as more information about Miman’s possible return to creating is announced.
Until then, enjoy the Yuri Is My Job! trailer. You can watch the anime on Crunchyroll.