Manga Mavericks Books Adds Erica Friedman as Managing Editor

The North American publisher brings on Erica Friedman to Managing Editor role in further acceleration of publishing plans.

Culver City, CA – Manga Mavericks Books today announced the addition of Erica Friedman to the Manga Mavericks Books publishing team as Managing Editor.

“With the launch of compelling indie titles in our catalog this year, including Horon of the Closed Country by Sen and FISHGOD by Chlona, Manga Mavericks experienced a strong period of growth” says Varun Gupta, CEO of Manga Mavericks LLC. “Erica's passion for manga and dedication to our mission to surface unique stories in the industry make her the perfect addition to our team. 2027 will be an even more aggressive year of growth for the company, with us releasing over 40 titles covering the span of alternative, shojo/josei, LGBTQ+, and classic manga from Japan. Erica's drive and talent will be key in helping us make these goals a reality.

Erica Friedman holds a Masters Degree in Library Science and a B.A. in Comparative Literature, and is a managing editor, author and lecturer.

She has lectured at events around the world and presented at film festivals, notably the San Francisco Lesbian and Gay Film Festival and the London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. She has participated in an academic lecture series at MIT, University of Illinois, Harvard University, Kanagawa University, Keio University and others.

Erica has written about Yuri for Japanese literary journal Eureka, Animerica Magazine, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, Dark Horse, Del Rey and contributed to Forbes, Slate, Huffington Post, Hooded Utilitarian, Anime Herald and The Mary Sue online.

She is currently a staff writer for Anime News Network and she has written news and event reports, interviews Yuri creators and reviews Yuri anime, manga and related media on her blog Okazu since 2002.

She is the author of By Your Side: The First 100 years of Yuri Anime and Manga, published by Journey Press and is a contributor to DK's Manga A Visual History. Her work has also recently appeared in Hajimete no Yuri Studies: Queer/Feminist no Shiten Kara (はじめての百合スタディ ーズ: クィア/フェミニストの視点から).

"I am incredibly excited to be working with Manga Mavericks.” says Erica. “With the amazing team they have built and such wonderful books, I look forward to being part of a company that is destined to have a positive impact on the English-language manga world."

About Manga Mavericks LLC
Leveraging the experience and connections they accumulated in the manga industry over nearly ten years of podcasting and press coverage, Manga Mavericks LLC launched Manga Mavericks Books in 2025 as a publishing house highlighting the eclectic storytelling, artistry, and creativity of Japanese creators and comics for the North American market. Born out of a desire to highlight great artistry going under-acknowledged in the West, Manga Mavericks Books is an imprint dedicated to an extremely high standard of quality and a deep respect for creators, with the goal of pushing the industry forward in print, localization, and presentation.

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