And the Winner Is....

I have decided to submit "Akiba Maid" in the Long River Run poetry journal. I only got two responses to my possible entries, one of which hated "Akiba Maid" (made the reader want to take a shower), one of which really liked it. Since, as a writer, my job is to exert a powerful reaction from my readers, whether it be negative or positive, I felt I had to go with this poem for inclusion in the journal. Besides, "Time is a Jealous Mistress" is a better poem for poetry contests. Not to say that "Akiba Maid" won't win any contests, but "Time is a Jealous Mistress" appeals more to the heartstrings than "Akiba Maid" does.

Anyway, I have revised the poem a little, and while it hasn't changed the meaning significantly, I think it has clarified the relationship between the patrons and the maids:

Akiba Maid

She walks through the streets

With its shouting hawkers,

Video game music,

And otaku stalkers.

She arrives for work

Dressed in white lace,

Frilly undergarments,

Black shoes, a cute face,

To cheer up customers

After a long day

Of work, or whatever

It is that they play.

Sometimes she performs,

Sometimes she serves drinks,

Sometimes she just talks

To faces turned pink,

Flushed with excitement

Interacting with a girl

Who's not on a screen,

In a book, or magazine.

Yet created by men

Out of 2-D girls,

These women exist

In a real fantasy world.

The original poem, as well as "Time is a Jealous Mistress," can be found in my previous blog, which should appear below this one.