Yuricon was an anime convention geared toward fans of yuri anime and manga.[1] The first Yuricon event was held in 2003 in Newark, New Jersey with about 200 attending,[2] although Yuricon has existed as an online entity since 2000.[3] The event was organized by Yuricon, LLC., which continues to run Yuri-focused events of its own,[4] collaborates with other organizations to hold unique events,[5][6] and hosts contests.[7]
In 2000, Erica Friedman founded Yuricon on Usenet with the name of "Anilesbocon" but this was changed to Yuricon in 2003 in an effort to better "celebrate Yuri in anime and manga."[8][9] In 2003, the organization had a "three-day anime and manga convention" in Newark, New Jersey.[10] Two years later, Yuricon hosted an event in Tokyo and co-sponsored Onna!, together with the Shoujo Arts Society, which focused on women's roles in animation and comics.[10] Two years after that, in 2007, Yuricon ran a small one-day event, named Yurisai, to recreate the feel of the Tokyo event from 2005.[11] During this time period, Yuricon hosted several panels,[12]cosplay events,[13]anime music video contests, and other competitions, while Yuricon maintained a library of yuri manga for attendees to read.[14]
Some years later, in 2011, Yuricon moved to a new website.[15] The same year, the Kyoto International Manga Museum added works published by ALC Publishing, the publishing arm of Yuricon, into its permanent collection.[16] Also that year, Renbooks, an Italian publisher announced that an Italian edition of Rica 'tte Kanji!? would be published.[17] The following year, ALC Publishing announced a partnership with JManga to publish POOR POOR LIPS!,[18]Kimi no Tamenara Shineru,[19] and
three other yuri comic titles.[20] The next year, Okazu, then just a blog of Friedman, joined the domain of Yuricon[21] and ALC publishing stopped publishing new material.[8]
In later years, the webpage of the Yuricon website as a whole was improved, while the group's founder, Erica Friedman, asked for donations to ensure that Yuricon and Okazu are "on the cutting edge of Yuri Culture."[22] Later, the new-and-improved Yuricon store would be opened[23] and the page listing yuri essays would be improved.[24] Then, in May 2018, Friedman appeared at a guest panelist at AnimeNEXT in Atlantic City, NJ.[25] The following year, Yuricon joined forces with PacSet to launch a guided trip across Japan "dedicated to the Yuri genre of Japanese animation and manga," which would take place in September of that year.[26] The same year, Erica Friedman appeared at the Toronto Comic Arts Festival to celebrate 100 years of Yuri,[27] while speaking at various other events that year.[28]
In May 2020, Yuricon hosted an online panel about yuri.[29]
Yuricon has a publishing arm, ALC Publishing, the only all-yuri publisher in the world.[1] Publications include translations from the Japanese—such as Rica 'tte Kanji!? and WORKS—as well as the original English-language anthology series Yuri Monogatari.
Additionally, Friedman has run a blog titled Okazu since 2002, which she describes as the "world's oldest and most comprehensive blog" which focuses on lesbian themes in Japanese comics, cartoons, and other media.[37] Yuricon also describes Okazu as their "official" blog.[38] In 2022 essays written for Okazu, including those detailing the history of Yuricon and ALC Publishing, were published alongside Friedman's other works within By Your Side: The First 100 Years of Yuri Anime and Manga.
Yuri Monogatari (named for Nobuko Yoshiya's Hana Monogatari) is an annual anthology of yuri-themed short comics. In September 2007, Yuri Monogatari 3 was nominated for the Lambda Book Award.[39] Five Yuri Monogatari anthologies have been published, with volumes 4 and 6 currently listed in the Yuricon store.[40][41] Caroline Ryder of The Advocate called Yuri Monogatari a "must-have manga".[42]
^ ab"What is Yuricon?". Yuricon. March 3, 2012. Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
^Friedman, Erica (June 29, 2008). "Interview: Erica Friedman" (Online). Interviewed by Deb Aoki. Geeks Out. Archived from the original on August 4, 2020. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
^Friedman, Erica (August 3, 2012). "Interview With Erica Friedman (Yuricon)" (Online). Interviewed by Samantha Ferreira. Anime Herald. Archived from the original on October 9, 2020. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
^MIT Reports to the President 2002–2003 (Report). MIT. 2003. Archived from the original on August 16, 2016. Retrieved October 9, 2020. Film and WS Events..."Schoolgirls and Superheroes: Gender and Sexuality in Contemporary Japanese Animation," by Sarah Frederick (Boston University), Erica Friedman (director of Shoujoai Conferences), and Kerey Luis (Brandeis University)