Zen-in Offers: How-to

DIY: Ribon Zen-in Send-in Offers

The general steps hold true for any manga zenin offer, but some publishers(eg. Hakusensha) don't allow foreign send-ins or stamps. Nakayoshi does though!
Info on the current zenin offer from Ribon(Feb-Mar 2001!).

Steps Address Slip Offer Ticket Send-in Envelope
More About Payment & Stamps Cutoff Date Currency Converter

General Info
Address Slip and Ticket-Where They Are:
For Ribon offers, you must use the envelope that comes with that Ribon for the offer. It will come in the furoku for the offer month(if it's a one month offer), and the second month(if it's a two month offer). There will always be pictures of the current zenin offer from Ribon in the first few pages of the magazine, in the colour pages. Here they will show what you can get, and it also has the page number of the address slip and ticket(if there is one). If you can't find it, look in the pages after the first story. For example, if the first story is Random Walk and the second is GALS!, the address slip/ticket/instructions page will be somewhere in between the end of Random Walk and before GALS!.

Money:
A lot of people have trouble figuring out what kind of stamps to put in, how much, etc. For Ribon offers, you can use stamps from your own country! You do not have to get Japanese stamps. Shueisha says that as long as you have an amount equal to 450Y, or whatever the amount is, they will send the present to you. So, for example, if the offer is for 450Y, you convert that amount into your own currency below, and then put that amount(or a little more to be safe) in stamps from your country into the envelope. I usually put an extra 100Y or so worth more of stamps in to be sure. This will be on the address slip page. Usually it's around 400-500Y. Technically you only have to send what it is in your currency, BUT, if you want to be sure that this service will still be available to foreigners in the future, I would suggest you put in at least a dollar more. Is it not worth that much at least? And there have been magazines which stopped this service because it wasn't profitable. If you still have questions, put it on the Zenin Help Forum.(you have to be a member of ezboard to post)

Cutoff Date:
If you're wondering how long you can send it in for, the date will be on the same page as the Address Slip, under the title 'Shimekiri'. Usually the offer is guaranteed until the next Ribon comes out, ie. about a month. That is, if the envelope comes with the November issue, you have until the day the December issue comes out to send it in. You can still send it in after that date, but you are not guaranteed to get it. Remember, since Ribon comes out a month before its numbered month, the cutoff date will be the beginning of the issue's month. This sounds really confusing, so here's an example: If the offer was in the December Ribon, you have until the start of December to send it in. Sounds weird, but there you go, that's life for you^_^

Steps
You don't have to go in this order, but just to make things easier, this is how I do it.

1. Fill in the Address Slip in the magazine and cut out.
2. Cut out the Ouboken for the first month.
3. Paste First Month Ouboken into empty space on Offer Ticket, and fill in number on Offer Ticket.
4. Put Address Slip, Ouboken, and stamps into Offer Envelope.
5. Fill out Offer Envelope Back.
6. Put stamps on Offer Envelope Front. Write 'JAPAN' on Offer Envelope Front, and send!

If there's something you don't understand, or I haven't explained very well, ask me at the Zenin Help Forum.

Address Slip
(at the front of the magazine,
where they show all the presents,
the page number where this is
will be written)

1. Your address
Notes: The boxes at the top are for the postal code, but we don't usually put it before the address, so I don't think you need to fill it in. I recommend writing your address in sideways, so it fits easily. Don't forget to put your country on it, because this sheet is what they stick on the envelope with the goodies in it. Write it in English, so that when it gets back to your country the post office understands it.

2. Your name
Notes: You can write this sideways as well. The character at the bottom (-sama) is a name suffix, like -kun or -san, don't worry about it. Write this in English too(as opposed to katakana).

3. Your guardian(s)'s name
Notes: I always put myself, because I'm an adult. When I do this, I put
(Excuse the messiness) This is 'honnin' and just means the same person that is sending the request in.

4. Phone number
Notes: It's hard to fit everything in here, but just write small. The country code for Canada and the US is 011, so you can write 011-area code-phone number.

5. Which present you want
Notes: This is from an old offer, which had three presents to choose from. You just circle the number of the present you want, they'll be numbered at the front of the magazine with pictures so it's easy to figure out.

6. Your grade
Notes: If you're in high school, put the 'high' kanji (takai or kou), and 1, 2, or 3 after it. I would go by Japanese school grades, where Grade 10 is kou 1, 11 kou 2, and 12 kou 3. If you're in university, you can put the 'big' kanji (dai) and what year you're in after it. I guess if you're not in school anymore, you can leave it blank.

2 Month Offer Ticket
(Ouboken)

For Two Month Offers:
This will be on the same page as the address slip, in the corner somewhere. For this particular present, you need two tickets, which is why there are two boxes. The middle box(with the stars) is the ticket from the magazine that it is in, and you have to paste another one in the top box from the other month's Ribon. It says "Put the ticket from Feb Ribon or Feb Ribon Original here"-this one is old.
In the empty bottom box, you have to write the number of the present you want.

For One Month Offers:
There is no ticket for one month offers, you only have to send in the address slip.

The Send-In Envelope

This will come in the furoku of the Ribon, and is only good for the offer of that issue. If the offer is of two months Ribon, it will come in the furoku of the second month.

Envelope Front(right--->)
The address you can leave as it is, but add 'Japan' so it gets there. In space A, use as much postage as needed to send it to Japan.

Envelope Back(<---left)
As with the Address Slip
1. Your address(in English)
2. Your name(in English)
3. Your guardian(s)'s name
4. Your phone number
5. Which present you want

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