Night night sketch.

A sketch before I go to sleep xD

SKETCH DUMP!

Here are some silly doodles I did today.... always a good way to break out in a slump xD

Words and influences

Thought I’d blog on here and I’ll copy this to my other things to lol There has been alot of talk lately online in forums about the term “Manga” what it means ect… I am not really going into too much of that other than my own personal thoughts on this word and the influence it has on my work. This is going to be a bit of a rambling one hahaha sorry.

I suppose I should start in the beginning *que epic music!* .

I have had a Japanese pen friend since I was 13. We still talk and are very much good friends, I was introduced to manga through her. I suppose it happened all at once really as at the same time we had Pokemon and Digimon hitting out T.V’s, Sailor moon ect. It was the boom of Anime in the UK. I wasn’t introduced to manga right away mind you. It was a good year or so after writing that I was introduced to it. I was given ONE PIECE Volume 1 for my Birthday, this was years before it was ever popular over hear. Volume 1 had just come out in Japan at the time. Then I was hooked and it went from that to Sailor Moon and Cardcaptor Sakura and Dragon ball, Slayers and Orphen. 

Back then it was huge, I was young and so for me as an artist I was visually inspired and started drawing in that style. I look back now and in some ways regret it. As it put a hold on me developing. I would do all the things I hate now, draw in a stereotypical style, set comics in Japan even though I had not been there and knew only a little about the culture of what I was told from my pen friend. I’m glad I grew out of it hahaha Although the interest in Japan and its culture has always been there and always will be, as I now have studied the language (not fluent but almost there) and have a better understanding of the culture from now having a network of Japanese friends. This wasn’t all from me being a manga or anime fan at all. This was all born from the innocence of a 13 year old boy writing a letter to a 14 year old girl in South Eastern Hokkaido.

I see alot of people talk about Bakuman and they learnt the comic terms from that. I knew of these terms long before Bakuman or even Death Note was out. Through the use of How to books and that. For me now those are redundant terms.  As I am not Japanese, I am not in a society that requires the use of the language or social norms everyday. I have not grown up within that history and culture either, so why would I use their terms? Now if I was speaking to a Japanese person in their own tongue, then yes I would use those terms as thats what they know. Saying to an English person though “Oh I’ll scan in and send you the Name” is bound to get a WTF back. I’d use the terms of my own country as that’s where I was brought up, thats where my home is, everything that I am as a person comes from where I reside. So why would I use the terms of another language. I actually get really annoyed when I hear English people use terms like Otaku, Kawaii, kyaaa, e~to, anou~, ~san and ~kun, ~chan. Partly because it sounds stupid and partly because half these people don’t know the language at all to understand their full use of them. They just use them because they see them in some j-drama or anime. 

Back on topic (told you i’d ramble) the term Manga for me means “Japanese comics” I’d always use that word as a term for any comic that has come out of Japan. Anything else I’d use the term Graphic novel (anything longer than 30pages) or for an issue (western numbered issues) I’d use the term comic. 

I am a manga-inspired artist, as are a lot of my friends within the small press and professional world. Yet they don’t call themselves manga artists, they call themselves Comic Artists. This for me is the correct term, I would never call myself a “Manga-ka” as I am not Japanese and I am not a Japanese comic artist working in Japan. I am influenced by Japanese comics but I am also influenced by fashion illustration, western comics, Arthur Rackham and many other artists! I see too many people emulating their favourite Manga artist and not taking that inspiration and making it their own, adding their own stamp to it. I could list artists that have been influenced by Japanese comics but taken that inspiration and made it their own, created something that I have not seen before and can recognise as that person. 

It goes back to what I said earlier about where I grew up making me what I am. It’s the same as an artist, we are all inspired visually. We all take in whats around us and channel that into our work. For me it was the same with manga/anime, marvel and DC (mainly Vertigo….. THEY ARE EPIC). I grew up with all that around me, being visually bombarded with all this western and eastern culture on my T.V screen and in my hand in the form of print. I hopefully naturally channel all that into my work hahaha  

The negativity that comes with the word manga is such a pain as well, as once someone hears the word “manga” they shut off and don’t seem interested. It’s frustrating, it is kind of hard to talk about at times but I think there needs to be some sort of change within how people talk about comics in general. Hopefully their will be a day where manga is no longer “Manga” but falls into the term of comics and is widely accepted. That a western illustrator CAN be influenced by it (as long as they not just copying) and it won’t effect their prospect of getting work or being labelled as something when they are not. 

For me the best thing I ever did was actually stop. I stopped reading manga about 3 years ago. The only Manga I read was Bakuman (funny enough haha). I never even read it in English. As someone studying the Japanese language I buy Manga in it’s native language as it helps but you get it in its full unedited force lol The comics and Graphic novels I have been reading are small press and also any comic I can get on Comixology. From Superhero based to your real life, biographical comic. Also I have gone back to reading alot of novels too. This has really helped me stylistically as I feel I have started to come away from my work looking very “manga”…. I think it’s still in there, somewhere and it will never go away but I feel my work is opening up and becoming something more. 

I’m going to end here as I feel I’ve lost what I was trying to say hahahahahaha (derpaderp) 

In all seriousness, I have no problem with someone saying they are manga influenced/inspired, as if that helps describe you then that’s fine. As I am too! What I don’t like is the terms being chucked about like its your own native language. 

Imma shut up now hahaha This is one of those things that is always best spoken about with a good group of people, over drinks (many drinks) in a good pub/bar! Anyone game? LOL