About the author

My name is Anna and I will soon graduate from the Savannah College of Art and Design with a B.F.A. in Sequential Art. I have loved manga since I was about 9 years old. The visual style, storytelling style and open-mindedness of it all captured my imagination, and I took great influence from artists such as Naoko Takeuchi, Yuu Watase and Rumiko Takahashi. Such influences are visible in my art even today.

Through my years at SCAD I worked hard to develop a style and a versatility that took me away from manga if the situation called for it. I studied anatomy, storytelling, the art of background and environment design and character design. I had all the tools I needed to succeed, but I recently hit a roadblock.

The death of Tokyopop manga in the U.S.A. has made publishers lose faith in manga. They say it was a fad that has since died. They tell me I'm not Japanese, so why am I drawing in this style? They say manga art is unappealing... This widespread attitude is unacceptable. Why is it that in Europe, 1/3 of all comic book sales is manga? Why can they take native artists and let them draw in that style without a second look? As long as the story and characters are compelling, why the aversion towards manga?

My best friend Sofia and I are on a mission to bring manga back to the Americas, and you all can help. The first step in getting Original English Language (OEL) manga to work over here is to start supporting the artists that have already made it. We have all picked up a title, only to see a Westerner's name on the cover, grimace, and put it back. Artists like Heidi Arnold, Amy Reeder, and Svetlana Chmakova worked hard and broke through this impossible industry, and if you even want to think about getting your own work published over here, we all need to respect them and see them as business models. They are all gifted artists and writers!

Sofia had a plan since she started working on her own manga that once she made a name for herself, she would create a publishing company that exclusively publishes OEL manga. Since she came from Mexico, we would publish in Spanish too. It was a great idea, I thought, but why wait? Sofia and I are planning to get a kickstarter up for our company by the end of the summer, and WE WANT YOU to submit your art. We want to publish YOUR original manga. PLEASE contact us, ask us questions, we would LOVE to hear about your stories!

What do we post on this blog?
We'll upload our own work, progress and inspiration, relevant news and other tidbits. We'll also post anything you submit to us regarding your own manga! Give us your character designs, stories, artwork and inspiration! We'll refrain from posting any fanart, unless it's doujinshi, which is also commendable!

Please submit your art! Please support us! Keep working hard~!

Our personal websites:
Missamerikka.deviantart.com
elenath.deviantart.com

May 28, 2011

Cool Tutorials!

pinklikeme suggested some cool tutorials to post while Sofi and I are busy with finals~

Enjoy!

Tracy Butler’s Lackadaisy Expressions

Sister Claire tutorial on Character Design

Ecthelian’s tutorial on coloring with Copic Markers

Filed under tutorial manga