Newsarama has a rather terse interview with Dave Cheung, creator of Chugworth Academy, which has been picked up as a webcomic and now a print manga by Seven Seas. According to Dave, Chugworth started as hentai but he thought the characters could do better so he “promoted” it. He notes that he keeps the rights to the characters (not a given in the mangaworld) and perhaps burns a bridge or two with this comment:
Working for TOKYOPOP is somewhat akin to working in an Indonesian Sweat Shop, or so I hear. Anyway, various people who I shall not name have approached me before, but their offers were nothing short of a joke.
On the TokyoSpace blogs, carolynwuf talks about what she likes in shounen manga, and I think it tracks pretty well what I like in shounen manga. Like fights that end quickly, leaving room for character development. Yes! That’s actually one of the things I liked about Otogi Zoshi. Carolyn also talks about series that go on too long, such as Inu Yasha.
What I like to see the most is a real effort by the mangaka to have developed a complete story outline from the start. I want to be able to read back in the story and see how hints or clues were given (dare I use the term foreshadowing?). I don’t want an epic plotline to feel like it was slapped together somewhere around chapter 50
Yes! My daughter is up to volume 18 of Inu Yasha but I haven’t gotten into it at all, mainly because I’m afraid of just what Carolyn is talking about. I’ve been noticing a lot of two- and three-volume series lately and wondering if that isn’t the best way to go.
Go!Comi’s Audry Taylor is at Comiket, and she’s blogging about it.
I went to Summer Comiket today and felt suffocated by the heat, as usual. The roasted scent of thousands of excited fans is unmistakeable. I made sure to bring water and a carry-on bag with wheels so that I wouldn’t break my back carrying around all the delicious dojinshi I bought. It gets tastier every year — mmm! Today I got to browse through Full Metal Alchemist, Gankutsuou, One Piece, BLEACH, Gundam Wing, and lots of other parodies. There was even an artist selling little pink panties with wicked little chibis on them!
I know without doing research that RSOM “winners” are not getting paid tons. In fact, winning that damn thing is just the beginning and offers an entryway into comics that was not there for them without the contest. TP found them, gave them a outlet to promote themselves and therefore reap the benefits. The creators reap the benefits… of being a cartoonist.
Thin of it this way, how much would you pay not to be a accountant? Life’s tough
Glad to see you giving carolynwuf’s blog a shout-out! She’s one of my favorite bloggers on the Tokyopop space, and her postings have pointed me to a few titles that I might have overlooked.