How to be a Manga Artist

The ultimate guide for aspiring artists with a love of manga, taking readers through the complete creative and professional process, from spark of inspiration to publication.
Following How to Draw a Graphic Novel, Balthazar Pagani returns, joined by manga expert Asuka Ozumi, to demystify the process of creating manga, from the creative spark that inspires a story, to what it's like to work in a professional manga studio.
Featuring the work of Italian manga illustrator Silvia Vanni, and told from the point of view of two young manga fans, How to be a Manga Artist delivers a blend of professional advice and practical tips to guide aspiring creators, including how to construct a compelling narrative, develop characters your readers will fall in love with, and the basics of printing, digital file set-up, and self-promotion.
How to be a Manga Artist also includes a specially commissioned chapter by renowned Japanese illustrator Fumio Obata - who encourages readers to look beyond the aesthetics of manga and to put themselves into the story to develop a style that is entirely original and true to them - as well as biographies of famous manga artists, definitions of key Japanese terms, and a list of must-read cult classics.

Balthazar Pagani is the founder of BesideBooks, based in Milan. He produced the Graphic Lives series of graphic novels and is the author of How to Draw a Graphic Novel. Asuka Ozumi is a Japanese translator, editorial consultant and an expert on manga, based in Italy. She is a lecturer at the University of Turin. Fumio Obata is a Japanese graphic novelist and illustrator based in London. He is the author of Just So Happens. Silvia Vanni is a comic artist and illustrator based in Italy. She is one of few European illustrators commissioned to draw manga for Japanese publishers.