1. What drives you to create stories?

I love drawing characters, and for every character I draw I want to know their story… which gets me to explore their story. Some stories are so interesting to me that I want to keep writing, because I want to know what the characters will do and feel.

2. What inspired the story published on Chronicles?

I had a dream about one scene in the story. It was so vivid, so when I woke up I wanted to know who the character was, what the situation was, and how it came to be the situation. So I had my imagination run wild and… became the story Flame and the River.

3. Describe your process for creating a character, including what you start with, what inspires you, and what challenges you.

I always aim for simplicity (if I make manga for all of them, I will be the one drawing them, so I don’t want to make the designs too complicated…), but also recognizable (even if the character is drawn in different styles). 

I base their looks on their personality, their culture, their relationship to the characters around them, and what I intend the characters to be in the story. Certain looks and design features convey different impressions to the viewers, so I try to control that depending on how I want the viewers to see the characters as.

Everything about the character has some sort of role to play in the story, directly or indirectly; nothing is there “just because” The most challenging thing about creating a character for me is… finding the perfect hairstyle. Some anime and manga has crazy hairstyles that is recognizable, but only works well with the creator’s style (usually very stylized, so it’s harder to cosplay), but I want my characters’ hair to be recognizable but also make sense in reality.

I usually try out a bunch (bangs/no bangs, short/long, straight/curly, overall shapes, etc) until I find one that fits the character.

4. What tools do you use the most?

I use mostly Clip Studio Paint nowadays because it’s faster. My main purpose is to draw, the tools come second, so whatever allows me to draw easily at that time, I use. If I have time though, I like using colored mechanical pencils and alcohol markers.

Webtoon banner of the Raven Saga series

5. What kind of scenes move you the most when you’re drawing?

Depends on the story, but usually a scene I have a vivid image of. When I write a story, I have clear images of the beginning, the end, and several scenes in the middle. The middle bit is where the action is (not all literally, but where most of character growths, relationship developments, and reveals is).

Drawing the characters’ emotions during those scenes is what I love the most.

6. Your main sources of inspiration right now:

My story this time is set in a world inspired by the Celts and the Arabian Nights, so anything Celtic and Middle Eastern. But it’s a fantasy, so I also take inspirations from movies (like Lord of the Rings, Aladdin, etc).

Chihiro coloring an illustration with OLO Markers

9. How do you deal with work stress and creative blocks?

Take a break. Watch a movie or a show, read, hang out with friends and family, etc.

I have a friend who knows the struggles, so I vent out to her sometimes, but also just talk about random things as we sit in a bookstore cafe.

10. Describe one of your typical workdays. Do you have any rituals to help you immerse yourself in the creative process? Is there a specific place or type of music that helps you?

I have kids, so it depends on whether it’s a school day, weekend, or during the break.

School day: I take my kids to school and my husband to work, and start my work day after I come back. I’m the type of person that is hard to get into things when I know I have to go somewhere later, so unfortunately I can’t get as much things done as I would like to during the day when the kids are in school… And once they are back I help out with their homework, so my real work day that I can fully concentrate on starts after picking up my husband from work and eating dinner. He takes over with the kids, but because night time is when I can concentrate the most, I tend to stay up late.

Weekend: My husband takes over with the kids from morning, so I’m in the full concentrate mode from early on, so I’ll be working pretty much all day on the weekends. When I need break, we either go out as a family (or with the kids one at a time), or we just stay and lazy around the house.

Break: We stick to a routine so the kids don’t just lazy around, and also makes it easier for me to get work done. My husband takes the car so I don’t have to worry about pick ups, so while the kids do their workbooks and reading, I’m in the full concentrate mode for most of the day.

I usually put a show or a movie on when I work – either something I’ve seen before, or something I don’t have to use too much of my concentration for. Right now I have “Alfred Hitchcock Presents” on while I work. As long as someone isn’t constantly talking to me to break my concentration, I can get into my concentration mode anywhere and any time.