Welcome to Gaia! ::

Everyone needs help right?
i'm opening this fourm for the sake of all us rising manga-ka who needs help or advice... like me?
come on pro's share your advice and help us beginners get up there.
raise your hand if you need help!

OMG I need so much help sad sad sad I don't even know Japanese! And I'm NOT Japanese! Is there any help for me??????

i have a dream too, it is to eat japan

t he whole country,how do i do this plz give advice

Haha, I want to read it~ Since my real name is Yumi. biggrin
But I dunno if you can show it to Japan yet...haha. Yeah. In order to be a manga-ka, you definitely probably have to go to Japan, unless you're going to be an American-based manga-ka. You can browse around for some manga publishing companies (e.g. Shojo Beat, Shonen Jump) online and see if they'll accept you...

But if anything's for sure, it's this.

You'd better know how to read AND write Japanese FLUENTLY. While speaking English is cool and all, it's even COOLER if what you're drawing is in their native tongue. What if some French dude just came over to America and started publishing comics in French? Would you really be able to enjoy the comic to its full extent?

So before even worrying about publishing, worry about learning the language. You got that down? Assess your talent. While it's cruel to say this, it'd be best if you at least went to an art school first. Why? Because if not, it's like hiring a self-proclaimed 'artist' off the street. Sure, you might have some talent, but you might as well fine tune it before applying. Plus, there is a TON of competition out there. You want to become a manga-ka? SO DOES A LOT OF TEENS OVER IN JAPAN. It's not as simple as waking up and getting on a plane to apply. It's work, tears, sweat, pain, and sacrifice - plus lack of hygiene, sleep, and (in some cases) family controversy. (Even more tears and pain.) And, sadly to say, I think that Japan would have priority over their native-borns than the Americans coming in from...well, America. Japan isn't America. Even I, as a Japanese-Korean-American, am worried about this, even if my father is a full Japanese and his father was an official there. So, think about that. (Not trying to be mean~) A lot of things are different here, and a lot of things are different there; that's another thing to consider. Are you okay with having to use a completely different currency? Are you okay with speaking a very different language? Living by a different standard? Having few, if any, acquaintances? It's basically like uprooting a tree - everything's going to be different, from the air quality to the soil.

My advice to you: Think about this. A LOT. biggrin It might just be better to stay over in America. Not trying to discourage you, like I said, this is just my advice. You would probably have a better chance (though, with all the people hoping to become a manga-ka, you still would have quite a bit of competition...so seriously consider art school. Although they say that you can become a manga-ka's assistant first, it can still take a while for you to be able to start your own manga...then you'd have to hire your own assistants...).
> biggrin So good luck, everybody! Hope all aspiring manga-ka's read this thread!
And if any of this info is wrong...well, just feel free to criticize...