I've been meaning to do some general posts about manga and publishing and I thought that a good place to start would be with some answers to some of the questions I usually get when I tell people I'm writing manga scripts.
What is Manga?
Manga are Japanese comics. In Japan they are generally published in magazines, and then later collected as books. In recent years, english translations of the books have been appearing in bookstores, where they've been a raging success.
What is OEL Manga?
Original English Language Manga. This is manga created by english speakers for an english speaking audience. The line between OEL manga and graphic novels is a bit blurry at times, but manga has it's own sensibility, tropes and motifs that make it quite distinct from American comics and in general, OEL manga is true to the spirit of manga, even when the art style varies. A really good example of what I'm talking about is Re:Play by C. Lijewski. Her art style is unique, but the story is pure shojo -- go check it out, it's great.
More to come (such as What is Shojo?) Please post your own questions in the comments section and I'll do my best to answer 'em. And if you think I've got something wrong, let me know that too.
Definitions would be good. . . especially definitions of the Japanese words like Shonen-ai (sp?) and the different variations of manga.
Posted by: Traci | January 13, 2007 at 03:13 PM