Another UK manga artist interview, this time with Nana Li (otherwose known as ~fuurin)

Nana won the UK RSoM 3 with her entry T Times. She also was one of the winners of NEO's 2007 manga competition, and she was in the Mammoth Book of Best New Manga 2 with "Another Summers Day"

This interview was conducted by ~camisicado We hope you enjoy it!

Nana Li's website - Nana Realm


1. [An obvious question, but an important one] How, why and when did you get into anime/manga?

I started drawing manga when I was 15 for a few reasons, primarily a Chinese CLAMP manga which I had received from a friend which I fell in love with, and also the realisation of the existence of Elfwood. There wasn't much anime or manga around in Sweden when I was young so I think I got into it a bit late.
I'm kind of funny in that I started copying manga imagery before I had even read any of it (I can't read traditional Chinese so that CLAMP manga remains unread 'til this day ^^) or watched anime (apart from a few episodes of Pokemon which were hard to miss but I didn't realise it was called anime). It was the aesthetics about manga that appealed to me at first.


2. When did you feel the urge to start drawing yourself and when did it become more then a hobby to you?

I guess the previous answer covers most of it. It became more than a hobby when I realised that it could be more than a hobby. Art, and something as niche as manga, never seemed like a viable career to me back in my little town in Sweden but coming to the UK broadened my views.


3. What would you say your main influences are, artisticly and in terms of writing?

In the past, CLAMP and Tohru Azumi were some of my earliest big influences, but gradually my tastes have broadened. I think the more you get into it, the more you learn to appreciate other types of art. Nowadays I get inspired by every other artist I see, it's horrible really because I don't know where to start learning. XD
As far as writing goes I'm quite embarrassed to say that I don't really have any influences since I'm not really a writer, but it's something I'm working on. I'm still trying to work out what kind of stories I want to tell so I think I'll do some experimenting in the future.


4. What would you descirbe your own art style as?

Style is hard to define for me. Like many people directly influenced by manga early on, I think I had somewhat of a style crisis some time back since I like so many different artists. I was getting confused about where I wanted to take my own style.
I still don't know if I can pinpoint my style but I think a good way to help you find your style is to find a purpose for your art (i.e. if you like to tell shonen stories your style should serve to tell that story effectively). I'm only starting to find a purpose for my own art through telling stories rather than just drawing pin-ups.
In general, I like to draw things that are beautiful and visually interesting. Also my style is very much manga influenced, I know that's vague but that's about all I can say for sure.


5. How much work does it take to put together a "Rising Stars of Manga" Entry?

I was lucky enough in having about 2 months fully free to do it in, which was a decent amount of time. I didn't really have to stress too much, and even managed to squeeze out another small 5-page comic during that time. It depends on how fast you work. I'm still pretty slow at drawing comics so having plenty of time was good. Like with most projects, if you make little deadlines and plan how much you need to get done every day, the task becomes a lot more manageable.


6. Do you have any tips and tricks for people eager to enter the next RSoMs?

The last sentence above is good to keep in mind I think. If it's your first time drawing a comic you might not know how fast you can work need, so it's a good idea to leave a bit extra room at the end.
You'll hear this a lot, but don't attempt to bite off more than you can chew. Sometimes the simplest stories are the most efficient, given only 20 pages. Also, choose a story that you like, not just what you'll think others will like. That way you'll be able to have more fun drawing it, which shows in the end result I think.


7. How did it feel when you found out you'd won the grand prize?

Hahaha... O____________________O


8. What's the best and worst thing about being a manga/anime artist in the UK?

Hmm... I'm not really professional yet so I can't say that much about working as a manga/comic artist on a daily basis. I think UK has a larger scene than where I'm from Sweden, which is great since it means more opportunities.
Maybe a slight negative, not relating to UK specifically but with being a western "manga artist" in general, is that sometimes there can be pressure on your work because it's too "manga" or "not manga enough". It's probably because manga is still a foreign concept, but I think it's getting better as more and more people start to get to know manga as simply being entertaining comics with nice aesthetics and cool pacing, without all the baggage of it needing to be Japanese attached.


9. Do you prefer Critical Acclaim or Popularity?

Haha tough one... if I need the money - maybe popularity, but I'm going to chicken out and say preferably both, as long as I can draw things I enjoy.


10. Do you have any last words/advice?

Eat your veggies!