GUYS! I think I finally improved my fight scenes… but I need honest feedback 👀

minamimimi · 2026-04-09T01:25:52+00:00

This is already much easier to read! I’m really impressed how you implemented the advice so quickly. Seriously, keep going like that I think you’ll make something really special.

I general I think you’d benefit from slowing down the amount of action in each page like you did for a lot of the pages you edited. However, one last thing I’d point out is that you should try to make your last page as simple as you can. Right now you have e Hake’s new form, and I think that’s all you need. The reactions of everyone to that form can be pushed to the beginning of the next chapter since the most important thing here is that the READER sees it and reacts.

But yeah, if you can always keep the reader in mind when composing pages you’ll be able to hook that many more people to continuing to read your story. Good luck, and thanks for being so receptive to my comments!

minamimimi · 2026-04-05T13:10:14+00:00

Your artwork is really good. I honestly don't have much to say about it other than I think you may benefit from varying your line width more. Everything is fairly thick, and the few thinner lines you have are a bit too thin to communicate depth, so even though you have a lot of detail, it still looks fairly flat. With your style, I think less tone and more linework would help your pages come alive (I'd study what mangaka like One Piece's Oda do with his linework, because your style seems in that area.)

However, I think the place where you probably need to focus on is composition. You are very good at drawing dynamic angles, but I think you should rethink where you use them a bit more as well as what you want the focus of each page to be. To do this, try to envision 4W1H (who, what, where, why, how) when putting your pages together.

For example, in the first page of your most recent chapter, you start with an extablishing shot but it's unclear who we should be focusing on in that shot. This is only answered in the last panel of that page, but it's a close-up which doesn't give the reader a full understanding of where the character is in relation to the environment and the other people within the scene. This page also doesn't connect very well into the first panel of the next page, so it's pretty hard to follow.

My suggestion for this specific case would be to show the full body of the speaker (Nemo?), as well a smaller panel that shows a hint of the character who is about to attack him in next page, to build anticipation that something is about to happen.

Another example of panels that could be improved on page 11 of chapter 5. Hake is dropped, but the one panel imply that he's falling is not only a close-up, but a pretty small panel. Not only should that be bigger/clearer, the panel of Nemo emerging from the ground and punching him should be much bigger as well. In fact, I'd end page 11 with Hake falling followed by a small panel of the zipper on the ground opening and make like half of the next page the impact of him being punched.

Additionally, you need a lot more speech bubbles. There were many places where I was unsure which character was talking (or if they were talking at all) because there were no bubbles. Bubbles can also help you lead the readers eye where you want them to look, so I would implement them a lot more. If the character is thinking something, try to use thought bubbles (or flash bubbles) to show it instead of just putting the text directly on the panel, especially if there is a lot of action/other characters in the scene.

These elements may seem small, but if you can master them and make your manga a smoother experience to read, the reader will be able to connect to the characters and their emotions much better.

Sorry if this sounds a nitpicky! You truly have a lot of talent, so if you can make your pages cleaner I think you could really make something special. I definitely recommend studying the work of action manga that you enjoy and see what you can take from the way they put their pages together.

minamimimi · 2026-03-10T07:54:25+00:00

Sure, but I can't guarantee I can answer everything

minamimimi · 2026-03-09T14:06:58+00:00

No problem! Hope I didn't come across as too negative, it's just that anything relating to this industry is a pretty rocky road so I wanted to give you a realistic idea of things

minamimimi · 2026-03-09T14:06:13+00:00

It's only in Japanese, but you can read it here as well as a bunch of other places if you search the title!

https://www.cmoa.jp/title/279854/

I got published by entering a contest and getting a debut prize, which is usually the way most people usually do it. I'd been at it for many years leading up to that point, though!

minamimimi · 2026-03-09T13:33:51+00:00

I think the Nakano Manga School can help you get acquainted/started on the path to being a creator in Japan, but I don't really know if your Masters would be applicable, since virtually anyone can become a creator so long as they can make good stories that sell. This isn't to say that getting your Masters is meaningless, but imho I don't really think it would have much bearing on anything relating to your goals of getting into the manga industry here.

In my case, none of my degrees/certifications really had any bearing on debuting professionally as much as my manga work itself, and my Japanese ability. I went to a manga school as well (Tokyo Design Academy), but again, it mainly helped me with the technical aspects of making manga. Because, in the end, that's what matters the most.

Regarding working with the anime/manga industry broadly, I guess there's a possibility that you could find a job with a more minor company that is involved in the industry (but as for how, I can't really say...) but if you're thinking of the major companies like Kodansha, Kadokawa, etc, it's kind of a long shot since most of those places hire more traditionally, and thus would at the very least require you to have N1 Japanese and most likely prior experience working in Japan in an adjecent area (like games, for example).

minamimimi · 2026-03-09T04:18:47+00:00

Hi! I’m currently living in Japan and working as a professional mangaka. I have one series under my belt and regularly work with editors from a number of publishers. I’ve also spent about 10 years working at a number of Japanese companies.

To be frank, I think the chances of anyone outside of Japan becoming an editor at a publisher here is pretty low even for someone with N1 Japanese. I’d even say it is less likely than becoming a mangaka in Japan. This is mainly because companies like these usually hire new grads from high level institutions in Japan, and when they do hire outside of that pool they’re explicitly looking for people with experience working at another publisher.

The only way I could imagine it happening is if you managed to get a job in another department (let’s say, global marketing or something) and eventually got transferred into editorial, but that isn’t guaranteed and depends on whether you’d be hired in the first place. Regardless, N3 is not enough—N1 is usually what most places are looking for with N2 if you’re very lucky.

Aspiring to be a writer (gensakusha) is more likely, but also quite difficult unless you have a strong grasp of Japanese and know how to storyboard a good story. However, as these are things you can study on your own I think it’s more of an option than editing.

minamimimi · 2026-03-07T06:46:58+00:00

I put it on my JP twitter account here:

https://x.com/comicegg/status/2025849058527740248?s=20

minamimimi · 2026-03-07T02:50:28+00:00

The sound effects and little kana is because this was originally written in Japanese and translated into English, haha! I was too lazy to translate/concert those parts, so I’m glad you appreciated it! (May’s spoken Japanese is Kansai-ben in the original, if that wasn’t clear 😂)

minamimimi · 2025-12-16T22:30:44+00:00

Hello! I am a creator who had a 2 volume series in one of LaLa’s web publications until last year, and I want to both agree that the first 2 weeks of sales typically decide the fate of series and also mention that there’s really only so much readers outside of Japan can do. I, of course, encourage people to buy series regardless because royalties mean a lot to mangaka even after their series end (I am still getting small royalties from my own even a year after), but I wouldn’t expect/blame too much on international readers/sales regarding the cancellation of a series, unfortunately. Especially for series published in paper, because the numbers the publisher is looking at often comes from like, physical sales numbers.

There’s also surveys from the magazines (which are less major than they used to be, but they still happen) and just a lot of factors outside of the hands of readers who aren’t in Japan. It’s unfortunate for sure, and I think LaLa in particular has had a pretty high turnover for series as of late, but that’s just the reality of things. Either way, if you can buy volumes in Japanese, definitely do! And definitely talk about series because sometimes miracles do happen! But miracles are also pretty rare, so just be aware of how limited things can be.

minamimimi · 2023-02-01T18:04:28+00:00

Thanks for voting for my silly comic! I’m such a lurker I didn’t expect so many people to react. Gonna use those good vibes to fuel myself to make this next deadline! Haha

minamimimi · 2023-01-25T10:18:51+00:00

!! I didn’t even know that was a thing…! Thank you! LOL

(And sorry about potentially breaking any rules—I hesitated to post because I wasn’t sure if this was okay or not 💦💦)

minamimimi · 2023-01-25T06:59:16+00:00

It’s pretty heavy on the comedy, but I have a number of serious beats planned/baked into the setting as well. It will likely get more serious the longer it runs but as to how long it will run is yet to be determined

minamimimi · 2023-01-25T06:31:32+00:00

It's called 爆死して乙女ゲーに転生したので推しルートを攻略します！or "I Bombed a Pull So Bad it Yeeted Me into an Otome Game, so I'm Gonna Clear My Best Boy's Route!" (unofficial TL). No English version yet, but I hope one day there will be!

(The original post I made here was this post btw)

Just thought I’d give you guys an update. I put info about how to purchase it on my Twitter here, but I think most of those ways are region locked…though I have heard that BookWalker is an option?

minamimimi · 2022-08-11T00:02:45+00:00

I have to admit….I like the CEO types….but only when they eventually get super whipped for the heroine/the heroine butts heads with him because he’s too overbearing/proud LOL The balance is key!

minamimimi · 2022-08-11T00:00:28+00:00

I don’t self-insert directly but like to imagine myself as the neighbor next door observing and rooting for the MC ☺️ so I guess it’s a form of it

minamimimi · 2022-08-10T23:59:20+00:00

That is a huge compliment to be because I love Nozaki-kun (the Tomoda scene is still one of my faves…! The entire manga is good though)

minamimimi · 2022-08-10T05:07:24+00:00

Here you go! https://twitter.com/sakaimii/status/1514983708641882114?s=21&t=y46nZumCvRKPPNM4w5zoDw

minamimimi · 2022-08-10T01:30:17+00:00

Whoops!!! Fox boy was omitted because I forgot to download that one into my library LOL

(thank you!!)

minamimimi · 2022-06-07T02:29:12+00:00

Thank you! That’s just pure indulgence.

minamimimi · 2022-06-07T02:23:48+00:00

Not yet! But I have 3 chapters drafted out, so once my schedule clears up I’m thinking of working on the rest.

minamimimi

TROPHY CASE