Question 1 -
On your journal, you state that the Make5Wishes manga is "written
specifically for the Japanese and Korean markets" and it's a "young adult horror story aimed at the 15 to 17 year old market" similar to how horror is done in Asia. My question is, how does making an Asian Styled Horror story work when the manga is being published in the US?

Well, first off, it’s being published in Asia as well. The US publication was secondary. But in answer to your question, it was a fine line to walk. As I said, I really did write this for the Asian market, whose pop-culture I consume a great deal of, but at the same time, I’m a westerner. I don’t pretend to be anything different. And my work reflects a western sense of narrative. I think this Avril piece has the heart and tone of Hakase Mizuki’s work (whom I love, and whose “The Demon Ororon” I did the English adaptation for), but it’s more grounded in reality then her wonderful work. So really what you have is a western tragedy infused with and informed by Eastern elements.

Is there much of a fan base for such horror stories among 15 to 17 year olds?

I don’t know. We’ll see. I think American kids will dig it. It’ll take them by surprise. It’s a slow burn. The first volume just builds up our characters and firmly establishes context. In the second volume we start really bringing the roof down on our poor protagonist.

Is this going after the same audience that watches the US remakes of the Ring and the Grudge?

Not really. It’s not that kind of horror. I personally don’t enjoy those remakes anyway. And to be quite honest I’m not even a big fan of the Japanese “Ring”. If we’re talking cinema, I’m really more of a Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Takashi Miike sort of guy. But again, these are hard comparisons, because I really downplay the supernatural in this comic (though it’s obviously present).

Also, if the manga is different and a horror manga, then why isn't the manga being marketed as such?

I can’t say. I’m not the one behind the marketing push. That’s out of my hands. You guys saw the web teaser that House of Parlance put up. That’s really more representative of the book. One good thing about this is that at least readers will be taken by surprise when it starts to get really dark in the second volume. That’s kind of a cool thing. I should refrain from calling it a horror comic. It’s really more of a dark tragedy.

Avril Lavigne has been called "anti-pop pop" and her "difference" is a big part of the marketing of her. Do you know why they're not pushing the manga being "different"?

No, I don’t.

Question 2 -
With the new trend of English Based Manga or Global Manga, there's been somewhat of a backlash from some readers that state that it isn't manga at all. What are you're opinions about this?

That’s an interesting question, because it’s basically about semantics. The word manga technically means “comics” or “whimsical pictures”. That’s it. Because language is a living thing, the word has since come to be descriptive of a certain artistic style. A mixture of Japanese woodblock work with “foreign art styles”. So that’s what Manga has come to mean today. Based on that, to say that manga not made in Japan is not manga is the same as saying Jazz music (which originated in the United States, from a combination of African slave field hollering, Wolof music theory and European folk music) made in Japan is not Jazz, when it clearly is. In fact some world-class jazz has come out of Japan. Or take the Yoshida Brothers, sometimes they play their shamisens very much like rock guitars, they are following the chords, the structures and the tempo of Rock n’ Roll. Is that Rock n’ Roll? Of course it is! People who hold that argument don’t seem to have a very fluid understanding of the way artistic styles and memes travel across the global consciousness. Eventually the cultural specifics of all artistic movements are lost so that they can take their place on the world stage. That’s just the way of things. Cross-pollination of art is a good thing.

Question 3 -
How did you get invovled in doing a Avril Lavigne manga?

The artist, Camilla D'errico, told House of Parlance that I was the writer she wanted to work with. And after a phone conversation House of Parlance was convinced I was their man.

Are you a fan of hers?

I don’t own any of Avril’s albums, and I hadn’t heard any of her music before I was offered the gig. But I do like that she’s a woman who doesn’t use her body to sell her self. I think that’s admirable. I have a daughter, and I think Avril is a better role model than virtually every other female pop star in existence right now. So yeah, I’m a fan of her in that regard. But you know, I’m an older guy, I was coming into consciousness when punk was Black Flag, Dead Kennedys, Circle Jerks, Fear and early Butthole Surfers, so there’s a bit of a generation gap there as far as the music goes.

Were you asked to pitch a story by House of Parlance? Were you
shopping a story around and it was fixed to fit in Avril Lavigne?

I was asked to pitch. I pitched 9 stories and Camilla pitched one of her own that I tweaked. Avril chose Camilla’s story and I wrote it.

Question 4 -
I'm sure you've gotten the question before, but is there any advice or tips you can give for aspiring comic creators trying to make it in the industry?Any magic trick or secert passwords? :)

Yeah, three things…

First, if you want to be an artist, draw everyday. If you want to be a writer, write every day. Draw/write in a journal, on napkins, on your walls with crayons. I don’t care… just do it. Do it every single day.

The second thing is, explore work outside of your influences. If you love Japanese comics, take some time to look at some French comics. Go to a gallery and look at some modernist work. If you like to read mainstream horror, try picking up an Emily Bronte novel. Or a Toni Morrison book. The trick here is to find inspiration inside of everything, to never let your creative well run dry and to bring something new to the work you’re doing. Something that makes you valid and interesting and unique. I know quite a few artists who, outside of their influences, are not well-rounded people and they suffer in the long run, as does their work.

Finally, get published. It’s hard to do, and I’m not trying to be flippant. But self-publish if you have to (and most of you will). I don’t care if it’s photocopying zines at Kinko’s. Get it in print, because nothing will make you grow faster than realizing that the whole world can see your crappy work. Your friends and your family will only be impressed, you have to stand naked in front of strangers and have them laugh at you if you want to grow.

**********************************

Let me just say one last thing about this project, I’ve been reading your boards and I see a lot of negativity aimed at our book. I understand that. I’m not very trustworthy of big corporations trying to make a buck on artistic movements either. I don’t begrudge anybody his or her opinion in regards to that. If in good conscience you can’t support this book, cool, I get it.

But let me just say this. Manga has become a commodity in the states. This is the natural order of things. And so, the dictates of capitalism demand that corporations swoop in. Now here’s the thing, you can have people who don’t care write these books that a whole generation of young readers will have as their first contact with manga, and comics in general, or you can have people who love stories, who care about the work and who are going to do the best they can to make it good write and draw these things.

Camilla and I and the whole awesome team at House of Parlance made this book with love, and it’s much better than it’s being made out to be.

It is not a cheesy story about a little girl who becomes a better person, or whatever else you’re being told. It’s about what it means to be alone. And the horrible, horrible things people who are twisted by loneliness do to each other. In the words of our protagonist, “People hurt people, that’s just what they do.” And that’s what this manga is all about.

If you have a problem with Avril because of her corporate affiliations or her music or whatever, that’s cool. But just know that she let us do pretty much whatever we wanted to do (we kept it PG13). Editorial control was few and far between. And I respect her and her people greatly for that. So you can bash it for a lot of things, but this is not the canned corporate crap you’re making it out to be. The creative people involved worked very hard on it and we all dearly, deeply love Hana… or sad, sad little protagonist.

If you want to come spit on me, or whatever, I’ll be at the New York Comic Con at the end of February and then in Seattle for the Emerald Con at the end of March.

Peace All! May your birds forever be in flight and your heart never be a latchkey child,

Joshua Dysart