FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

What is KO-MANGA Series?

KO-MANGA Series is the studio name I chose mainly in reference to my comic series. It was started around 2007, after I started both Kurokenshin and WACOT.

When did you start drawing comics?

The first comic I ever ever drew was [in my sketchbook, and only 4 pages long] back in 2004/2005. During the summer of 2005 I graduated to using ink pens on printer paper to create comics, and that was actually the first version of Kurokenshin. I drew up 26 pages, but the pages were very cluttered :/ In November 2005 I took an independent publishing course at my high school and got a handle on the 5x7 format.

How did you get into drawing/writing your own comics?

I'm not sure exactly what made me start writing (probably inspiration from all the reading I used to do), but when I was in middle school I started writing a novel series called A Turn of Fate. It was a pretty basic story about a girl who was taken to another dimension and found out that she was a princess there, haven't heard that one before right? In any case, during that same time I started to watch anime more, and I would practice drawing everyday. By highschool I was drawing more than writing, but this story was in the back of my head, so I did attempt to turn it into a comic at one point...it didn't work, but Kurokenshin did, so I guess that's how it happened.

How did you come up with the story for Kurokenshin?

Haha, to be honest, it all started with a character similar to Rika, one of the main characters, and a black sword, which I used in my InuYasha fanfiction. ...Yup, I went there back then. Those two things were my only premise when I started the comic in 2005; I didn't really plan anything out, just started drawing, and the story slowly took shape. After getting through the first few pages I realized I was actually building a story with potential- so I restarted and wrote some outlines and just kept drawing (with more direction).

What about WACOT?

WACOT also started with a sketch of the main character. I drew kira in disguise as a boy and said 'yeah, this would be hilarious'. Also, soccer was the go to sport, because I played in highschool and when I was younger (so I understood the rules! XD) I think, the other reason I came up with the story was to release all the pent up comedy that I couldn't use in Kurokenshin.

And, what about XYZ?

Uh, hm, not sure how it started. If you look at my "Other Comics" you'll see I've experimented with several stories, XYZ was a survivor, and its my staple shoujo style manga.

Why do some of your comics read backwards?

Well, since I started the series based off traditional manga, which reads right to left, I assumed that was the logical way to proceed. Both WACOT and Kurokenshin, along with its sequel, are draw right-to-left, while XYZ, and The Silencer are read left-to-right. At this point in time, I plan to do future comics left-to-right to remove the confusion of printing. This issue of printing is why there is a barcode on the front covers of Kurokenshin and WACOT books, which could be moved if I switched printers, however I have no plans to do that at this point in time.

Where can I buy your books?

At the moment, I am using lulu.com for printing, so I recommend going to my online storefront there and checking them out. The Silencer is available through Ka-BLAM, and hopefully XYZ will join it soon. If you are local to Northwest Ohio you can find them at Seann's Anime & Comics (Sylvania), and the Happy Badger (Bowling Green). You can also e-mail me to order signed copies and I will ship them to you :)

Send your questions to ko.mangaseries@gmail.com