A company for Christian Manga that isn't 100% Christian Manga?

[Tigerchu]

The title is confusing.

Is there a company out there that publishes Manga that will publish Christian Manga, but the Manga doesn't have to be 100% Christian? Like, it has obvious Christian things in it, but it doesn't revolve around "This is Christianity, this is what it has to teach, etc".

I would really like to know if there is a company out there like that. I believe what I'm supposed to do is make Christian Manga, but I might not be quite up to it yet, I might not be able to just dish out 100% Christian stuff in your face stuff in Manga format, I'm kinda in the "I wanna draw what I wanna draw" state of mind.

I was kinda losing hope, in a depressing manner, because on the internet, the Christian Manga(or as one site says Christian comics, which was rather depressing for me, I felt degraded honestly), seem to want Christian stuff, and only that. Maybe it's actually not that way, but at the moment I'd like to draw stuff that I find fun(usually funny cute stuff, because it comes so easily for me, it just DOES... but I would like to get some sad serious stuff in), and seeing those sites gets me upset, because I lose hope that I can send stuff to them because they might not want it.

If I send stuff to a regular old company they might not like it because it has Christian stuff in it. Help.

Thankyou for your time.

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

You felt degraded by having Christian Manga reffered to as Christian Comics?
Don't venture out your door then, it gets a lot worse.
I'm not sure there is any company like that but there should be.
And if you want to get it published in a magazine or manga the art and story would have to be very impressive. I don't know your skills but this kind of thing doesn't come easy. That said, if that's what God calls you to do then good luck!

[Raiden no Kishi]

The title is confusing.

Is there a company out there that publishes Manga that will publish Christian Manga, but the Manga doesn't have to be 100% Christian? Like, it has obvious Christian things in it, but it doesn't revolve around "This is Christianity, this is what it has to teach, etc".

I would really like to know if there is a company out there like that. I believe what I'm supposed to do is make Christian Manga, but I might not be quite up to it yet, I might not be able to just dish out 100% Christian stuff in your face stuff in Manga format, I'm kinda in the "I wanna draw what I wanna draw" state of mind.

I was kinda losing hope, in a depressing manner, because on the internet, the Christian Manga(or as one site says Christian comics, which was rather depressing for me, I felt degraded honestly), seem to want Christian stuff, and only that. Maybe it's actually not that way, but at the moment I'd like to draw stuff that I find fun(usually funny cute stuff, because it comes so easily for me, it just DOES... but I would like to get some sad serious stuff in), and seeing those sites gets me upset, because I lose hope that I can send stuff to them because they might not want it.

If I send stuff to a regular old company they might not like it because it has Christian stuff in it. Help.

Thankyou for your time.

Please note: The following post contains strong personal opinions and should not be taken personally by anyone ever.

Let me be the first to say that I really feel for you here. One of my peeves with mainstream Christianity is its insistence on drowning its entertainment with an overdose of Christian lingo, themes, characters, cliches, etc.

First of all, there is hope. You don't have to sell out and lower yourself to typical Christian entertainment. In fact, I daresay you shouldn't. I believe the problem is a focus on the message and making it clear and prevalent in every scene, character, etc. to the severe loss of quality.

I am excited that we have another aspiring artist among us! I'm pursuing art myself [though I have precious little skill], and it doesn't take long to see that there are plenty of skilled artists here.

I think the course you should take is to a] keep practicing ~ early, late, and often. Practice practice practice practice practice. b] post your work on CAA and/or a place like deviantART for critique and as a way to get your art out there. And c] try doing a webcomic. Sure, you likely won't make a dime, but it allows you to be your own creative director [with God's leading of course] and pursue what is on YOUR heart.

And keep me posted, eh? You've piqued my interest.

[Mangafanatic]

Personally, I think you're lucky if you can find any Christian manga company. The only real Christian publishing houses that you would have access to will likely be Western, and manga is something of a new arrival on the Western scene. With that said, understand that it's only to be expected that there will be very little diversity in the Christian manga scene-- if there's a real Christian manga scene to begin with.

Personally, if you are serious about making a Christian manga that is subtle in its introduction of Christian themes (subtlety being something that seems to be very under valued in most Christian fiction), I encourage you put your manga out on the internet. Once you build a large enough fan base, then you will be able to approach Christian publishing houses with enough evidence that your form of Christian manga is more effective than blatant "religious propaganda."

Or-- if you're REALLY serious about doing this, get yourself a business degree and create a place where Christians with your vision for Christian manga that doesn't lean on cliches and blunt religious messages can come and get exposures from their works. Sooner or later, someone will have to do it. Why shouldn't that person be you?

[Radical Dreamer]

Or-- if you're REALLY serious about doing this, get yourself a business degree and create a place where Christians with your vision for Christian manga that doesn't lean on cliches and blunt religious messages can come and get exposures from their works. Sooner or later, someone will have to do it. Why shouldn't that person be you?

This is what I was going to suggest. If there isn't a company like this out there already, why not make your own? Maybe you should think about it, pray about it, and see if that's what the Lord has in store. Who knows, maybe you have this idea for a reason!

[mitsuki lover]

The first thing to do is to develop ideas for what you want to do before you even think of publishing anything.Take the time to experiment with characters and plot lines and genres until you come up with the combination that you feel comfortable with.
Then keep on working on developing what you come up with until you have what you think is something that a mainstream manga publisher would like.
Your objective shouldn't be so much to get into 'Christian' manga as it should be to get published in mainstream manga.If you can get published in mainstream then you have a better chance to reach a far larger audience.

[Tigerchu]

Thankyou for replying, everybody.

That thought about starting a company that publishing the kind of Manga I was talking about, I might have been wondering about that before; Thanks for giving me some inspiration, that is could be a good idea.

[Mithrandir]

There are a few people around CAA who understand about starting their own companies.

If you're open to a bit of advice, get a "real day job" and start this company at night. You'll probably need the business/entrepreneurial education to do it right, and don't be afraid if it takes a few years to get there. It's very difficulty to start a nitch market like the one you want, honestly, but you can make it work if you try hard enough.

[Tigerchu]

Do you know of any people in particular that know how to start a company?^^
Or should I start another thread?...

[Riyo-Chan]

maybe start another thread for the company idea but keep this talk going too.....

im in graphic design program starting this fall in college and i am hoping to become a mangaka someday....im getting better but it sounds like a good idea to me to start a company for christian manga..i wouldnt mind getting into something like that

[Mithrandir]

Eirewolf Creations (site sponsorer) is Eirewolf's business. She sculpts fantasy pieces and sells them on-line (via ebay or paypall). She's fortunate in that she has a husband who supports her while she works to get the business up and running (read: profitable), but most artists don't have that luxuary. They have to work full time to support themselves and do art at night and on the weekends.

You might want to take Riyo-Chan's advice and see if anyone else here runs their own business. Typically, though, self-owned businesses generally don't leave any time for much else - so you might not find anyone. But it's worth a try.