Q: I’ve heard that your road to serialization was long. Could you tell us a little about the process you went through and what influence it had on I’ll Give It My All…Tomorrow?
A piece that ran in IKKI magazine introducing Somato (Kaleidoscope), the “pilot” story of the series.
A: Up until my debut, I was working part-time jobs and writing one-shots as hard as I could. I’m not sure exactly how, but my lifestyle during that time has had some influence on this manga.
Q: How has your style of illustration evolved as you gathered experience as an artist? Is your current heta-uma style your original style, or is it something new you tried?
A: I’ve drawn like this ever since I was a child. But that was just drawing pictures. I didn’t start drawing manga until I was about twenty-two years old. I think that is, generally, a late start.
Aono sensei’s workspace
Q: Are there any particular mangaka or artists who you like or who have had an influence on you?
A: Fujiko.F.Fujio (Doraemon), Shigeru Mizuki (GeGeGe no Kitaro) and Yoshiharu Tsuge (published works in Garo).
Q: Are any of the events in Shizuo’s life—his background and adventures—based your own actual lifestyle or experiences? How much are you and Shizuo alike?
Character sketch of Shizuo
A: Some aspects of the manga are based on my lifestyle and experiences. Shizuo is about half like me. The other half is fiction.
Q: Do you have any advice for aspiring mangaka? Are there any lessons we should learn from Shizuo as a negative example—something Shizuo does that we shouldn’t?
A: Positive advice: Hard work and determination. Shizuo as a negative example: Drink alcohol in moderation…
