SMA19 Grand Prix winner ryancomicpress releases a brand new one-shot! – SILENT MANGA AUDITION®

Masterclass member ryancomicpress, who won the SMA19 Grand Prix for his work, “The Unexpected Dinner Guest,” has received a new award for his latest one-shot, “New Days”! The award was announced in the July issue of Monthly comic strip Zenon.

In “New Days,” Butcher, a hitman, is assigned to protect Margot Valington, the teenage daughter of a mob boss. Even Butcher, a stoic and emotionless hitman, is moved by Margot’s bubbly personality, and the two form an unlikely friendship. But how will the two react when their newfound bond is tested?

“New Days” received an Excellence Award at the 11th Kyushu International Manga Awards and is now available to read in English! To celebrate the English release of “New Days,” we’re hosting a special Q&A with ryancomicpress! Read on to learn more about his process and the inspiration for this one-shot.

How do you feel about winning this award?

It feels good and I am very grateful. However, I still want to try to get a better award next time. It is a hopeful indicator that I am on the right track to becoming a professional mangaka, but I am still not satisfied. After I get a better award, I want to aim for a serializable piece and make my Japanese debut. I would also like to move to Japan and live in the Artists Village.

How did you come up with the idea for this piece?

I wanted to draw a friendship between a neat and proper ojou-sama type character and a scary, “evil” character. Although this piece changed many, many times, the main idea always remained the same.

What do you think is the best part of this piece?

Without wanting to brag, I think my art is the best part of the piece. Even though the deadline was close, I can happily say that the art I drew was up to my standards and I didn’t compromise on quality.

What did you struggle with when creating this piece?

I feel like I struggled with almost everything – basically everything that had to do with writing. I’m still new to writing stories in general. It was a huge challenge for me in the beginning to keep the dialogue to the bare minimum. Trying to cram everything into a short and concise 39 pages was incredibly difficult. Even after writing draft after draft, it still wasn’t turning out the way I originally envisioned. I often wondered if there was a “right” way to make this story and what paths would lead me to that right way. The deadline was tight and no matter how hard I tried to maintain a healthy relationship with making this manga, it nearly destroyed me in the end.

Was there anything you tried to keep in mind when creating these characters?

I always tried to remember that my protagonists should have contrasts, and for me the more they contrast the more unique and alive they feel.

What is your favorite manga?

I love gyaru romance manga. My favorite at the moment would have to be Otaku ni Yasahii Gyaru wa Inai!?or Girl can’t be nice to Otaku!?. That’s probably because fairly popular girls never showed any interest in my antisocial nerdy self, while I always wanted to date a fairly popular girl.

What kind of manga do you want to draw next?

Something silly and fun. Something about crime. Something about superheroes. Most importantly, I really want to draw a sexy, busty lady.

What’s your latest obsession?

Fortnite. I love FortniteI just want to play Fortnite all day. If I wasn’t trying to be a mangaka, I’d try to be a Fortnite pro and win the Fortnite world championship. I’m also always obsessed with Yu-Gi-Oh!

Do you have any final comments for the readers?

These questions make it seem like I got here on my own. In reality, my editors played a huge role in every step I took to make this piece a reality. If you want to win SMA, be prepared to work with your editors. And by the way, I used photographic references for almost every character in every panel of the manga. Every morning for about a month, I would wake up, spend about an hour taking photos of myself posing in a high school girl outfit, and then draw it. The process was difficult, frustrating, and extremely stressful, but it was fun. You have to be willing to do whatever it takes to make your piece successful, which can be really hard. That’s why I still sometimes wonder if I’m cut out to be a professional mangaka.

READ “NEW DAYS” IN ENGLISH HERE!

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