I often get questions from people who are starting to make manga.
Many of them are unsure about different things we have to handle when creating comics.

Instead of answering each person one by one, I thought it would be more useful to share my answers here, for anyone who’s interested.

Of course, what I’m sharing is just my own experience. It might help you make some choices, but I want to say that in the creative world, what works for one person might not work for another.
The best way is to try things yourself and see what feels right for you. ^^

 

 

 

What software is best for creating manga?

 

For me : Clip Studio Paint.
This software was originally made just for manga, so it has a lot of great features (and the price is pretty reasonable too =) ) It also works really well for full-color illustrations!

Photoshop, Procreate, and Paint Tool Sai are also great from what I’ve heard, but I haven’t had the chance to try them myself ^^

 

I don’t really know how to plan my pages, panels, or layouts ?

 

There’s a book that helped me A LOT to understand how to manage shots, layout, and pacing.
I highly recommend it → it’s “Making Comics” by Scott McCloud.

Scott McCloud explains very clearly how comics work from a technical point of view. He also shows you how to choose your shots and layout depending on your intentions.
And on top of that, it really helps take off some pressure, because — and I totally agree — McCloud says that there’s not one perfect choice in comics.
There are lots of good choices, as long as you know why you’re making them 😀

 

Second tip:

Get inspired by your favorite manga.
Take some time to analyze the panels and pages from authors you admire.
Try to ask yourself: why did they choose this specific shot? Why did they slow down or speed up a moment by adding or removing panels? Why a close-up here? Could there have been another way to show it?
How many panels per page? And why?
When does the panel reach the edge of the page? When do they use a bird’s-eye view, a worm’s-eye view, a wide shot, a medium shot, etc.?

Do they prefer classic layouts, or pages where the drawings break out of the panels?
If there’s overlapping, when do they use it? During calm moments, emotional scenes? Action scenes?

If you analyze a variety of scenes from time to time — action, suspense, plot twist, conversations, passing time, sadness, loneliness, fun, secrets, etc…

And if you do that with lots of manga you love…
You’ll start to understand patterns and techniques, and you’ll make them your own little by little.

Combine that with Scott McCloud’s book and you’ll totally rock it, I’m tellin’ you! o/

 

What tips can you give me to improve my drawing?

 

I’m not the best person to give advice here, so I can’t tell you which method works best.
I know I had a good period during middle school and high school where I used to draw what I saw around me. It helped me understand textures, shapes, and all that…
Over time, I noticed that copying something without thinking doesn’t help much.
What works best for me is when I try to reproduce something real — or an image I really like — and I focus on understanding the shapes, the materials, the pencil strokes. That’s when I really learn.
It can also be super interesting to try copying pages from artists you love, both for their storytelling and their drawing style!

I also noticed something important: it has to stay fun. Forcing yourself too much until you hate drawing doesn’t help at all.

 

Getting better at drawing is exactly like leveling up in a video game RPG.
You have to draw eyes again and again, legs, torsos, animals, trees…
You need to copy them a lot before your brain finally memorizes them and you’re able to draw them from imagination.
Nothing appears by magic. Drawing works the same: you need to learn first.
(And I admit, I have a really bad memory — so if I don’t have references when I draw, it’s… not amazing 😅)

Some days, we really feel like we’re bad at drawing and can’t do anything right.
That’s totally normal. It happens to everyone — even the best artists.
Don’t worry about it.
If you feel upset with drawing and nothing good seems to come out, go take a walk, take a break, see your friends, watch a good movie… In short: do something else for a while!

 

If you’re still stuck, don’t be afraid to try new tools: charcoal, paint, ink, colored pencils, drawing on canvas, on paper, on ceramics…
Buy yourself a cute little sketchbook you can decorate, or a nice pencil…
Sometimes, just having new art supplies is enough to make you feel excited again 😊

 

Stop thinking you’re bad at drawing.
I believe a lot of artists feel that way sometimes (or very often when they’re in a period of doubt 😅).
We always compare ourselves to people who are “better” — I do it too, haha! But that can really make us feel down…

It’s great to set goals like “I want to draw as well as this artist” — but be careful not to fall into negativity. That can make you procrastinate instead of improving 😬

Why not compare yourself with your older drawings instead?
Look at how much you’ve improved these past years!
It feels amazing and gives you a lot of motivation to keep going! 💪✨

 

Any advice for writing the story?

 

You’ve got two options.
Either you’re the kind of person who loves analyzing manga, movies, novels, etc., and by watching and reading tons of them, you’ve figured out on your own what works — how to build rhythm, create emotion, and basically how to build a good story.

If that’s the case, and you binge tons of stories, chances are you’ve already developed a good sense of storytelling without even realizing it.

But if it still feels a bit confusing — or if you want to dig deeper and compare your instincts with what storytelling experts say (or just improve your skills), I recommend learning more about theory.
If you don’t know the basics, you might build your story relying only on instinct — and that can be risky.

Contrary to what many people think, writing a story takes a lot of time and effort.


You need to juggle a ton of elements:
keeping a good rhythm, making situations believable, balancing dialogue and action, keeping the reader hooked, planting little details that will matter later… and more!

Here are a few books I’ve read and really liked:

  • La Dramaturgie by Yves Lavandier

  • The Anatomy of Story by John Truby

  • Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud

  • The Writer’s Journey by Christopher Vogler

  • Save the Cat (if you’re comfortable with English) by Blake Snyder

 

There are many other great ones out there, so feel free to explore and see what speaks to you! 😊

Keep in mind: each expert has their own idea of what makes a “perfect” story.
Personally, I think it’s best to read a bunch of different theories and build your own vision by mixing what feels right to you.

If I had to recommend just one book, I’d go with Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud.
It’s a theory book… entirely made as a comic! It’s fun, full of humor, covers lots of different creative approaches — and best of all, it really helps take the pressure off.

 

– Every topic has already been explored a thousand times. Humanity’s been telling stories forever — so don’t expect to magically come up with the one subject no one else has ever thought of 😅
But the way you tell that story — that’s what makes it special.
It’s your take on the characters, your point of view, your pacing, your humor, your suspense, the way you reveal who your characters are, the little clues you subtly drop in… All of that is what will make your story unique.

 

– Tell a story that genuinely matters to you. Something that touches you, something you really want to talk about.
Making a comic — especially one with a slightly complex plot — is usually a multi-year journey.
Of course, we create stories so others can read them…
But above all, we create them for ourselves ❤️
So it’s super important to maintain a good relationship with your story and keep loving what you’re working on.

 

– Have fun, enjoy yourself!
A story made with love and joy will always be more enjoyable for the readers!

 

 

 

Can you make a good living with comics?

 

Hmm… 😅

Most of us start making comics out of passion — and then, if we’re incredibly lucky, our series becomes a big hit and we manage to sort of make a living from it.

That said, I really hope things will change for comic creators. Like many others, I believe self-publishing could be a great way for artists with supportive communities to finally earn a living — without having to sell millions of copies to get there.

I, like many others, believe passion shouldn’t mean poverty.
A lot of people choose careers they’re passionate about — and they still expect to be paid fairly for their time, energy, and work.
Comic creators are no different, which is why so many of them are currently doing everything they can to top up their income

 

And that’s it!

I hope this little FAQ helped clear up a few things for you!