Q: If you weren’t an artist, what was the back up plan? A: There was never and won’t ever be a back up plan. Q: How long does it normally take to complete a project? A: Most of my project deadlines have been all over the place. My biggest project to date has been Zombie + which had a 3 month production period. I spent more than half of that time, refining the concept and working on the thumbnail drawings. After that was completed, I spent the last month or so finishing the final pages. Q: Do you know when a work is finished or are you constantly tweaking? A: This is a tricky one. I know when my work is complete but I have to pry it out of my own hands to get it out on time haha. I have the fatal perfectionism disease that requires constant monitoring to remain a viable creator. Q: What work are you most proud of? VV Gambits Chapter 1 or Zombie+! A: There is no way I can answer this question haha. I am proud of both of them for entirely different reasons. Q: Lastly What tips do you have for aspiring Manga artists/ Manga Writers? A: Finish something. Coming up with grand story ideas that will span multiple volumes of manga is extremely fun to come up with and is the goal for most aspiring mangaka (including myself), but to do so requires a lot of dedication, knowledge of storytelling and commitment. To get some experience before diving into such a large project I would recommend your first goal be to finish a one shot or short story in order to get your feet wet. Having this under your belt proves to you, your audience, and publishers out there that you can commit to finishing a project. Longer series are really just a series of connected one shots to build an encompassing narrative. If you master the one shot, it’ll give you much better footing and knowledge of what it’ll take to tackle the ultimate goal.
Q: What does the Tag, 8pm Ash stand for? And how does that relate to ash in Zombie +? A: My name has many different meanings ( one of them is actually a future spoiler for Zombie +) but I’ll share two of those meanings with you guys today. The 8pm is a reference to all the late nights I’ve spent at my drawing desk, relentlessly grinding the led of the pencil into countless sheets of paper. By the end of all my sessions, I would have all this graphite dust (or ash) that would coat the sides of my palms and desk. This ash felt like the perfect symbol to describe the crazy amount of hours that I’ve put into my craft. In regards to my name being related to my character Ash and Zombie +, it is a reference to the two main characters of the series The Midnight Oni (8pm) and Ash the Tomb Raider (Ash). The Midnight Oni’s name was originally 8pm Oni but was later changed at the end of production. Q: Tell us a bit more about yourself. A: I go by the name 8pm_ash, but you can call me 8 for short. I am a Goblin who spends all his time drawing in a dark and cozy cave in an unknown location haha. Outside of my manga work, I really enjoy working out, playing any fighting game under the sun ( besides Mortal Kombat lol ), and reading manga. Q: Why do you enjoy creating manga? A: Dedicating myself to this craft, has brought a lot of discipline to my life and has taught me invaluable lessons like hard work, understanding how to learn, what it takes to execute on an idea, and the definition of truly loving what you do. I certainly would not be the person I am today if I never pursued manga as a career path. Q: What is it about your style that appeals to you? A: I’ve been through many phases artistically, but as of recent I would say I am most proud of how me my work has become. Learning to embrace what I think is dope and executing that as clearly as possible is a constant battle that will never end, but when I see my work now for better or for worse it looks like me. Q: Where do you get your ideas or inspiration from? A: Just like anybody else I get my ideas from life experience and media that I consume. To be more specific fighting games have been a huge inspiration for me on the character design front. Arcade fighters are such a unique medium because the climate their characters had to thrive in was in a no context, quick glance from a passerby environment. Most games have a story on their side to get you to care about their characters and worlds, but fighting games never had that luxury. This led to designs that had to be soooo killer that just by staring at them for a millisecond had to get you to care. I think this hostile and tough environment bred some of the best designs ever created in my opinion. If I can get my designs to have that same punch, it’ll get people to care long enough to at least pick up my manga. That is an incredibly powerful ability to have, and I strive every day to perfect and refine that aspect of my work. Other major inspirations of mine are Hiroyuki Takei ( creator of Shaman King ), Redline (anime film), Dead leaves (anime film), Tim Burton, Dr Suess, Akira Toriyama, and Mike Mignola (creator of Hellboy)
Q: Do you know when a work is finished or are you constantly tweaking? A: I used to have the problem of always fixing stuff, but I got frustrated with never being able to finish, so now I do a lot of prep work that makes me feel more satis� fied with a finished project once I do finish it, so I never feel the need to go back and fix it. Once it’s out of my hands, it’s done. Whatever improvements I can make, I can make to future installments. Q: What work are you most proud of? A: Probably the series of animatics on my YouTube channel. A few of them are mock openings for my various projects, and a few are entire scenes relating to the first planned episode of my first major story, started way back in 2015. (project has been in development since 2006). Lastly What tips do you have for aspiring Manga artists/ Manga Writers? A: Fail. Make bad content. Get people to read it and tell you how to make it better. Improve it for how you’d like to experience it and DO BETTER. Life’s first step starts with a stumble and a fall.
Q: What does the Tag, studio Hiro stand for? a: When I was feeling sad as a kid, I thought about who I considered a hero. When I couldn’t think of one, I made my own and named him Hero. After a while and as I got more into anime, I found out Hiro was a name (and rhymed) and so it changed to that. As such I wanted to make heroes for others through anime and manga, and wanted to start my own Studio. As it is now, however it’s just me under the umbrella q: Tell us a bit more about yourself. a: Not sure where to start. I was born in the midwest US, and have always had a fascination with cartoons, animations and comics for as long as I’ve lived. My parents always encouraged me to be the best I could be at whatever I chose to do, no matter what that was and after overcoming a childhood filled with depression and self loathing, I formed a will unbreaable and a hunger for dreams unquenched. Can’t stop won’t stop chasing my passions and now I want to share that hunger with the world. Q: Why do you enjoy creating manga? A: I like drawing and telling stories. It’s kind of a natural fit, and Manga tends to be more creative and accepting of unique stories than western Comics. Plus I like the aesthetic. Q: What is it about your style that appeals to you? A: My style is pretty fluid when it comes to art, but I really like soft/bubbly looking stuff in addition to really grungy, realistic artwork. I don’t like things that are too… clean or dynamic with designs or lineart. Q: Where do you get your ideas or inspiration from? A: Everything. I’m always on the hunt for new inspiration, and I try to learn about the world as much as I can so that I can apply it in unique ways within my own stories or when helping someone else. Q: If you weren’t an artist, what was the back up plan? A: Programmer or novelist. Q: How long does it normally take to complete a project? A: Depends on the project. I try not to spend more than a day on illustrations or simple animation, but sometimes a larger project will require more steps, so I try to plan for those to take around a month or two of on/off work.