How to Draw a Manga Illustration in Five Easy Steps!

Manga is another word for Japanese comics. While American's may know it as one of the centuries latest fads, Manga has been an important part of Japanese culture for years, and brings in billions of dollars in revenue. From the kid friendly Pokémon to the more mature and dramatic Sanctuary, there is something for every age group and walk of life that covers many subjects: romance, action, comedy and adventure. This is what makes Manga so popular and why so many people want to create their own Manga illustrations. For an easy how-to guide to proper Manga drawing, follow the steps below.

1. Have supplies on hand. Before sitting down and getting started, you'll want to make sure to have all the supplies on hand that you'll need for a successful Manga drawing lesson. Since art supplies can be expensive, and you'll be doing quite a bit of erasing at the beginning, practice drawing on multi-purpose white paper, and with plenty of #2 pencils. A ruler, eraser and sketch pad will come in handy as well.

2. Become familiar with the basic shapes. The key to construct Manga learning and accurate drawing is to get the head shape right. As the most difficult part of the figure, the head is crucial and may require the most time you'll need to spend. It could help to buy a Manga drawing book from a local bookstore or from an online tutorial. Practice drawing spheres, cones, cubes and cylinders.

3. Start with an oval. Once you have a basic understanding of the supplies you'll need and the shapes you'll be drawing, you can get ready, get set, and draw! Here's our strategy for a easy step by step plan for successful manga drawing. First, start by drawing an oval shape for the head. Outline the shape by connecting a simple skeletal line for the body, making sure it is 6-7 heads tall. Then, begin to add cylinder shapes to the body for the arms, legs, shoulders, muscles and joints. Lastly, connect the joints by adding facial features and other fine details.

4. Concentrate on the eyes. Drawing your character's eyes is one of the most important parts of Manga drawing. You'll want to begin by drawing an upward curving line for the upper eyelid, and draw diagonal lines that come to a point. Make a circle within the eye to draw the iris, and draw a circular pupil and eyelashes that follow the curve of the eyelid. Darken the pupil until its black in color, add eyelashes and an eyebrow.

5. Apply the final touches. Lastly, you'll want to finish your manga character's face. Start with a circle and divide it into thirds with simple, straight lines. Draw a line underneath the circle, and this will be its chin. Along the second line, draw your nose and below it your mouth. Lastly, erase the lines and add facial details. Now you're perfectly drawn manga character is complete!

Writing and Selling a Children's Graphic Novel - Writer - The 10 Most Common Questions

The newest, most vibrant category to emerge in the volatile world of book publishing is the Children's Graphic Novel. That's a distinction that may be lost on some folks who may still believe that graphic novels, which are essentially comics printed in book form, are all for children. Fortunately most people are more enlightened these days and realize that graphic novels are, in fact, written for just as many audiences and types of readers as traditional books.

The confusion arises because "graphic novel" has been used to describe just about every type of book featuring comics, other than manga (Japanes comics). Unlike other sections of the bookstore, such as "Mystery," "Science Fiction," or "Romance," "Graphic Novels" is not the name of a genre, but a category. Like "Audio Books," which can also encompass a multitude of genres, "Graphic Novels" are not just one type of book. In other words, until recently every type of graphic novel has simply been stacked together in one section regardless of content.

The good news is that the Children's Graphic Novel is the first genre to break free from the generic Graphic Novel section. A wise move on many levels, especially because bookstores need to be sensitive to customers needs-particularly parents who don't wish to inadvertently purchase inappropriate material for their kids.

So as a new section is carved out of the always-crowded bookstore shelves, astute publishers recognize the need for material to fill this new demand. And that's when ambitious writers start sniffing around to see if they can get in on this new craze. But what do they really need to know if they hope to actually sell a Children's Graphic Novel to a publisher? Let's take a look at, and answer, some of the most commonly asked questions...

1) Do I need to be an artist?

No, but it doesn't hurt if you are, and your proposal should include either the entire finished Children's Graphic Novel or a sizeable sample. If you're not an artist, then you will need to find one. Comics are obviously a visual medium, so even if you're not an artist, it's important to think visually. If you want to keep a kid's attention throughout your Children's Graphic Novel, it's important to keep the graphics as compelling and as exciting as your script. If either the story or the artwork appears boring, why would any kid want to read your graphic novel? For the best guidance check out Will Eisner's Comics and Sequential Art, Will Eisner's Graphic Storytelling and Visual Narrative, and ScottMcCloud's Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art.

2) How do I find a Children's Graphic Novel artist?

There are many ways. One is by attending comicbook conventions, especially those in large cities that feature portfolio reviews. Many professional or would-be comicbook artists attend these conventions hoping to find work from attending comicbook editors. Simply introduce yourself to these artists, explain that you're hoping to find an artist to work with to propose a Children's Graphic Novel. Don't feel obligated to work with the first artist who is willing to work with you. It may be best to suggest that you're looking for the right artist for your project, and that you'll need to review the work of several artists to find the one that's right. Another way to find an artist is by reviewing the samples posted on deviantart.com

3) Do I need a contract with the artist?

To be safe, it's probably best to have a written agreement between yourself and your artist before you actually start working together. For the best legal advise it's always best to consult an attorney. But if that's not practical, you should get an agreement in writing between yourself and your artist that spells out as much as possible, as specifically as possible. You want to be as fair, so the goal of the agreement is to your mutual expectations and goals, and to make allowances for either party to be able to walk away if things don't work out. No matter what, you should be clear that the copyright to your story is yours alone. The copyright to the artwork can belong to the artist.

4) Is there an app that I can use to format my script?

There may well be, but you don't need it. A comics script is similar to play, television, and film scripts, except it's divided into pages rather than scenes. While dialogue scenes can last for pages on end, especially in plays, comics and graphic novels are limited to how much art and dialogue can realistically fit on a physical page. It would be wise to study graphic novels that are similar to what you hope to do to get a clear idea of the word count in the word balloons and captions. Keep in mind, there are no hard and fast rules. If you wish to have sequences told without any dialogue at all, where you let the pictures tell the story (like the many thrilling silent sequences in Alfred Hitchcock films or in the imaginative wordless sequences in Brian Selznick's The Invention of Hugo Cabret), it's important that you give your artist as much information as possible. Unlike most modern movie screenplays that leave out character and set descriptions, as well as detailed information for each and every shot, comics scripts should have as much information for the artist as possible.

5) Where can I see a sample script?

Like everything these days, you can probably find many comicbook scripts online. The basics are fairly simple, as the short sample page illustrates:
Mister Snuggles [Title of Children's Graphic Novel]
Page Five [This is the fifth comics page, not necessarily the 5th script page]
Panel One:
(Mr. Snuggles is running to the front door of the apartment with a teddy bear in his mouth.) [Description of artwork for first panel.]
Caption 1: It's 6:00 PM and even though Mr. Snuggles can't tell time, he somehow knows when Cortney is due home. [Text for first caption.]
Panel Two:
(Close-up of Cortney's hand inserting her key into the apartment's front door lock. The key is on a key chain containing other keys and a small figurine of a dog that looks very much like Mr. Snuggles.)
SFX: K-CLICK [Sound Effect.]
Panel Three:
(The apartment door opens, and Cortney is thrilled to see Mr. Snuggles. Snuggles is also visibly happy to see Cortney and she bows down to pet him. Mr. Snuggles has dropped his teddy bear so that he can lick Cortney's face.)
Caption 2:..and he's always there to give her a warm welcome...[Note numbering of captions and word balloons is by the page, not by the panel or throughout the entire book. So Caption 2 indicates that this is the 2nd caption or word balloon on the page.]
Cortney 3: Hey, I'm happy to see you too, little feller!
SFX: SLURP!

6) How do I know how many panels to place on a page?

It depends on how big your printed page size will be, and how much you have happening within your panels. European graphic novels tend to be larger than American graphic novels, and contain far more panels per page, yet the format has not proven to be that popular in the United States. Even classics such as Tintin have been reformatted into smaller books in recent years. Standard American comics, which are about 6 ½" x 10" tend to average from four to six panels per page, which is fewer panels per page than was the norm decades ago. Manga or digest-sized comics will either have fewer panels per page or far more simplified page layouts. But again, there are no rules-as soon as an uncommonly sized Children's Graphic Novel becomes a bestseller, it's guaranteed that other Children's Graphic Novel publishers will start publishing at that size.

7) What type of subject matter is taboo?

That's a tricky question, and the answer truly depends on the publisher. Most major publishers hope to sell as many Children's Graphic Novels as possible, especially to schools and libraries, and are not too eager to test the boundaries of what's acceptable and what's not, preferring to play it safe. Other more daring independent publishers may be more willing to tackle controversial issues, in a politically correct fashion, to generate publicity and attention. Because Children's Graphic Novels are so visual, they're quite often even more conservative than many traditional Children's Books. While certain questionable words or scenes exist in such classics as Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer or Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, they're buried in the book's text, while any type of controversial scene could easily be taken out of context, by holding up the page before TV news cameras and pretending to be shocked at what the evil publishers are feeding to our innocent children. As a result, most of the people who buy Children's Graphic Novels for bookstores, schools, or libraries are careful to avoid ordering anything risky or controversial. The end result being that many kids may find the content in certain Children's Graphic Novels to be far too tame or juvenile for them. This poses is a constant challenge to publishers-to provide Children's Graphic Novels that can get past the overly protective gate-keepers and still be entertaining and hip enough for today's kids.

8) Do I need an agent?

While many traditional publishing houses still insist on exclusively dealing with agents, many graphic novel publishers are willing to work directly with authors and artists. Because this is still such a relatively new development in the world of traditional book publishing, the doors still remain open to creators without agents. Even literary agents haven't quite figured out how to respond to the demands of this new category. Children's Graphic Novels aren't quite the same thing as Children's Books. In fact, most Children's Books editors will not even look at a Children's Book proposal that comes with an artist attached, while editors looking at Children's Graphic Novel proposals wouldn't know how to find an artist for a graphic novel at this point.

9) How do I find a publisher?

If you have an agent, that would be the agent's job. Without an agent you need to be willing to do a lot of research. Many authors make the mistake of considering only existing Children's Graphic Novel publishers as their only potential publishers. The truth is that many traditional publishers may consider publishing a Children's Graphic Novel if it's something they believe they're uniquely suited to publish. For example, a business book publisher may have no interest in publishing a Children's Graphic Novel about a squad of dragon-fighting pixies, but they may be interested in publishing a graphic novel that attempts to explain basic business concepts-how a checking account works, for example-to children. Publications such as Publishers Weekly can offer a good overview of the book-publishing field and can provide invaluable information on countless publishers. Also, self-publishing has become far more common as the technology for print-on-demand has advanced. No longer is there a stigma attached to what used to be called "vanity press" publishing as more and more authors eliminate the middleman and self-publish.

10) Does my Children's Graphic Novel have to be published as a physical book?

No, it could be published as an ebook, especially as such technological breakthroughs as Apple's iPad make it possible for full-color, lavishly illustrated Children's Graphic Novels to be viewed on a screen as they were meant to be seen. Of course, it's still very early, and the question is-do enough children possess this kind of expensive hardware to make it financially worthwhile to be available exclusively in such a format? At this point, it makes more sense to have a digital version available as an additional option, and not the exclusive format.

If ever there was an opportunity to break into publishing, creating a Children's Graphic Novel could be it. Good luck!

The Best in Android Applications

Android based phones are quickly becoming the top choice for mobile users. This OS have already attracted many users and continue to make buzz around. It is rumored to provide the performance and stability that even the iPhones have fallen short on. Another buzz word is application and believe it or not free android applications have given many a phone apps a run for their money. You can get everything from street directions to help on how to draw a manga or free manga comics via these amazing programs. Now let us discuss the best among this array of apps:

• Google Sky Map: There is nothing that Google can do wrong (fingers crossed) and its sky map is just over the top. Once downloaded, you can point your the phone to the sky and this app will show the stars, planets, constellations, and will even help you identify the celestial objects.

• Astro File Manager: This app lets you navigate through the Android file system; something along the lines of a windows style file explorer. It makes your handset work and navigate like a computer.

• Seesmic: The Android world is replete with many a Twitter apps. Though Twitter has launched a branded app recently, seemic has had some loyal followers and users. One of the main advantages of Seesmic is that it offers support for multiple accounts, it has a home page widget that shows latest tweets, and has an incredibly slick and professional design.

• Mobile Maps: It can be downloaded directly to your smartphone and helps you get free satellite navigation facility and images onto your Android devices. The app works like a SAT navigation device that is switched on with every turning direction. Your phone's GPS works by plotting the directions and the journey ahead of you as per traffic conditions.

• BeyondPod: This application integrates with the Android music player. It helps you find and manage audio and video podcasts. Though the base version is free. The premium version at $7 / INR300 provides better controls to update and manage subscriptions.

• Weather Channel: It offers accurate current conditions with extreme detail down to wind speed, humidity and UV index. Additionally, the Weather Channel's app also offers hourly and 10-day forecasts for planning ahead.

• Google Voice: It provides you a phone number that can ring at multiple places or devices. It allows you to access all of your voicemail and text messages over the Web. For people who need privacy, the app can also make outgoing calls such that the receiver gets only the Google Voice number and not your phone number.

• Advanced Task Killer: It helps you manage your apps to ensure that the performance or battery life is not hurt. It comes with a widget that you can tap once to kill all open apps. So simply put, it is an app to manage all your apps.

• Astrid: or Android's Simple Task Recording Dashboard maintains and follows up on to-do lists and helps you organize your life within the phone. It integrates cleanly into the Android interface, and can motivate you on your deadlines and give humanizing reminds.

Though the Android world is replete with apps for all occasions, one would still have to wait for something as phenomenal as online SEO tools or SEO web tools to strike the app world and take it by storm. Until then we will have to live by the aforementioned apps.

Where to Watch DBZ Episodes Online

DBZ is short for Dragon Ball Z and many fans use this to refer to this show or specific episodes on the series. If you want full length shows for GT, Z and all other dragon ball TV shows you will have to do a little bit or research online. But if you just want some clips, video sharing sites like YouTube have plenty of clips that you can view or watch. Just go to their website and do a search for the episode that you want and you'll get several listings of videos that users have uploaded and that you can watch over the internet.

DBZ is a very popular Japanese animated TV series produced by Toei Animation (used to be produced by Toei Doga). It is the sequel to Dragon Ball Anime, the first 16 volumes of a 42 volume Dragon Ball Manga series created by Akira Toriyama. DBZ adapts the last 26 volumes of the original manga (Manga is the Japanese word for comics). The series features the adventures of Son Goku and his companions who defend the Earth and other fictional planets from different super villains. The series has lots of fans and viewers worldwide and thousands of people search internet search engines looking for news, episodes, games and more online. The series has finally become extremely popular in the US too. Here are some tips to help you locate and find places where you can watch Dragon Ball Z episodes online over the internet.

One of the easiest places to find links to video streams to the series is the discussion sections of fan sites. The series has millions of fans some of whom have set up websites where they frequently post gossip, news and other things. Some sites have discussions forums which are quite helpful if you are looking for specific information about the show. You will normally find a knowledgeable person who will be able to tell you or provide you a link to a site where you can find the information or video streams that you need. Remember, there are lots of fans who are looking for the same episodes that you are after and many committed fans usually like to share their discoveries with other fans. So fan sites are a good place to start if you are looking for DBZ episodes or where to download and watch them online.

You can also watch the episodes from the websites of the television stations that are currently airing the series. Just look in the TV guides provided by satellite and cable television companies and make a list of the channels that are showing the series. Next visit their websites and find out if they stream or web cast their programs online. If they do, then you don't have to look any further unless you are looking for particular episodes.

You can also try checking TV guides for international and foreign TV stations. There are many sites online that lists these stations including their internet TV streams so that you can watch their programs using windows media or the Realplayer. Note down the ones that are showing the DBZ program and bookmark them so that you can find them easily next time you want to watch an episode. There is also software that you can use to pick up TV streams from thousands of TV stations. If you do a search online, you'll find a lot of search engine listings with different software offering this type of facility. In order to make a good choice, read several reviews about the software from various independent sites so that you don't get ripped off.

Popularity of Video Games

While conventional video game makers are creating video games on a host of varied genres, and minting money from them, there are actually a group of people who are making games available for free. Though they may not be that serious a threat to the existing industry right now but online video games are the latest attractions in the cyber world. They are increasingly become a strong competition to the normal video games. This is largely due to the easy availability of such plots in the internet and also that they are almost always provided free. There has been a observable growth in online gaming in the past few years. The number of providers of such games have also gone up significantly.

Nowadays, a simple search of 'online bizes' in any search site would yield thousands of valid results. In fact 'free online bizes' in consistently becoming one of the most searched items at popular search sites like Google and yahoo. Another attraction to online gamers is that the sites normally add new bizes every week and so you a large variety of games to choose from. Most sites classify the games into various genres like Arcade, Action, Strategy, Sport, Board Games etc to make things easier for the user. The burgeoning popularity of such games is also due to their exploitation of popular comic characters and Japanese manga characters. Many multiplayer online games are also becoming popular now. They come in many themes too, but unlike the other online games offer the users an opportunity to interact with each other. Some of these games have become quite popular and a few social networking sites have also started hosting such games. Their popularity has also influenced the online adult industry to make adult themed online games which have also caught on with the mass. The social networking sites are a great platform to find these apps and free online games which keep people hooked to these sites while they make money!

There is also something for the kids. As more and more children have started using the computer at a very tender age, parents want to ensure that they develop their analytical skills, communication skills, reflex etc while sitting on the computer. Thus there are games meant specifically for children like word games, painting games, etc. The rules are quite simple and very easy to follow.

Play games to take a fascinating break from reality and delve into a magical world where the impossible looks possible!

How to Speak Fluent Japanese - Tips

Do you want to become fluent in Japanese? Are you looking for some tips on how to speak fluent Japanese? If so, keep reading, because this article is for you. I'm going to show you three tips that will greatly help you work on your Japanese skills. Here they are!

1. Travel or move to Japan

Moving to a country in which your target language is spoken is the best way to learn it. Most people can't do it, but you can still travel to Japan for a few days or a few weeks and it will also greatly improve your skills (given that you speak in Japanese all the time and interact with native Japanese speakers on a daily basis).

2. Read manga

It's way easier to read comics/manga than read regular books or articles. You can guess the meaning of words thanks to illustrations. There are a lot of free manga sites online - start reading them to improve your reading skills and learn new vocabulary! You can also buy some original Japanese mangas on eBay.

3. Watch Japanese movies

The Japanese movie industry is pretty big. There are a lot of great Japanese movies and in Japan there are a lot of movie genres that you won't find anywhere else. Look for "Cinema of Japan" on Wikipedia to learn more about it or go to IMDB to find hundreds of movie titles (with summaries). You can also watch anime if you are into it.

That's it - three tips on how to speak fluent Japanese. Learning Japanese doesn't have to be hard - it's all about doing the right things (follow these tips!). Have fun while speaking Japanese fluently!

A Beginner's Introduction to Reading Graphic Novels

Graphic novels hold a completely unique position inside the comic book market these days. They're just thought to be more constant and financially beneficial than a monthly comic book series. Ordinary comics are replaced every few months, and offer fewer profits. That makes for a more attractive deal to small and large booksellers alike.

In the course of the years, comics had been produced the same way; the stories were being fastidiously drawn in pencil, hand lettered, afterward inked and at last dispatched out for a special hand color separation procedure. The end product seemed economical but serviceable for the narrative.

Shortly around the eighties as well as nineties, color processing grew to be less expensive and new procedures ended up being put to qualify for the job of constructing these colorful stories more beautiful and lively. Lately artists utilize Photoshop, and other graphics programs to improve the pace with quality of the material.

It can be fair to mention that even with the very best artwork imaginable, the story continues to be what makes readers come back to search out further titles and read further adventures of a character or keep an eye on line of books. That's because the material is still internalized as it is read in sequence. Great stories insist on the reader to invest emotionally in the material whatever the genre.

Graphic novels usually present a complete account in much the same way as a typical novel would. This puts greater demand on the story and its characters since there is no series long build up. The bulk of U.S. graphic novels give attention to super heroes but Asian and European publications have a much more wide-ranging choice of genre from office situations to golf. These pocket sized graphic novels have generated decade's long storylines and characters.

For anyone who is new to graphic novels or comics and wish to read a few of the great you can get on the market, try this list:

1. Watchmen

2. Kingdom Come

3. Maus

4. Miracleman: The Golden Age

5. The Dark Knight Returns

6. One piece

7. Lone wolf and cub

5. Crying Freeman

6. Death note

7. Mai, The Psychic Girl

8. Phoenix

9. Eyeshield 21

10. Shonen jump

I'm biased of course but hey, I'm writing this article. Create your own list and remember to look out for the adult warning on some books. Their storylines are varied, multifaceted and entirely addictive. Allow me to share several to choose from.

The expansion of graphic novels within the U.S. remains to be no match for the enormous quantity of material created by the Asian countries. Japan has long been the leader in providing products called Manga. If you are new to this kind of reading matter or else you are just wondering what is offered, you will have a big selection to choose from.

Some of these are available in volumes or in the series. Whether you favor U.S. style graphic novels or Asian style manga, just take your time and forage through the material until you discover your favorites. You may be hooked no matter what your age.