More of Sailor Moon’s Influence!

Malaysian Mangaka Wins Prize From Kodansha!

Japanese manga giant Kodansha recently held it’s second annual Morning International Manga Competition, a manga competition for aspiring mangaka outside of Japan. The winners of the competition get their works published in their Morning and Morning Two magazines. One of the second place winners this year is Katheryn Chong, an 18 year old Malaysian Mangaka who has been drawing manga ever since she was 10 years old. One of the first characters she drew was Sailor Moon, and this inspired her to dream for a career in manga. Kathryn’s Puppet Eyes, a manga about puppets fashioned like real humans who think they might be real, won her $2000 USD. The MIMC judges were "impressed by the talent of a 17-year-old who creates this kind of story." We read the manga online and were very impressed with it - she is still so young and has so much talent already! We have no doubt, she will have a future in the manga industry! When Kathryn learned of her win, she was so overwhelmed that her family suggested her reaction should have been videotaped and put up on YouTube. Kathryn began Puppet Eyes as soon as she had finished her SPM exams (needed before Pre-University) and it took her a month. She learned a lot about what it takes to make a good manga, such as character development and detail. To Kathryn , we salute you for achieving your dream and we wish you the best of luck for the future!

Is The Internet Changing How We Read?

Coming from the New York Times a few days ago, we read of a story that’s given us something to think about. Teenager Nadia Konyk is addicted to the internet - so much so that she doesn’t read books anymore. She’d rather be reading long stories on the internet. Like quite a few readers that we know, she spends her time catching up on social networking sites, YouTube, and Gaia online. When she was younger, her mother tried to read her the Harry Potter books, but she was more interested in anime like Sailor Moon. The article asks the question that with the advent of the internet, is it a good thing that it is inspiring kids to read and write, or a bad thing because kids aren’t interested in reading books anymore? We think that the internet is changing what people read about but at the same time we’re sad to see that books aren’t being read that often anymore. The internet has really opened up some doors in allowing us to bring you, the fans, content you probably wouldn’t find elsewhere very much. The debate this article gives is worth a read for anyone looking for more information.