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Manga in Theory and Practice: The Craft of Creating Manga
【内容紹介】
全く人気が衰えることなく長期連載が続く『ジョジョの奇妙な冒険』の作者、荒木飛呂彦。
「漫画は最強の『総合芸術』」と言い切る彼が、これまで明かすことの無かった漫画の描き方、
その秘密を、作品を題材にしながら披瀝する！
絵を描く際に必要な「美の黄金比」やキャラクター造型に必須の「身上調査書」、
ヘミングウェイに学んだストーリー作りなど、具体的な方法論からその漫画術を明らかに！
本書は、現役の漫画家である著者が自ら手の内を明かす、最初で最後の本である。
【目次】
はじめに
第一章 導入の描き方
第二章 押さえておきたい漫画の「基本四大構造」
第三章 キャラクターの作り方
第四章 ストーリーの作り方
第五章 絵がすべてを表現する
第六章 漫画の「世界観」とは何か
第七章 全ての要素は「テーマ」につながる
実践編その１ 漫画が出来るまで
実践編その２ 短編の描き方
おわりに
全く人気が衰えることなく長期連載が続く『ジョジョの奇妙な冒険』の作者、荒木飛呂彦。
「漫画は最強の『総合芸術』」と言い切る彼が、これまで明かすことの無かった漫画の描き方、
その秘密を、作品を題材にしながら披瀝する！
絵を描く際に必要な「美の黄金比」やキャラクター造型に必須の「身上調査書」、
ヘミングウェイに学んだストーリー作りなど、具体的な方法論からその漫画術を明らかに！
本書は、現役の漫画家である著者が自ら手の内を明かす、最初で最後の本である。
【目次】
はじめに
第一章 導入の描き方
第二章 押さえておきたい漫画の「基本四大構造」
第三章 キャラクターの作り方
第四章 ストーリーの作り方
第五章 絵がすべてを表現する
第六章 漫画の「世界観」とは何か
第七章 全ての要素は「テーマ」につながる
実践編その１ 漫画が出来るまで
実践編その２ 短編の描き方
おわりに
199 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 17, 2015
372 people are currently reading
1825 people want to read
About the author
Hirohiko Araki
650 books2,034 followersHirohiko Araki ( 荒木飛呂彦) is a Japanese manga artist. He left school before graduation from Miyagi University of Education.
He enjoys the baseball manga Kyojin No Hoshii (Star of the Giants); the video games Mario Kart and Bomberman; and likes Prince and other African-American singers, as well as jazz, rock, and rap.
He is a recipient the Tezuka Award for manga.
He enjoys the baseball manga Kyojin No Hoshii (Star of the Giants); the video games Mario Kart and Bomberman; and likes Prince and other African-American singers, as well as jazz, rock, and rap.
He is a recipient the Tezuka Award for manga.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 193 reviews
October 12, 2017
It’s best to look at Hirohiko Araki’s Manga in Theory and Practice as an anecdotal pep talk given by a coach whose team of Jojos have had a twenty-five year run. If you are looking for a step by step anatomization of a mangaka’s secret formula, you might be disappointed, but if you’re willing to let yourself be pumped up by Araki’s chalk talk, in which he not only marks the goalposts for struggling creators, but details his own fumbles and touchdowns, then you will find Manga in Theory and Practice immensely and intensely valuable.
Full review: http://www.nerdspan.com/manga-theory-...
Full review: http://www.nerdspan.com/manga-theory-...
July 30, 2017
As a writer, writing teacher, and a lover of Japanese comics, I was excited when I stumbled upon Hirohiko Araki’s Manga in Theory and Practice: The Craft of Creating Manga on Amazon the other day. Published in English in June of 2017 (it was published in Japanese in 2015) by VIZ Media, it was of immediate interested because Araki is the writer/creator of the manga epic Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, which has been running in Shonen Jump for over 25 years. So, naturally, I snagged the eBook edition of the book for my tablet and started reading.
Having just finished the book, I wanted to share my thoughts, but if you want the short version of my review, here it is: If you want to write Shonen (boys) adventure stories like Naruto, One Piece, and Dragonball, this is a must read. If you’re a new writer looking for a basic book on writing in general, this is a pretty good read. If you’re an experienced writer who has read/written lots, it’s an interesting read, but mostly from a cultural perspective. It’d give it 4/5 stars.
Okay, with that out of the way, lets divide this up into the Pros and Cons of this book.
I’m going to start with the Cons, just to get them out of the way, and because they’re short.
-Araki is a oldschool battle manga/pulp adventure writer. So that’s what he’s basically teaching you how to write in this book. If you want to write something else, it can still be useful, but this might not be the book for you. He’s also a bit of a maverick, with his own way of doing things that falls outside of the norm even by boys manga standards. (He didn’t apprentice under the previous generation, is largely self-taught, and his stories are often radically different than most other Shonen stories are.)
-This isn’t a book for visual artists, except in the very general sense. He’s got a lot of suggestions and comments about manga art and comic composition, but it won’t teach you serious hardcore artistic theory like Scott McCloud’s Making Comics and Understanding Comics will. Heck, even those “How to Draw Manga” books will likely give you more actual how-to than this book does, if that’s your chosen style.
-Piggybacking on that, the rest of this book is for writers, but again, it’s really just a collection of tips and basic theory that he’s picked up over 25 years in the business. If you want to get into how to write story in depth, John Truby’s The Anatomy of Story is the book you want. Also, the story structure he teaches (Ki-Sho-Ten-Ketsu) is really intended for short stories and chapters of longer serials, and he doesn’t really go into writing and structuring a full serial.
-A lot of the advice here is specifically for the Japanese manga market, because this is just a translation of a Japanese book for a Japanese audience, not an edition for foreigners.
-He gives a passage from a Hemmingway story and claims that it tells us information that it really doesn’t. I have to wonder if this is a mis-translation of what he was saying the passage was supposed to be giving us.
-There are a few times when the translation is a bit unclear, but those are few and far between overall.
Okay, that aside, let’s look at what the book does well.
-This is a really good primer on writing in general for new writers, whether you’re a visual artist or a pure writer, or both.
-This is a great book for understanding the ways of thinking that lay behind writing boys manga (aka The Golden Road), and how Japanese view creating manga in general. His thoughts on how manga are more emotionally driven than western comics are were interesting to read, and he really takes you through the process of creating his manga and how the Japanese manga artist system works. (If this part interests you, you should also read the manga Bakuman, which covers this in more detail and in more dramatic form.)
-Araki’s thoughts on the relationship between Setting, Story and Character and how they’re all tied together by Theme are worth remembering and a good primer for new writers. He also gives a lot of good tips and suggestions about those elements of story and how they work in a Shonen comic.
-The Ki-Sho-Ten-Ketsu story structure he outlines is a good one for short story writers to keep in mind, and simple and flexible while still offering a straightforward way to structure your stories. (One of his two Implementation chapters acts as an example in great detail, which is also nice. Although after you read it, you can look at any Shonen comic and see it in action immediately.)
-He goes into great detail about how he creates characters, and even shows you his character template that he uses to think through his characters before he sits down and designs them visually.
-He goes into detail about his own experiences moving up through the manga industry. It’s not quite “On Writing” (Stephen King’s book), but it does give you a feeling for his highs and lows in the industry.
-You get a behind the scenes look at his Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure series, and the thoughts, ideas and approaches that went into making it the series it is. (I have to say, as a Jojo’s fan, I really enjoyed all the tidbits about the series he scatters throughout the book.)
-It’s a pretty quick and easy read. It took me about 3 hours to read, and I wasn’t trying to power through it.
Overall, I enjoyed reading it, and as I said above, I recommend it to new writers and Shonen manga fans. Araki himself says this book is really intended as a “passing of the torch” book where he shares his secrets with the next generation of manga producers, and that’s what it is. There isn’t likely to be too many mind-blowing ideas here, but there is a lot of things worth thinking about, and I’m very glad I was able to read it. Like I said above, if you enjoyed this, try Bakuman next, which is a dramatized version of this topic. (And an amazing one at that.)
Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to track down his Rohan Kishibe stories, which look amazing.
Rob
Having just finished the book, I wanted to share my thoughts, but if you want the short version of my review, here it is: If you want to write Shonen (boys) adventure stories like Naruto, One Piece, and Dragonball, this is a must read. If you’re a new writer looking for a basic book on writing in general, this is a pretty good read. If you’re an experienced writer who has read/written lots, it’s an interesting read, but mostly from a cultural perspective. It’d give it 4/5 stars.
Okay, with that out of the way, lets divide this up into the Pros and Cons of this book.
I’m going to start with the Cons, just to get them out of the way, and because they’re short.
-Araki is a oldschool battle manga/pulp adventure writer. So that’s what he’s basically teaching you how to write in this book. If you want to write something else, it can still be useful, but this might not be the book for you. He’s also a bit of a maverick, with his own way of doing things that falls outside of the norm even by boys manga standards. (He didn’t apprentice under the previous generation, is largely self-taught, and his stories are often radically different than most other Shonen stories are.)
-This isn’t a book for visual artists, except in the very general sense. He’s got a lot of suggestions and comments about manga art and comic composition, but it won’t teach you serious hardcore artistic theory like Scott McCloud’s Making Comics and Understanding Comics will. Heck, even those “How to Draw Manga” books will likely give you more actual how-to than this book does, if that’s your chosen style.
-Piggybacking on that, the rest of this book is for writers, but again, it’s really just a collection of tips and basic theory that he’s picked up over 25 years in the business. If you want to get into how to write story in depth, John Truby’s The Anatomy of Story is the book you want. Also, the story structure he teaches (Ki-Sho-Ten-Ketsu) is really intended for short stories and chapters of longer serials, and he doesn’t really go into writing and structuring a full serial.
-A lot of the advice here is specifically for the Japanese manga market, because this is just a translation of a Japanese book for a Japanese audience, not an edition for foreigners.
-He gives a passage from a Hemmingway story and claims that it tells us information that it really doesn’t. I have to wonder if this is a mis-translation of what he was saying the passage was supposed to be giving us.
-There are a few times when the translation is a bit unclear, but those are few and far between overall.
Okay, that aside, let’s look at what the book does well.
-This is a really good primer on writing in general for new writers, whether you’re a visual artist or a pure writer, or both.
-This is a great book for understanding the ways of thinking that lay behind writing boys manga (aka The Golden Road), and how Japanese view creating manga in general. His thoughts on how manga are more emotionally driven than western comics are were interesting to read, and he really takes you through the process of creating his manga and how the Japanese manga artist system works. (If this part interests you, you should also read the manga Bakuman, which covers this in more detail and in more dramatic form.)
-Araki’s thoughts on the relationship between Setting, Story and Character and how they’re all tied together by Theme are worth remembering and a good primer for new writers. He also gives a lot of good tips and suggestions about those elements of story and how they work in a Shonen comic.
-The Ki-Sho-Ten-Ketsu story structure he outlines is a good one for short story writers to keep in mind, and simple and flexible while still offering a straightforward way to structure your stories. (One of his two Implementation chapters acts as an example in great detail, which is also nice. Although after you read it, you can look at any Shonen comic and see it in action immediately.)
-He goes into great detail about how he creates characters, and even shows you his character template that he uses to think through his characters before he sits down and designs them visually.
-He goes into detail about his own experiences moving up through the manga industry. It’s not quite “On Writing” (Stephen King’s book), but it does give you a feeling for his highs and lows in the industry.
-You get a behind the scenes look at his Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure series, and the thoughts, ideas and approaches that went into making it the series it is. (I have to say, as a Jojo’s fan, I really enjoyed all the tidbits about the series he scatters throughout the book.)
-It’s a pretty quick and easy read. It took me about 3 hours to read, and I wasn’t trying to power through it.
Overall, I enjoyed reading it, and as I said above, I recommend it to new writers and Shonen manga fans. Araki himself says this book is really intended as a “passing of the torch” book where he shares his secrets with the next generation of manga producers, and that’s what it is. There isn’t likely to be too many mind-blowing ideas here, but there is a lot of things worth thinking about, and I’m very glad I was able to read it. Like I said above, if you enjoyed this, try Bakuman next, which is a dramatized version of this topic. (And an amazing one at that.)
Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to track down his Rohan Kishibe stories, which look amazing.
Rob
February 8, 2022
An exceptional introduction to creating manga that is flawed by implicit gender and racial bias
If entertainment is about reaffirming the values and tacit biases of the audience, and art is about encountering the unfamiliar and expanding horizons, Hirihiko Araki is clearly an entertainer. In his book, Manga Theory and Practice, Araki provides exceptionally clear guidance for conceiving and designing successful manga and provides informative examples that precisely illustrate each of his points. The book is a marvel of synthesis and summary, bringing to life the mangaka's creative process with an economy that surely reflects a lifetime of thinking carefully about the ways in which words and images communicate. You'll learn more than the steps for making manga, because he teaches you how to think and reflect about each step and which considerations are (in his professional experience) most important.
The book's main flaw - and it's a serious one - is its uncritical use of racial and gender bias. Araki writes and draws shonen, the most popular manga genre, aimed at boys and young men, as opposed to shojo (manga for girls). (Other genres include josei (for women 18-40), gekiga ( "dramatic pictures," complex narratives for adults), yaoi (or Boy's Love, about gay male relationships written by and for women), yuri (lesbian romance), bara (explicit gay narratives), Adventure, Sports, and Comedy). Much of his advice - such as the hero never being allowed to fail - is shaped by his experience writing weekly and monthly shonen where each installment has to excite the reader enough to read the next episode. Extensive reader surveys are conducted, and the least popular manga get cut. As such, the system, while an effective marketing device, has to play into the existing biases of its young male audience. It's a machine for perpetuating patriarchal attitudes about gender and reflects a shallow reasoning about emotions, personality, and success based on pop psychology. The upside is that its themes often convey positive moral messages about perseverance, friendship, and justice. Further, manga had grown as an industry to reflect a more inclusive perspective that values diversity.
Still, because it is entertainment, it relies on and reflects insidious biases in the world around it. In one section, Araki comments on shading a character to give him a more "ethnic" experience. He's also careful to identify the character as Egyptian, not African. First, one thing that is strange about this comment is that many manga characters appear either as Caucasian or as a hybrid caucasian-asian mix, although there are plenty of manga characters drawn to clearly be Japanese. But Araki's characters fall in the former category. So he's drawing characters that one might think of as "ethnic" or foreign-looking from a native Japanese perspective (given many of his characters look Caucasian), yet he assumes identification with these clearly non-Japanese characters as if they are native. He reserves the term "ethnic" for the African character - although he doesn't call the African character "African," instead calling him "Egyptian." There's a complex, probably unconscious bias at work here, one that continues the long standing, racist separation of Egypt from Africa that allows Caucasians, and the West more generally, to claim kinship with the mystique of Ancient Egyptian culture without identifying themselves with Africa, since Africans are still implicitly seen as being worth less than lighter skinned people in the popular imaginary. Entertainer or not, we should expect more than this from Araki.
From an instructional perspective, this is an excellent book to the extent that it clearly identifies the elements of manga, the way these elements connect, shape, and depend on each other, and it communicates something of the mythos, lexis (linguistic and visual) and ethos that makes manga, manga. It's the ethos part of the equation that makes this book problematic.
In the end, Araki shows all the signs of an excellent teacher - but his translator or editor should have been more aware of some of the cultural resonances that make some of the commentary disturbing.
If entertainment is about reaffirming the values and tacit biases of the audience, and art is about encountering the unfamiliar and expanding horizons, Hirihiko Araki is clearly an entertainer. In his book, Manga Theory and Practice, Araki provides exceptionally clear guidance for conceiving and designing successful manga and provides informative examples that precisely illustrate each of his points. The book is a marvel of synthesis and summary, bringing to life the mangaka's creative process with an economy that surely reflects a lifetime of thinking carefully about the ways in which words and images communicate. You'll learn more than the steps for making manga, because he teaches you how to think and reflect about each step and which considerations are (in his professional experience) most important.
The book's main flaw - and it's a serious one - is its uncritical use of racial and gender bias. Araki writes and draws shonen, the most popular manga genre, aimed at boys and young men, as opposed to shojo (manga for girls). (Other genres include josei (for women 18-40), gekiga ( "dramatic pictures," complex narratives for adults), yaoi (or Boy's Love, about gay male relationships written by and for women), yuri (lesbian romance), bara (explicit gay narratives), Adventure, Sports, and Comedy). Much of his advice - such as the hero never being allowed to fail - is shaped by his experience writing weekly and monthly shonen where each installment has to excite the reader enough to read the next episode. Extensive reader surveys are conducted, and the least popular manga get cut. As such, the system, while an effective marketing device, has to play into the existing biases of its young male audience. It's a machine for perpetuating patriarchal attitudes about gender and reflects a shallow reasoning about emotions, personality, and success based on pop psychology. The upside is that its themes often convey positive moral messages about perseverance, friendship, and justice. Further, manga had grown as an industry to reflect a more inclusive perspective that values diversity.
Still, because it is entertainment, it relies on and reflects insidious biases in the world around it. In one section, Araki comments on shading a character to give him a more "ethnic" experience. He's also careful to identify the character as Egyptian, not African. First, one thing that is strange about this comment is that many manga characters appear either as Caucasian or as a hybrid caucasian-asian mix, although there are plenty of manga characters drawn to clearly be Japanese. But Araki's characters fall in the former category. So he's drawing characters that one might think of as "ethnic" or foreign-looking from a native Japanese perspective (given many of his characters look Caucasian), yet he assumes identification with these clearly non-Japanese characters as if they are native. He reserves the term "ethnic" for the African character - although he doesn't call the African character "African," instead calling him "Egyptian." There's a complex, probably unconscious bias at work here, one that continues the long standing, racist separation of Egypt from Africa that allows Caucasians, and the West more generally, to claim kinship with the mystique of Ancient Egyptian culture without identifying themselves with Africa, since Africans are still implicitly seen as being worth less than lighter skinned people in the popular imaginary. Entertainer or not, we should expect more than this from Araki.
From an instructional perspective, this is an excellent book to the extent that it clearly identifies the elements of manga, the way these elements connect, shape, and depend on each other, and it communicates something of the mythos, lexis (linguistic and visual) and ethos that makes manga, manga. It's the ethos part of the equation that makes this book problematic.
In the end, Araki shows all the signs of an excellent teacher - but his translator or editor should have been more aware of some of the cultural resonances that make some of the commentary disturbing.
June 16, 2020
I recently got obsessed with Jojo's Bizarre Adventure and my interest extended towards this book. Hirohiko Araki generously shares the main principles of his craft, that – as he states himself – are valid and applicable to every form of storytelling. The book itself is very orderly and concise, with plenty of examples, useful tips and encouraging messages. My favourite one is definitely this:
If you find a theme that interests you and connects with you on a personal level – even if you think that theme may be too dark to sell – you should resolve to create your manga around that theme. Your manga's success will not depend upon a seemingly salable theme. Whatever your theme is, if it feels right to you, and you layer upon it characters and story that move you, it will undoubtedly be an interesting work, and one that readers will welcome.
Overall, I recommend Manga in Theory and Practice to anyone who wants to become a storyteller, especially if you love the creative craziness of Hirohiko Araki's world.
If you find a theme that interests you and connects with you on a personal level – even if you think that theme may be too dark to sell – you should resolve to create your manga around that theme. Your manga's success will not depend upon a seemingly salable theme. Whatever your theme is, if it feels right to you, and you layer upon it characters and story that move you, it will undoubtedly be an interesting work, and one that readers will welcome.
Overall, I recommend Manga in Theory and Practice to anyone who wants to become a storyteller, especially if you love the creative craziness of Hirohiko Araki's world.
October 12, 2023
Being a Jojo fan, wanted to pick and read about the mind behind the famous manga and his expertise in the field of making a manga. This is one of my best non-fictional reads of the year and it sits at the same level as Stephen King's book on writing. Observing the process of manga creation and the steps to succeed in creating good manga is pure fun and worth reading.
Read
June 15, 2017Hirohiko Araki es un gran maestro del manga. Con su extravagante
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure
no sólo ha conseguido fusionar el canon clásico griego con la estética manga, el hiper-dinamismo y las historias cuasi-mitológicas rayano la parodia histérica, sino también algo mucho más difícil: un estilo propio capaz de encandilar al público.
Manga in Theory and Practice es Araki abriéndonos su cabeza y enseñándonos todos sus secretos. Como él mismo señala, una idea tan mala como la del mago explicando sus trucos.
¿Qué hace concretamente en el libro? Nos explica cuáles son las claves universales de la narrativa, cuáles son los elementos más importantes del manga y, para mostrarnos porqué es así y no de otra manera, también nos pone ejemplos tanto de su propia obra como de la de otros, sean del manga o fuera de él. Porque Araki no cree que su libro esté limitado al aspirante a mangaka. Ni siquiera que el manga sea una singularidad. A sus ojos, las leyes del manga son leyes universales. Todo medio narrativo, de la literatura al cine pasando por el manga o el teatro, siguen las reglas que él recopila en el libro.
O no exactamente reglas.
Araki no cree que existe algo así como un manual para conseguir el éxito. Él cree en los puntos clave, los elementos existente en todas las obras de éxito, pero no en las reglas universales. Cada obra es una montaña. Y para escalar esa montaña, el autor debe encontrar sus propios medios, incluso si hace uso de un mapa. En otras palabras, Araki nos da las bases a partir de las cuales cada artista debe encontrar su método.
A ese respecto, podríamos decir que el tema detrás del libro no es la creación. Es la mirada. La necesidad de educar la mirada para crear cualquier cosa.
Aún explicando la necesidad de los cuatro elementos regidores de toda narración —personajes, historia, escenario y tema; en ese estricto orden de importancia— Araki siempre acaba poniendo algo de sí mismo entre líneas. Cual es el método que él utiliza, o ha utilizado, para llegar hasta sus conclusiones. Y en ese arranque metodológico, es donde deja ver lo obvio: consiste no en hacer, sino en mirar.
Araki anota cosas. Por lo que dice, lo anota todo. Cuando algo le llama la atención, le gusta o no lo entiende, lo anota. Pero no sólo hace una simple anotación: intenta explicarse porqué le ha llamado la atención, porqué le gusta o porque no lo entiende. De ese modo, cuando tenga que hacer algo, puede acudir a sus apuntes y aprovecharlo para dar forma a un personaje o circunstancia.
¿Qué quiere decir eso? Que el método de Araki es puramente observacional. Todo lo que nos da son tres reglas —la necesidad de calibrar los cuatro elementos regidores, que la historia tenga un orden ascendente y que el tema sea importante para nosotros como individuos— y todo lo demás que nos dice es «el resto es observar». Observar todo.
¿Y cómo se observa? Observando. Haciéndose preguntas. Diseccionando todo hasta entender cómo funciona en sus elementos más básicos. Creando un diccionario visual y narrativo.
No hay truco. Ni talento ni genio ni excepcionalidad. Sólo el trabajo duro, metódico e inteligente de ir generando un diccionario cada vez más grande. Aprender lo que funciona, y explotarlo, aprender lo que no funciona, y evitarlo. Observar no hasta que la narrativa y el arte sean nuestra segunda piel, sino hasta que lo sean la curiosidad y la necesidad de observar.
Ese es el verdadero camino dorado del que habla Araki. De la curiosidad infinita del artista nunca del todo satisfecho.
Manga in Theory and Practice es Araki abriéndonos su cabeza y enseñándonos todos sus secretos. Como él mismo señala, una idea tan mala como la del mago explicando sus trucos.
¿Qué hace concretamente en el libro? Nos explica cuáles son las claves universales de la narrativa, cuáles son los elementos más importantes del manga y, para mostrarnos porqué es así y no de otra manera, también nos pone ejemplos tanto de su propia obra como de la de otros, sean del manga o fuera de él. Porque Araki no cree que su libro esté limitado al aspirante a mangaka. Ni siquiera que el manga sea una singularidad. A sus ojos, las leyes del manga son leyes universales. Todo medio narrativo, de la literatura al cine pasando por el manga o el teatro, siguen las reglas que él recopila en el libro.
O no exactamente reglas.
Araki no cree que existe algo así como un manual para conseguir el éxito. Él cree en los puntos clave, los elementos existente en todas las obras de éxito, pero no en las reglas universales. Cada obra es una montaña. Y para escalar esa montaña, el autor debe encontrar sus propios medios, incluso si hace uso de un mapa. En otras palabras, Araki nos da las bases a partir de las cuales cada artista debe encontrar su método.
A ese respecto, podríamos decir que el tema detrás del libro no es la creación. Es la mirada. La necesidad de educar la mirada para crear cualquier cosa.
Aún explicando la necesidad de los cuatro elementos regidores de toda narración —personajes, historia, escenario y tema; en ese estricto orden de importancia— Araki siempre acaba poniendo algo de sí mismo entre líneas. Cual es el método que él utiliza, o ha utilizado, para llegar hasta sus conclusiones. Y en ese arranque metodológico, es donde deja ver lo obvio: consiste no en hacer, sino en mirar.
Araki anota cosas. Por lo que dice, lo anota todo. Cuando algo le llama la atención, le gusta o no lo entiende, lo anota. Pero no sólo hace una simple anotación: intenta explicarse porqué le ha llamado la atención, porqué le gusta o porque no lo entiende. De ese modo, cuando tenga que hacer algo, puede acudir a sus apuntes y aprovecharlo para dar forma a un personaje o circunstancia.
¿Qué quiere decir eso? Que el método de Araki es puramente observacional. Todo lo que nos da son tres reglas —la necesidad de calibrar los cuatro elementos regidores, que la historia tenga un orden ascendente y que el tema sea importante para nosotros como individuos— y todo lo demás que nos dice es «el resto es observar». Observar todo.
¿Y cómo se observa? Observando. Haciéndose preguntas. Diseccionando todo hasta entender cómo funciona en sus elementos más básicos. Creando un diccionario visual y narrativo.
No hay truco. Ni talento ni genio ni excepcionalidad. Sólo el trabajo duro, metódico e inteligente de ir generando un diccionario cada vez más grande. Aprender lo que funciona, y explotarlo, aprender lo que no funciona, y evitarlo. Observar no hasta que la narrativa y el arte sean nuestra segunda piel, sino hasta que lo sean la curiosidad y la necesidad de observar.
Ese es el verdadero camino dorado del que habla Araki. De la curiosidad infinita del artista nunca del todo satisfecho.
February 23, 2023
The positive. I like Arawi's thesis that manga rely on four fundamentals - characters, settings, story, theme - tied together by the art. I particularly agree on his view on settings and the kind of questions and research that go behind their creation. Anyhow, my favourite part of the book - or maybe, the useful one to me - is the chapter about drawing. A few pages that hit the nail on the head on the different between signification and realism in comics art. Also, I find helpful his quick suggestions on how to represent water, air, fire and light.
The negative. Oversall, this book offers quite a limited view of what manga are, can or should be. The scope is very strict: a bunch of advices on how to survive the task of plotting a serialised adventure manga for a long time. Maybe the formula proposed by Araki in this book works. I guess that it worked for him. He calls it, very humbly, 'the Royal Way to manga'. But the tone is a bit too categorical, as if Arawi could not conceive ways of publishing a successful shonen manga other than the one he has experienced. To be fair, he corrects the shot in the conclusion, by clearly stating that there is no 'one way' and he never intended to propose one. If anything, he suggests the new mangaka to search for new unexplored routes, then use such a book as a map to go back to a traced territory when they got lost. This is way better, but the clarification felt a bit late to me. Why not writing it at the beginning of the book, Arawi?!
The chapter that puzzles me the most is the one about characters. I agree with Arawi that they are at the core of the plotting, more than the story itself. But the view on the subject of the author feels quite strict. Arguments are of the kind:
- the hero must always rise, or always fall, but never go through ups and downs, because that confuses the reader and looses their interest...
- never end the story where it began, the reader always needs a payoff...
- never let your hero hesitate in his journey...
It sounds like the Royal Way to 200 more years of dumb battle manga.
The negative. Oversall, this book offers quite a limited view of what manga are, can or should be. The scope is very strict: a bunch of advices on how to survive the task of plotting a serialised adventure manga for a long time. Maybe the formula proposed by Araki in this book works. I guess that it worked for him. He calls it, very humbly, 'the Royal Way to manga'. But the tone is a bit too categorical, as if Arawi could not conceive ways of publishing a successful shonen manga other than the one he has experienced. To be fair, he corrects the shot in the conclusion, by clearly stating that there is no 'one way' and he never intended to propose one. If anything, he suggests the new mangaka to search for new unexplored routes, then use such a book as a map to go back to a traced territory when they got lost. This is way better, but the clarification felt a bit late to me. Why not writing it at the beginning of the book, Arawi?!
The chapter that puzzles me the most is the one about characters. I agree with Arawi that they are at the core of the plotting, more than the story itself. But the view on the subject of the author feels quite strict. Arguments are of the kind:
- the hero must always rise, or always fall, but never go through ups and downs, because that confuses the reader and looses their interest...
- never end the story where it began, the reader always needs a payoff...
- never let your hero hesitate in his journey...
It sounds like the Royal Way to 200 more years of dumb battle manga.
February 26, 2025
¡Uuufff! ¿Qué puedo decir de este libro? ¡Es realmente un tesoro! Bendigo a Hirohiko Araki por haberlo creado, pues es una gran luz que me guía en mi camino a ser mangaka. Al haberme adentrado a este mundo de la creación de un manga, me sentía perdida y hasta cierto punto aturdida. Sin embargo, este ejemplar me ha ayudado en mi camino y aunque no lo usaré al pie de la letra, sí lo utilizaré como base para realizar mi primer manga. Gracias, Hirohiko.
November 9, 2023
It’s awesome to see a mangaka show his process. From character creation to character development to plot and story. With examples (like his character sheet, which I have adopted for my own writing) I have a binder of character sheets. My issue is writing small enough. With a man as experienced as Araki I’ll take his advice. Even if it costs me 20 bucks and a few hours of my time to read and learn
August 19, 2025
Let's get this outta the way. I very much like JoJo's Bizarre Adventure (
JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken.
) That said, I don't think it's perfect and is marred by numerous errors, mostly owing to the unforgiving nature of the drafting, creating, publishing, mangaka.
My favourite parts in order are (always changing): 7 > 5 > 4 > 2 > 6 > 1 > 3,
with JoJolion either slipping between 7&5 or 4&2 depending on what side of the bed I woke up on.
I left any dreams of becoming a comic book artist, let alone a mangaka, behind me more than ten years ago, but still admire the passion and dedication. I aim to apply that ferocious passion to my own work, wherever possible, while also learning the lessons of burnout and overtime that beguile the best of them - R.I.P Miura. So, I read this book to understand JoJo's, Hirohiko, himself, and perhaps even to learn some tips on how to keep writing exciting in the ways I, relatively, admire in his work.
---
It's Araki, so the pretension is to be expected. The beginning dedicates a lot of time to discussion of this 'golden way' - I'm excited to keep my ears open and pick up some good guidance.
CH1 - GETTING STARTED
Araki recounts his failures, his rejected submissions, and how he grew from mimicking and copying by learning how to foster his own originality. This led to the realisation that the first page is integral - without them turning it, everything collapses, and all your work is for nothing.
He then goes on to recount how important titles are. In particular he enjoys striking, absurd ones, or ones with the character's name (which, well, makes sense.)
Is worthwhile advice given to many children but often forgotten later down the line, especially in writing. It shouldn't be outwardly apparent all the time, sometimes illusionary, but they are the words that glue together intrigue.
CH2 - MASTERING THE FOUR MAJOR FUNDAMENTALS OF MANGA STRUCTURE
The four fundamentals are, in order of importance:
• Characters
• Story
• Setting
• Themes
they influence one another, and are not mutually exclusive. He also stresses the importance of questioning why you enjoy the things you enjoy, and over analyse their latent informative content.
CH3 - DESIGNING CHARACTERS
True, with admitted exception and alternative or fringe forms, of other mediums. Whether it be Jay, Gatsby, and Daisy; or the Xenomorph, the Babadook, the velociraptor of Jurassic Park. Could go on; characters are, often, key. I could name a ton of exceptions but the case is still a strong one. Especially if the metric result is 'popularity' or 'success' (often the same thing to some.)
He then goes onto discuss villains, of particular interest to me (given how truly irredeemable yet irresistible his cartoonish characters are):
Major props to him for admitting the earlier arcs were marginally defined by their abundance of dichotomies. I was drawn to it for the same reasons I was drawn to Sonic Adventure 2, Yin and Yang, and the colour grey. But while fantastic for superficial reasons, it's too reductive, as he admits and says he learned from (and I believe) later on. Perhaps JoJolion was a test of this, and that's where my complex feelings towards it lie.
In many ways, I agree. In some ways, I disagree. Still, nonetheless, those I admire fall in this camp.
This, I agree with, however!
He then proceeds to layout his indispensable character creation sheets, alongside how he likes to interplay various characters against one another to create scenarios.
Genuinely inspiring. "“If you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking.” - Haruki Murakami
He then discusses how, essentially, the use of effective friction between characters and motivations can create intrigue and fascination, as well as an enthusiastic reader-base.
CH4 - HOW TO WRITE A STORY
Araki denotes the importance of 'motion' in a character, as well as rooted sense, and a feeling that they are evolving in some form by the conclusion, even across long running works (stagnation found in The Simpsons, and their clumsy attempts to fix it, are indicative of this).
...reminds me of The Pledge, Turn, and Prestige employed by magicians and improvisors. As well as, of course, the three act structure, heroes circle, and kabuki theatre, among other frameworks.
It was at 'story taboos' that I became convinced of something. He lists four things to avoid, and I believe he is not just 'guilty' but trademarked by three of them... Most specifically in JoJolion's conclusion, which he almost directly alludes to here. I'm convinced JoJolion was written around and through this book, almost self referring and recurring into itself. It explains a lot, from Gappy's duality to The Wonder of U.
CH5 - ART EXPRESSES EVERYTHING
Even as an author of English literature who doesn't use the STRICTLY visual medium to convey my message, this is stellar advice. Every author of merit I know has a signifier to them; some trademark or aspect that I come to them for. Figuring that out in advance, or earlier on, is key. Likewise, realism is balanced in every work, even the most fantastical, and becomes - in a way - another signifier.
Likewise, I've been drawing inspiration from Greco-Roman statues and post-enlightened paintings for my writing. Something about the depth and complexity of a statue is awe inspiring; I'd very much like to visit Italy, myself sometime.
Agree. Again, not just attributed to art. For me, art also acts as a time conduit by which to extend an individual's life. Let's say an author spends eight years on a book you can read in four hours and then reiterate the gained knowledge of: the author has dilated time required to achieve those epiphanies. It's my belief that this is why our societies grow 'wiser' - as they accelerate ascertainment of knowledge and improve the time required to share the information.
Also, he then goes on to explain how, because of this philosophy, he developed Hamon and Stands - "while Hamon made superpowers visible, Stands took the next step and made them into characters."
and
Are among the reasons Araki is one of the best mangakas of all time. He's a honed automaton with more emotion than most, and you can feel it from the drawings, his expression through figures in passionate motion - he's always having fun, and keeping his love of art afloat. I don't think I've seen a truly, truly lazy drawing from him. Especially in his later years.
CH6 - WHAT SETTING IS TO MANGA
Be thorough in research, rooting your story in its setting using minute details - phone types, chart topping songs, or even just flora and natural detail. He also recommends visiting the location, if it's a place that exists in life. He travelled to Egypt numerous times, and trekked the distance of Steel Ball Run by himself.
CH7 - ALL ELEMENTS CONNECT TO THE THEM
Every artist, author, musician, whatever, needs to evaluate this. Are you doing this so others can see you do it and congratulate you, eternally? Or do you WANT to do it, regardless? Is it built into you? Do you want to build it into you? Or do you want to pretend until you can't anymore?
---
He then provides two valuable chapters on implementing these tips into his own work, with examples and everything - extremely interesting to any existing fan of his work. In particular, his drafting procedure, focus on lens, insistence on thorough research, and establishment of hooks and motivators for both the characters and reader.
My closing conclusion is this: ultimately, the 'golden way' or 'royal road' to Hirohiko Araki is alike to Shelley's 'sublime.' That is to say, it is directly linked to his philosophy on the 'Golden Ratio' or symmetrical perfection; divine beauty derived by synchronised, synergised points of emphasis. He understands he does not achieve this all the time, but aims to achieve it where possible by refining his style and attitudes accordingly to maximise the propensity.
Reading this book has confirmed some of my suspicions of JoJolion's 'shoddy writing' but beautiful execution. It was deliberate, him employing the tropes and mechanics he'd neglected or despised in the past, and an opportunity for him to indulge in all he'd once strove to avoid. It was him letting go and having fun again.
Now, while the book is poorly translated in places, and the advice itself fairly vague or common (with exceptions, of course), I'd still recommend an admirer of Araki read this work. It is overflowing with enthusiasm and passion by someone who truly adores the form in a way few living mangaka do. It's filled with great tips for ALL artistic expressions - even a dancer might take something from his words. However, it's not for one who is unfamiliar with him, and would come of as simplistic, perhaps pretentious.
This is one of the longest 'reviews' I've ever done, because I've wanted to read this book for a decade and decided to give it more than my full attention. Thank you, Araki!
---
My favourite parts in order are (always changing): 7 > 5 > 4 > 2 > 6 > 1 > 3,
with JoJolion either slipping between 7&5 or 4&2 depending on what side of the bed I woke up on.
I left any dreams of becoming a comic book artist, let alone a mangaka, behind me more than ten years ago, but still admire the passion and dedication. I aim to apply that ferocious passion to my own work, wherever possible, while also learning the lessons of burnout and overtime that beguile the best of them - R.I.P Miura. So, I read this book to understand JoJo's, Hirohiko, himself, and perhaps even to learn some tips on how to keep writing exciting in the ways I, relatively, admire in his work.
---
Think of the golden way of which I write in this book as signposts directing you to the royal road of manga at the summit. Attempts to reach those heights without any such map or anything else to guide the way will be frustrated far from the peak. This is something I’ve seen and heard happen many times. [...] To be perfectly honest, by making public ideas and methodologies that are trade secrets, which up until now I’ve held under monopoly, the publishing of this book will be disadvantageous to me on a personal level. But I’m writing this book because my desire to impart these techniques is far greater than any disadvantage that may come from revealing them."
It's Araki, so the pretension is to be expected. The beginning dedicates a lot of time to discussion of this 'golden way' - I'm excited to keep my ears open and pick up some good guidance.
CH1 - GETTING STARTED
Araki recounts his failures, his rejected submissions, and how he grew from mimicking and copying by learning how to foster his own originality. This led to the realisation that the first page is integral - without them turning it, everything collapses, and all your work is for nothing.
"How I found the solution was through systematically analysing the first pages of popular manga. Since every mangaka takes special care with their first pages, I could study those leading pages to see what the creators were trying to achieve and the effects of their techniques, and use that knowledge to bring my own work alive. One word of warning: studying best-selling publications is crucial to finding what elements sell, but you mustn’t simply copy those works."
He then goes on to recount how important titles are. In particular he enjoys striking, absurd ones, or ones with the character's name (which, well, makes sense.)
"At the most basic level, the first panel should illustrate the five Ws and one H—in other words, who is doing what, and when and where, and why and how."
Is worthwhile advice given to many children but often forgotten later down the line, especially in writing. It shouldn't be outwardly apparent all the time, sometimes illusionary, but they are the words that glue together intrigue.
CH2 - MASTERING THE FOUR MAJOR FUNDAMENTALS OF MANGA STRUCTURE
The four fundamentals are, in order of importance:
• Characters
• Story
• Setting
• Themes
they influence one another, and are not mutually exclusive. He also stresses the importance of questioning why you enjoy the things you enjoy, and over analyse their latent informative content.
CH3 - DESIGNING CHARACTERS
"Some mangaka will go as far as to say that if you have characters, you have a manga."
True, with admitted exception and alternative or fringe forms, of other mediums. Whether it be Jay, Gatsby, and Daisy; or the Xenomorph, the Babadook, the velociraptor of Jurassic Park. Could go on; characters are, often, key. I could name a ton of exceptions but the case is still a strong one. Especially if the metric result is 'popularity' or 'success' (often the same thing to some.)
"The most important part of a character is their motivation. What does your protagonist want to accomplish? [...] Your characters’ motivations have to gain the interest and empathy of your readers. A good motivation is one that makes the reader wonder what will happen to that character, and what that character will do, because then the reader will want to keep reading. [...] You need to include in your main characters weaknesses or faults, or more human desires."
He then goes onto discuss villains, of particular interest to me (given how truly irredeemable yet irresistible his cartoonish characters are):
That said, being able to get readers to empathize with ugly desires is a tremendously tall hurdle, one that requires thought and planning to overcome. Once you have that ability, you could turn even a heartless killer into your main character.
In Dio’s case, I depicted him as coming from an unfortunate upbringing, saddled with a father who had no redeeming qualities whatsoever. [...]
With Jonathan and Dio, I based the characters off the duality between light and shadow, and used black and white contrasts in my drawing to set them apart.
But sometimes the difference between good and evil may depend on your readers’ viewpoints. As I’ve grown older, I’ve found that good and evil are not so easily delineated, and I’ve taken more interest in the reasons why people do bad things."
Major props to him for admitting the earlier arcs were marginally defined by their abundance of dichotomies. I was drawn to it for the same reasons I was drawn to Sonic Adventure 2, Yin and Yang, and the colour grey. But while fantastic for superficial reasons, it's too reductive, as he admits and says he learned from (and I believe) later on. Perhaps JoJolion was a test of this, and that's where my complex feelings towards it lie.
"There may be nothing more beautiful than a person who pursues something important, regardless of society’s approval, and even if it means standing alone."
In many ways, I agree. In some ways, I disagree. Still, nonetheless, those I admire fall in this camp.
"I think that even if you’re creating a manga that includes love and romance, you could have it be between two male characters, as long as that fits with your manga’s world. As long as your characters are appealing, you could get away with a world of all men. You have nothing to fear."
This, I agree with, however!
He then proceeds to layout his indispensable character creation sheets, alongside how he likes to interplay various characters against one another to create scenarios.
"At the time, Star Wars (1977) was wildly popular, but I preferred Carrie (1976) and its tale of a girl with supernatural powers who exacts ferocious revenge upon her parents and bullies. I was well aware that what I liked and what became smash hits were two different things. But even knowing that, I couldn’t shake my desire to remain true to the things that I personally enjoyed, and that I thought were good, and to not hew to what was currently in vogue."
Genuinely inspiring. "“If you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking.” - Haruki Murakami
"At the time, a mangaka could earn about 3,500 yen ($18, or about $45 in 2017 dollars) per page, which after taxes came out to about 3,000 yen ($15, or about $40 in 2017 dollars). Poker Under Arms was thirty-one pages, which only amounted to about 100,000 yen ($450, or about $1,200 in 2017 dollars). But even with a low page count, a manga takes considerable time. I spent about a month working on Poker Under Arms, but the prospect of earning a mere 100,000 yen a month was clearly untenable. Working part time as I created manga was an option, but if I was to call myself a mangaka, I wanted to be able to sustain myself on my craft alone."
He then discusses how, essentially, the use of effective friction between characters and motivations can create intrigue and fascination, as well as an enthusiastic reader-base.
CH4 - HOW TO WRITE A STORY
Araki denotes the importance of 'motion' in a character, as well as rooted sense, and a feeling that they are evolving in some form by the conclusion, even across long running works (stagnation found in The Simpsons, and their clumsy attempts to fix it, are indicative of this).
"Any manga that can be considered famous, as well as any novel or movie, will share certain story beats that will never stop captivating audiences. The basic version of this structure can be summed up as ki-shō-ten-ketsu, or introduction (ki), development (shō), twist (ten), and resolution (ketsu) [...] Whether you’re working in long form or short, when it comes to the story, the two ironclad rules are that you follow the ki-shō-ten-ketsu structure and that your protagonist is always rising. Even if you’re changing up the structure to ki-shō-ten-ten-ten-ten-ketsu, through each ten your protagonist must always be growing."
...reminds me of The Pledge, Turn, and Prestige employed by magicians and improvisors. As well as, of course, the three act structure, heroes circle, and kabuki theatre, among other frameworks.
It was at 'story taboos' that I became convinced of something. He lists four things to avoid, and I believe he is not just 'guilty' but trademarked by three of them... Most specifically in JoJolion's conclusion, which he almost directly alludes to here. I'm convinced JoJolion was written around and through this book, almost self referring and recurring into itself. It explains a lot, from Gappy's duality to The Wonder of U.
CH5 - ART EXPRESSES EVERYTHING
"So then, what’s the difference between the poor artwork in manga that sells and the good artwork in manga that does not? The secret to artwork that sells is that the artist is instantly recognizable from their drawing. [...]
Approaches to drawing can be broadly divided into two groups:
1. Realism
2. Signification
Realism in art seeks an imitation of reality, like a plaster bust. Signification is drawing an object in a way that is recognizable at a glance. Three circles grouped together can be recognized as Mickey Mouse.
Even as an author of English literature who doesn't use the STRICTLY visual medium to convey my message, this is stellar advice. Every author of merit I know has a signifier to them; some trademark or aspect that I come to them for. Figuring that out in advance, or earlier on, is key. Likewise, realism is balanced in every work, even the most fantastical, and becomes - in a way - another signifier.
"Sometime after you begin drawing regularly, there will come a point when you think, “This just isn’t working out lately.” When this happens, you may become somewhat worried, but if you keep drawing, you’ll be able to break through it. The very fact that you’re worried about it means that you’re trying. [...]
My breakthrough came just before JoJo was first serialized, when I went on a trip to Italy.
If you were to sum up what makes my art distinctive in a single word, it would probably be the posing of figures, and that is something I acquired on that trip. And since you can’t draw a character posing from their face alone, I always draw sketches for fans as bust illustrations with the shoulders indicating a characteristic pose."
Likewise, I've been drawing inspiration from Greco-Roman statues and post-enlightened paintings for my writing. Something about the depth and complexity of a statue is awe inspiring; I'd very much like to visit Italy, myself sometime.
"I believe that the fundamental role of art is to make the invisible visible. Whatever the artist wants to express, be it love, friendship, justice, or something else—these are not things that can be seen by the eye, and the artist must turn these invisible ideas into a visible picture.
Agree. Again, not just attributed to art. For me, art also acts as a time conduit by which to extend an individual's life. Let's say an author spends eight years on a book you can read in four hours and then reiterate the gained knowledge of: the author has dilated time required to achieve those epiphanies. It's my belief that this is why our societies grow 'wiser' - as they accelerate ascertainment of knowledge and improve the time required to share the information.
Also, he then goes on to explain how, because of this philosophy, he developed Hamon and Stands - "while Hamon made superpowers visible, Stands took the next step and made them into characters."
"When an artist gives form to something invisible, their state of mind will be reflected in the picture whether they’re aware of it or not. Any attempts at fake sincerity will be in vain. The readers will always see through to the truth."
and
"This might be a little hard to put into words, but when I draw using physical media, I almost feel like I’m caressing the drawing, and I start to feel affection for my characters. That even applies—given enough time—to characters that I don’t like when I first create them. Sometimes I’ll even cry when they die."
Are among the reasons Araki is one of the best mangakas of all time. He's a honed automaton with more emotion than most, and you can feel it from the drawings, his expression through figures in passionate motion - he's always having fun, and keeping his love of art afloat. I don't think I've seen a truly, truly lazy drawing from him. Especially in his later years.
"Sometimes, maybe influenced by my physical state that day or some chemical change beyond my understanding, my drawings go better than I had anticipated and make me think, “This line is really great!” or “I nailed the curve of that cheek! It’s perfect!” When those drawings come like unexpected presents, when my art is better than me, I think that maybe it’s the god of manga descending to visit me."
CH6 - WHAT SETTING IS TO MANGA
Be thorough in research, rooting your story in its setting using minute details - phone types, chart topping songs, or even just flora and natural detail. He also recommends visiting the location, if it's a place that exists in life. He travelled to Egypt numerous times, and trekked the distance of Steel Ball Run by himself.
"...keeping up a serialized manga requires great amounts of time and stamina. Missing a deadline will begin to exact a mental and physical toll, and once you finish your assignment and it comes time to face the next week’s planning meeting, you’ll already be exhausted in mind and body. Under those conditions, continuing to make good manga is not possible. If you can’t find time to do this kind of research, or even to watch movies or read books or other activities to help find ideas, you’ll wither as a mangaka."
CH7 - ALL ELEMENTS CONNECT TO THE THEM
If [...] the manga successfully finds a large audience, the creator’s ambitions will be fulfilled, the passion to create will wane, and the manga will arrive at a dead end. The mangaka will begin searching for a new path, and be beset with doubt. If you view creating manga as a temporary business endeavour, that result might be good enough for you.
Every artist, author, musician, whatever, needs to evaluate this. Are you doing this so others can see you do it and congratulate you, eternally? Or do you WANT to do it, regardless? Is it built into you? Do you want to build it into you? Or do you want to pretend until you can't anymore?
---
He then provides two valuable chapters on implementing these tips into his own work, with examples and everything - extremely interesting to any existing fan of his work. In particular, his drafting procedure, focus on lens, insistence on thorough research, and establishment of hooks and motivators for both the characters and reader.
My closing conclusion is this: ultimately, the 'golden way' or 'royal road' to Hirohiko Araki is alike to Shelley's 'sublime.' That is to say, it is directly linked to his philosophy on the 'Golden Ratio' or symmetrical perfection; divine beauty derived by synchronised, synergised points of emphasis. He understands he does not achieve this all the time, but aims to achieve it where possible by refining his style and attitudes accordingly to maximise the propensity.
Reading this book has confirmed some of my suspicions of JoJolion's 'shoddy writing' but beautiful execution. It was deliberate, him employing the tropes and mechanics he'd neglected or despised in the past, and an opportunity for him to indulge in all he'd once strove to avoid. It was him letting go and having fun again.
Now, while the book is poorly translated in places, and the advice itself fairly vague or common (with exceptions, of course), I'd still recommend an admirer of Araki read this work. It is overflowing with enthusiasm and passion by someone who truly adores the form in a way few living mangaka do. It's filled with great tips for ALL artistic expressions - even a dancer might take something from his words. However, it's not for one who is unfamiliar with him, and would come of as simplistic, perhaps pretentious.
"Therefore—and this may be a strange thing to write—you must not create manga exactly as I instructed in this book. If you simply implement the golden way I outlined in these pages, you won’t make any new discoveries."
This is one of the longest 'reviews' I've ever done, because I've wanted to read this book for a decade and decided to give it more than my full attention. Thank you, Araki!
---
"JoJo’s theme is a paean to humanity—in other words, an affirmation that mankind is wonderful. When the characters in JoJo are faced with adversity, they find a solution and forge a path onward by their own abilities and never by some convenient coincidence. No god intervenes to save them and no magic swords suddenly fall from the sky and into their hands.
May 29, 2019
I don't like throwing a 5 star rating on a whim but I also don't have anything negative to write about here.
So this is a sort of guide for creating manga. More specifically shounen manga. However, the lessons, tips, and examples Hirohiko Araki shares can be applied to a lot of story-telling mediums. Be it manga or prose, maybe even cinematography or animation, as well as just plain paintings and drawings, there are things you can learn from this book.
It's also a good way to learn more about the author, how we went about some of his works, and a little bit of his life story.
An amusing but also enlightening experience!
So this is a sort of guide for creating manga. More specifically shounen manga. However, the lessons, tips, and examples Hirohiko Araki shares can be applied to a lot of story-telling mediums. Be it manga or prose, maybe even cinematography or animation, as well as just plain paintings and drawings, there are things you can learn from this book.
It's also a good way to learn more about the author, how we went about some of his works, and a little bit of his life story.
An amusing but also enlightening experience!
August 27, 2025
I'n not sure why I read this since I'm not planning on becoming a mangaka, but it was still interesting. Particularly, I found fascinating the fact that the values of Shonen Jump are basically required for all shonen manga to follow.
Some of the translation was a little bit strange, so I want to read this in the original Japanese once I'm good enough to understand it.
Some of the translation was a little bit strange, so I want to read this in the original Japanese once I'm good enough to understand it.
January 16, 2023
a little lighter on the theory than i had hoped, but it was an illuminating look into the lives of mangaka, who tend to be a pretty secretive bunch. written in easy-to-understand language and packed with useful (if not sometimes obvious) tips for those looking to create fiction of any sort. another one of those books that makes you want to get up and do or make something as soon as you’ve put it down.
October 3, 2019
Не познавам творчеството на този мангака, тъй като определено жанрът, в който твори, не е моята чаша чай, но въпреки това нещата, които споделя могат да се приложат към почти всеки жанр манга и не само към създаването на манга, но и всяка друга форма на изкуството, свързана с изграждането на истории.
Изказът и стилът на превода изисква известно време на привикване. Малко ми напомни на японския словоред, ама на английски, което е доста объркващо в началото, но само за кратко.
Това, което мен ме спечели, е планиращият подход към създаването на манга, който представя Араки, и за който той говори като основа, на която да стъпиш, и от там тотално да промениш и изградиш свой метод и подход към създаването на манга.
Книгата определено е насочена към японската публика, тъй като някои неща са много специфични, но както самият Араки е вдъхновен силно от западноевропейската и американска култура, така и всяка креативна личност може да използва представеното от него в тази книга, да го приложи към собственото си изкуство и така да го обогати и изведе на следващия етап от развитието му.
.
Книгата е много лека, повдига ти духа по един много нежен, скромен и елегантен начин, който ясно ти показва, че успехът не означава да си само изключителен и специален, но е постижим и когато си просто добър, но постоянен, с буден и любопитен ум. Размазах се от удоволствие, четейки книгата. :)
Изказът и стилът на превода изисква известно време на привикване. Малко ми напомни на японския словоред, ама на английски, което е доста объркващо в началото, но само за кратко.
Това, което мен ме спечели, е планиращият подход към създаването на манга, който представя Араки, и за който той говори като основа, на която да стъпиш, и от там тотално да промениш и изградиш свой метод и подход към създаването на манга.
Книгата определено е насочена към японската публика, тъй като някои неща са много специфични, но както самият Араки е вдъхновен силно от западноевропейската и американска култура, така и всяка креативна личност може да използва представеното от него в тази книга, да го приложи към собственото си изкуство и така да го обогати и изведе на следващия етап от развитието му.
.
Книгата е много лека, повдига ти духа по един много нежен, скромен и елегантен начин, който ясно ти показва, че успехът не означава да си само изключителен и специален, но е постижим и когато си просто добър, но постоянен, с буден и любопитен ум. Размазах се от удоволствие, четейки книгата. :)
March 8, 2018
Hirohiko-san offers some interesting advice, but his attitude on what makes a good manga can be a bit too narrow. The book should have honestly been called something more along the lines of "Crafting a Classic Shonen Battle Manga" for how specific the rules laid out are. To top things off, Hirohiko can't seem to decide if he's confident in his own advice or not, at times saying he's more correct than others and at other times dismissing his own points entirely.
What's more interesting are Hirohiko's stories about his own failues and what he learned from them. Overall, the book is a fairly solid read if you go into it with the understanding - as you should for any book on craft - that no rules are truly set in stone.
What's more interesting are Hirohiko's stories about his own failues and what he learned from them. Overall, the book is a fairly solid read if you go into it with the understanding - as you should for any book on craft - that no rules are truly set in stone.
November 4, 2024
Me gustó mucho. A lo último no quería seguir leyendo para que no terminara. Realmente inspirador y espero poder ponerlo algún día en práctica, no necesariamente en manga, sino quizá en novelas, cine, videojuegos o cualquier formato para contar una historia; como el autor sugiere que sirven sus consejos.
Lara, avísame cuando lo quieras leer y te lo presto ;)
Lara, avísame cuando lo quieras leer y te lo presto ;)
December 30, 2022
I mostly read this for research, but it was enjoyable. The translation was smooth, too, so it was easy to read. Wish I had time to actually finish it but, alas.
July 17, 2020
I picked this up at a recommendation that it had some good sections regarding writing. And now that I have finished reading it, I have to say that overall this was a good read.
Overall if you are interested in writing manga, this would be a good book for you as it contains a lot of information when it comes to arranging and creating your manga. It is also an interesting look into the author's life and motivation when it came to creating their own work. Though I am not part of this audience, I did find these points interesting and a neat insight when it comes to the creator of JoJo.
Overall this book kind of reminds me of On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft with how it combines personal stories with tips on how to write. You can gleam a lot from the stories of both his successes and failures, as well as well as what personal elements they put in their story. All the advice comes across as quite humble, as Hirohiko seems to be unsure of his own worth to distribute such words of advice.
Like any writing book, there are always going to be things that won't be helpful or you already know. Personally, there were a couple things that struck me as off, or incorrect, but that is my personal opinion and you may find that you may like or dislike your own points.
In the end, I enjoyed this book. There were a number of interesting points and I have already recommended this book to a couple friends. If you are looking for some inspiration on your project, this is a good book for you. And if you are wanting to do do manga, this book will help you out significantly.
Overall if you are interested in writing manga, this would be a good book for you as it contains a lot of information when it comes to arranging and creating your manga. It is also an interesting look into the author's life and motivation when it came to creating their own work. Though I am not part of this audience, I did find these points interesting and a neat insight when it comes to the creator of JoJo.
Overall this book kind of reminds me of On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft with how it combines personal stories with tips on how to write. You can gleam a lot from the stories of both his successes and failures, as well as well as what personal elements they put in their story. All the advice comes across as quite humble, as Hirohiko seems to be unsure of his own worth to distribute such words of advice.
Like any writing book, there are always going to be things that won't be helpful or you already know. Personally, there were a couple things that struck me as off, or incorrect, but that is my personal opinion and you may find that you may like or dislike your own points.
In the end, I enjoyed this book. There were a number of interesting points and I have already recommended this book to a couple friends. If you are looking for some inspiration on your project, this is a good book for you. And if you are wanting to do do manga, this book will help you out significantly.
March 14, 2021
I have always been enamored with Araki's work: I think he's a masterful storyteller with a knack for combining odd but beautiful artwork with equally interesting writing. So, of course, when I had the opportunity to read his book on the craft of creating manga, I jumped at the chance.
Within this book is a wealth of valuable knowledge. I wouldn't say it's complex, and I'll be the first to admit that there is advice here that I know I've heard multiple times from other writers I look up to. That being said, I think what's most valuable to me as an artist (and what's most interesting to me as a fan) is how much his worldview and work ethic affect his process. His reasoning for setting these guidelines for himself and talking through why he thinks one thing works and others don't is absolutely fascinating. He comes across as incredibly passionate about the mere process of developing his work. It's something I admire quite a bit.
There's a lot for two kinds of people here. If you're someone who wants to learn the craft of making manga (or storytelling), there's something here for you. If you're a JoJo fan looking for insight as to how Araki ticks, this is for you as well. This is a valuable book for those interested in all facets of creating a story on paper.
Within this book is a wealth of valuable knowledge. I wouldn't say it's complex, and I'll be the first to admit that there is advice here that I know I've heard multiple times from other writers I look up to. That being said, I think what's most valuable to me as an artist (and what's most interesting to me as a fan) is how much his worldview and work ethic affect his process. His reasoning for setting these guidelines for himself and talking through why he thinks one thing works and others don't is absolutely fascinating. He comes across as incredibly passionate about the mere process of developing his work. It's something I admire quite a bit.
There's a lot for two kinds of people here. If you're someone who wants to learn the craft of making manga (or storytelling), there's something here for you. If you're a JoJo fan looking for insight as to how Araki ticks, this is for you as well. This is a valuable book for those interested in all facets of creating a story on paper.
February 12, 2021
As a fan of the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure series, it really was a pleasure to read Araki's thoughts on creating manga. He goes into great detail about how he finds ideas, keeping the story progressing upwards, designing characters, and laying out panels, among other aspects of creating a story. I found this book to be extremely interesting and even applicable to other art forms, such as movies and novels. His perspective will undoubtedly help anyone interested in writing or just curious about what might make a story click.
November 14, 2020
As a big fan of the JoJo series, I wanted to get a look inside the mind of its eccentric creator. I wasn’t disappointed with what he had to say! Araki has been making manga for a long time and his straightforward tips are great not just for aspiring mangaka, but for writers as well. I enjoyed reading his book and learning about how he goes about creating his fantastic stories. Surprisingly simple but very thoughtful.
March 12, 2024
A genuinely great, easy to apply read that does teach you the theory and practice of manga making. Even as just a writer, the sections on art and form and shadow help me illustrate characters and their settings and the sections on writing are even more useful to keep in mind. I recommend this to pretty much anyone who wants to make art that tells a story, and any fan of JoJo's besides
April 8, 2023
I got this book, not to learn how to create manga. I got this to learn more about how Araki creates his stories and characters. Really interesting process with the addtion of great lessons and ways to improve how approach life in general.
March 31, 2021
Read this to help a friend with his manga, but it has a lot of good advice for basic storytelling as well. It's not prescriptive--it's more like a guide rather than a rule book, which I appreciate.
December 31, 2024
いいかいッ、この世で最も難しいことは、自分を乗り越えることさッ！
July 22, 2025
es fascinante leer el proceso creativo de araki y me parece que es super interesante para cualquiera que simplemente quiera crear algo, no solo limitándose al manga
June 20, 2021
I don't like to throw a random five stars on a book. But this one has it all: examples, explanations, clarity, passion, professionalism... it really got me into drawing again. If you're willing to start illustrating or just explore the world of manga even more and you're considering purchasing this book, don't think twice, just buy it. I honestly think you won't regret it.
August 26, 2018
Before I begin, I must confess that Hirohiko Araki is my favourite manga artist. A career of nearly 4 decades have produced a vast body of quality work. The mere fact that this book exists is almost enough for me to presume a 5* rating by default.
However, I am glad to say this is a fantastic book, not just the idea of it.
First some caveats.
Hirohiko Araki clearly didn't write this primarily for a western audience. The market for "manga" written by western authors in Japan is nearly non-existent. The odds of a non-Japanese person publishing a hit in a magazine like Weekly Shonen Jump is-brutally- probably less than a fraction of 1%.
Many of the references to Japanese media and culture may be lost on western readers too. Ever heard of East Asian Blood-Type Horoscopes? Or Sazae-san?
Also, the book is full of references to Hirohiko Araki's own work. Not just his most famous serial "Jojo's Bizarre Adventure", but also his other less known work such as his first one one-shot "Poker Under Arms" (1981), and his first serial "Mashounen B.T." (1983).
Reading this book without reading Araki's manga, would be like reading Truffaut's interviews with Alfred Hitchcock without seeing any Hitchcock films. Such a reader would still get something out of it, but they would probably be missing out on a lot.
I believe just about anyone interested in storytelling will get something out of "Manga in Theory and Practice". I don't know of another book like it on the market right now.
This book, rather like Blake Snyder's Save the Cat, is full of advice that is useful to storytellers in any medium. It is readable and short enough to read in a few days. It also has many references to popular western films and popular manga that most people interested in manga will recognize.
Please note, despite being about "manga", there is relatively little information about how to draw. He gives a few pointers about anatomy, using the golden ratio, signification (simplifying a drawing e.g. mickey mouse 's head becomes three circles) and the importance developing one's own style. Good stuff but nothing you couldn't get from a book exclusively about drawing.
The bulk is about storytelling.
More specifically, he focuses on the micro level rather than the macro. He will not tell you how to plot a massive story like One Piece or Berserk. But he will tell you what keeps readers coming back for serial stories week after week.
A large chunk of the book looks at the three fundamentals of storytelling. Characters. Setting.
Story. Araki says that story is the least important of the three. The explanation he gives is interesting. But I believe story has never been the strongest point of Araki's manga, so perhaps his emphasis on the other two fundamentals is unsurprising.
Probably his most important lesson is explaining his "ki-shou-ten-ketsu technique" (introduction, development, twist, and resolution). Readers who are not thrilled by Alfred Hitchcock style suspense will not get much from this section, but everyone else should be fascinated.
At the end, Araki goes as far as to guide the reader through the entire process of creating a 45 page manga one-shot. He explains his creative process from writing on idea note cards to sketching and beyond. Fascinating stuff.
I thoroughly enjoyed this, and I for one am glad VIZ took the risk to translate and publish it here in the west.
However, I am glad to say this is a fantastic book, not just the idea of it.
First some caveats.
Hirohiko Araki clearly didn't write this primarily for a western audience. The market for "manga" written by western authors in Japan is nearly non-existent. The odds of a non-Japanese person publishing a hit in a magazine like Weekly Shonen Jump is-brutally- probably less than a fraction of 1%.
Many of the references to Japanese media and culture may be lost on western readers too. Ever heard of East Asian Blood-Type Horoscopes? Or Sazae-san?
Also, the book is full of references to Hirohiko Araki's own work. Not just his most famous serial "Jojo's Bizarre Adventure", but also his other less known work such as his first one one-shot "Poker Under Arms" (1981), and his first serial "Mashounen B.T." (1983).
Reading this book without reading Araki's manga, would be like reading Truffaut's interviews with Alfred Hitchcock without seeing any Hitchcock films. Such a reader would still get something out of it, but they would probably be missing out on a lot.
I believe just about anyone interested in storytelling will get something out of "Manga in Theory and Practice". I don't know of another book like it on the market right now.
This book, rather like Blake Snyder's Save the Cat, is full of advice that is useful to storytellers in any medium. It is readable and short enough to read in a few days. It also has many references to popular western films and popular manga that most people interested in manga will recognize.
Please note, despite being about "manga", there is relatively little information about how to draw. He gives a few pointers about anatomy, using the golden ratio, signification (simplifying a drawing e.g. mickey mouse 's head becomes three circles) and the importance developing one's own style. Good stuff but nothing you couldn't get from a book exclusively about drawing.
The bulk is about storytelling.
More specifically, he focuses on the micro level rather than the macro. He will not tell you how to plot a massive story like One Piece or Berserk. But he will tell you what keeps readers coming back for serial stories week after week.
A large chunk of the book looks at the three fundamentals of storytelling. Characters. Setting.
Story. Araki says that story is the least important of the three. The explanation he gives is interesting. But I believe story has never been the strongest point of Araki's manga, so perhaps his emphasis on the other two fundamentals is unsurprising.
Probably his most important lesson is explaining his "ki-shou-ten-ketsu technique" (introduction, development, twist, and resolution). Readers who are not thrilled by Alfred Hitchcock style suspense will not get much from this section, but everyone else should be fascinated.
At the end, Araki goes as far as to guide the reader through the entire process of creating a 45 page manga one-shot. He explains his creative process from writing on idea note cards to sketching and beyond. Fascinating stuff.
I thoroughly enjoyed this, and I for one am glad VIZ took the risk to translate and publish it here in the west.
May 4, 2021
I've never read manga but recently watched many many episodes of the Jojo's Bizarre Adventure anime.
Hirohiko Araki, the mind behind the Jojo franchise, is a true eccentric visionary genius. Apparently this man's brain naturally produces hallucinogenic chemicals because there seems to be no limit to the surreal situations he can dream up. Beyond that, I admire his dedication to the craft and his deeply held faith in humanity.
A classic artist dreamer weirdo, a delightful freak, an inspiration
Hirohiko Araki, the mind behind the Jojo franchise, is a true eccentric visionary genius. Apparently this man's brain naturally produces hallucinogenic chemicals because there seems to be no limit to the surreal situations he can dream up. Beyond that, I admire his dedication to the craft and his deeply held faith in humanity.
A classic artist dreamer weirdo, a delightful freak, an inspiration
December 10, 2021
yea not going to make manga
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