Big Comic Spirits Exclusive: Interview with Noboru Segawa, author of "Doku Doku Mori Mori."

Hello there! It's the end of the year, and we've got another in our series of interviews with Shogakukan mangaka for you all to read!

This time we sit down with Noboru Segawa-sensei of Doku Doku Mori Mori fame, and discuss their inspirations in drawing manga, and working with Creepy Nuts?!

Of course, a big thanks to them for talking to us here! I've been reading Doku Doku Mori Mori and hope that eventually a translation will be coming soon so we can all talk about it. Now let's wander into the forest! Be sure not to get lost....

    ©Noboru Segawa/SHOGAKUKAN

The interview was conducted in Japanese. What is below is my translation. Please do not use or repost without our permission. Thank you.

WSSTB: Thank you for taking time out to talk to us, Segawa-sensei! First, what inspired you to be a mangaka?

Segawa: When I was about 10 years old, I started drawing manga by imitating the manga my brother who is three years older than me drew. When my schoolmates read my manga, they liked it, and that's what led me to want to be a manga artist.

WSSTB: What made you decide to publish your work with Shogakukan?

Segawa: It was due to Ichihara Hikaru Z (author of such series as Anarchy in the JK and Oshiri sawaritagaru hito nanna no.) introducing me to the editor at Weekly Spirits. 

WSSTB: What is your favorite Shogakukan published work?

Segawa: Morioh Kito's Ours. I read it during my adolescence and even now, it's left a huge impression on me. 

WSSTB: Your previous series Catcher in the Rhyme was supervised by R-Shitei of Creepy Nuts. How did this collaboration come about, and why did you choose rap to be the theme of this series?

Segawa: In the beginning, it was my editor in charge at Weekly Spirits who suggested making rap the theme. At that time, freestyle rap battle TV shows were popular in Japan, and I too got into them after watching them. I never in my wildest dreams thought I'd have ended up drawing a manga about rap. R-Shitei and Hannya acted as supervisors and gave me advice such as differentiating the rap style by character when I was working on the draft stages of the manga.

Catcher in the Rhyme: ©Noboru Segawa/SHOGAKUKAN

WSSTB: What would you say is the most difficult part of being a mangaka?

Segawa: The hardest thing for me is coming up with the first chapter of a new series. It took me almost a year to come up with the plot beats for Catcher in The Rhyme and Doku Doku Mori Mori. Take too much time to come up with an initial idea, and you'll get further and further away from what about the original plan that was intriguing in the first place and lose sight of what was good about it.

WSSTB: How did you come up with the idea for your current serialization, Doku Doku Mori Mori?

Segawa: Aokigahara, a famous suicide spot, isn't too far from my home. While on a walk through there, I wondered to myself: “Do the mushrooms that grow in this forest get their nutrients from human corpses?” That idea still remains in my head even now.


WSSTB: Could you tell us your process in drawing a single chapter? How long does it take and what tools do you use?

Segawa: First, it takes about a week to create the name (AKA a manga blueprint.) Sometimes I'll draw this with a pencil on paper, while other days I'll use manga creation software on my iPad or PC. Once that is complete, I start the draft. Currently, I use Clip Studio Paint on the PC, and draw about five or six pages a day. Following this is the line drawing. I place manuscript paper on top of the printed draft, and ink the lines while using a tool called a tracing table which shines light from below. For the line drawings, I use a G-pen and India ink. Utilizing this process, I'm able to produce 5 pages a day. Finally, the finishing touches where I scan in the line drawings and upload them to the PC where I apply tones and fill in the solid colors using Clip Studio Paint. The finishing touches take about a day.

WSSTB: Both Umibe no Q and Dokudoku Mori Mori feature cute, expressive artwork, but the stories have dark undertones. How do you balance these opposing elements?

Segawa: At a glance, “cute” and “scary” come off as polar opposites, but I feel they're closely related. For example, when I see a cute doll or illustration, I can't help but imagine the existence of something dark that the creator is trying to hide with its cuteness. I find myself strongly attuned with that violent and grotesque structure that hides the horrific aspects of the world such as war and environmental destruction by using cuteness. I keep expressing that discomfort in the forefront of my mind when drawing my works. 

    ©Noboru Segawa/SHOGAKUKAN

WSSTB: People all over the world admire and love manga and anime. What do you think about this media resonates with fans?

Segawa: Recently the Chinese version of Doku Doku Mori Mori was released, and since then I've seen a huge spike in the number of Chinese-speaking fans.With countries all around the world producing excellent manga and anime, I'm impressed by that people still go out of their way to read Japanese anime and manga and become fans.

WSSTB: Is there a concept or theme that you really want to explore in a future work?

Segawa: At the moment, I really want to draw a mountain climbing manga with a bisexual high school student as the main character. That being said, the kind of series I want to draw change frequently, so I'm not sure that I'll actually draw it.

WSSTB: Sensei, many of your works have LGBTQ+ themes in them. What to you is the importance of including these themes in your manga? Are your readers receptive to them?

Segawa: It’s said that LGBTQ+ make up about 10% of Japanese people, so it’s not too out there to have a series or two depict LGBTQ+ characters. Despite this when an LGBTQ+ character appears in a work, there will be those who will complain about “forced diversity” or ask “what’s the point of including a character like this?” To me there shouldn’t be a reason to include LGBTQ+ characters in a work. We’ve lived together from the beginning of time, both creating and enjoying culture together. 

WSSTB: Do you have any advice for people who want to become mangaka?

Segawa: It is important to think carefully about what you really want to express. If you draw what it is you want to draw from the bottom of your heart, then the readers will definitely pick up on your passion. Of course, drawing manga and pictures is essential, but if you have another interest, why not pursue it to the fullest? By doing that, your personality will naturally shine through in your manga. 

        ©Noboru Segawa/SHOGAKUKAN

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