EXPLORE THE WORLD OF MANGA

James Clarke speaks with manga artists in the UK and the USA about their processes and creative impulses.

- James Clarke

Linnea Kataja is a manga artist in the USA whose work enjoys a faithful and ever-growing online audience. In 2019, her project A Maid Story won recognition in Japan via Ribon magazine's Comic Grand Prix. Linnea talks us through her influences and her creative processes.

"I saw the anime Tokyo Mew Mew on TV as a child and started collecting the manga shortly after. There was something different' about it compared to American comics and cartoons. The cuteness of the characters, the highly detailed illustrations and captivating stories, all of it enchanted me. I couldn’t stop trying to replicate the style, it became my passion and I made it my goal to become a manga artist. I want to create the same type of captivating work I’ve grown to love,” Linnea explains. “My main influences are shoujo manga artists and ‘moe’ style illustrators, especially the manga series published in Kodansha’s Nakayoshi magazine such as Shugo Chara!, Tokyo Mew Mew and Cardcaptor Sakura to name a few. On the horror side, series like Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni and Madoka Magica have been my biggest influences. I love the contrast between the cute characters and the horrifying situations they have to experience. Compared to normal horror media, this contrast makes the darker elements stand out in a captivating and disturbing way, since such cute characters shouldn’t be experiencing such terrifying situations.”

THE ARTISTIC PROCESS