Hiromu Arakawa interview

Back in late January, Hiromu Arakawa stopped in France (to visit a farm and an agricultural high school in Calais) before heading to London, with her cow print suitcase. That’s where she :
- learned she won the  Shogakukan Manga Award , shônen category (and made a comic about it)
- missed her train due to a terrible weather (and the terrible French railway company)
- was interviewed by Animeland , a French magazine about anime and manga, discussing both FMA and Silver Spoon , and her farming background.

Q : You grew up in the countryside, with a background quite far from the manga world. Why did you want to become a mangaka ? Was it a difficult decision ?
A: I’ve been drawing since I was a child. As soon I have a pen in my hands, I start scribbling. It’s true that I come from a farming environment, and I even started working there for seven years, at home. Of course, coming from my Hokkaido land to a big city such as Saitama, near Tokyo, was a big change, but I’ve always spent my time drawing, so I wasn’t a huge sacrifice.

Q : Did you ever think of staying (in Hokkaido) to work in your parents’ farm ?
A : I had several dreams when I was a child : I wanted to be a livestock farmer, but also taking care of animals in a zoo. And also becoming a mangaka. Growing up, this last one stayed. I explained it one day to my parents. I loved working in the farm, but I loved drawing above all.

Q : You started your career as an assistant to Hiroyuki Etô. What did he teach you ?
A :  I had never worked with assistants before. I learnt how to manage them, especially how to share workload : who has to draw what. He was really exigent about the layout. I learnt a lot from him about that.

Q : According to you, what is a good mangaka ?
A : Someone who can find the perfect balance between complying with readers’s expectations and betraying said expectations.

Q : How is organized your week ?
A : Generally, I do my nemu (~story-board) on Saturdays and Sundays. Then it’s completion, from Monday to Thursday. With my assistants, we draw the plates, the settings, the finishing touches. Finally, Fridays are my days off. Sometimes, they’re also the only moments left for me to do last-minute works or commissions.

Q : Any stories about deadlines ?
A : With the earthquake and the events during March the 11th, 2011, I was sure I would be given a delay to complete my pages. Actually, I was given none ! The deadline was not moved and I told myself the publication world was really merciless… I was really astonished !

Q : Fullmetal Alchemist was your first hit. Looking back, what are your thoughts about it ? Any specific moment still on your mind ?
A : When we finished the manga, I was surprised because I had been drawing this story for nine years and I was convinced that in the end, I would be sad, as in a break up. When I submitted the last chapter, I was actually relieved. Not because I was glad it was over, but because I had the conviction I had told everything I wanted to. When I gave the pages to my publisher, I shook hands with all my assistants, then we went eating grilled beef. We had nice drinks, nice food, and I had a feeling of satisfaction. As if my children just graduated.

Q : At what point during FMA’s creation did you decide on the end ?
A : I knew from the start the major plot points: the Ishval war, the battle in Central City, etc. I also knew if the Elric brothers would get their bodies back, either entirely or partially. What was decided as we went along was the way they would bring answers and what answers they would get in the story. The characters were the ones who naturally developed the story.

Q : Who decided the story would stop on the 27th volume ? You ? Readers ? Your publishers ?
A : At first, I told myself the story would take around 21 volumes. In the end, I required a bit more than planned, yet I’m really the one who decided it would stop at that point.

Q : Which FMA character looks the most like you ?
A : I’ve a a lot of brothers and sisters (we are five children in total!) and I’m the fourth-born. Actually, I think I look the most like Alphonse as I’m quite well-behaved. In fact, I’ve seen my three sisters mess around, be scolded, and I’ve always told myself I had not to do the same. To sum it up, I watch my elders’ mistakes, and I don’t do the same ! (laughs)

Q : What would you be willing to do to become an alchemist ?
A : I think I would sacrifice my right arm, which is really precious, as it’s the one I use to draw. Yet that means I wouldn’t be able to draw anymore…

Q : And what would the first thing you would do, if you were an alchemist ?
A : To create a manga, you have to think, then draw, and redraw in order to correct some tinges… It would be perfect if I could create that manga in one go. I’d put my hands together and.. bam! The pages would be ready !
(Her publisher steps in:) Yes ! And if I found fault with something, you could correct it immediately ! (laughs)  

Q : Do you carry out the equivalent exchange in your daily life ?
A : This concept comes from my farmer background : the way you feed matches up the efforts you’re making. The more you love your animals, the more they give it back to you. The more you take care of them, the better their meat will be. There are also unpredictable events : if the weather’s terrible, you’ll need even more work to achieve better results. Equivalent exchange is based on the energy you’ll deploy to realize the task that was assigned to you. In a way, that exchange gives rhythm to my life. I also talk about this in Silver Spoon .

Q : Despite those similitudes, Silver Spoon’s world is quite far from FMA ’s. Aren’t you afraid to perturb your readers, starting this story ?
A : I could have made another fantasy manga, that’s true - and thanks to my name, it would probably be successful. Yet I don’t think I’d be satisfied with that. I wanted to challenge myself and offer something different. It also enables to recruit new readers, to change style, and allows you not to restrict yourself.
It’s while discussing with my publisher in the Weekly Manga Saturday that we agreed on the idea of doing a more realist story. We knew some readers would certainly be surprised or shocked, but I didn’t mind changing for a new sphere.

Q : This manga still has a great success (5 million copies are already sold!). Were you expecting that ?
A : When we were discussing with my publisher, we said farming was a entertaining topic. I thought this theme was original enough to be some of a success, but I’d never thought each volume would sell a million copies. But this is pleasing !

Q : Do you think Silver Spoon is in the spirit of the time and send the Japanese back to environmental matters ?
A :   I receive a lot of fan mails and I do my best to read as many of them as possible. In fact, many tell me they’re like the hero : “ I don’t know what to do with my life, I don’t have a dream. I’m being pushed to study to pass my exams. It’s my only goal, but I’ve no idea about what I’ll be doing later. ” Other readers prefer the characters or the jokes about the farming world. Finally, some want to join this school and appreciate the character’s evolution.

Q : Can your manga create vocations ?
A : I’ve read in the Hokkaido regional newspapers that, since the manga was released, the number of applications in agricultural high schools has apparently increased a lot. *

Q : Do you wish to carry a message through Silver Spoon ?
A : Not particularly. I just want to tell the story of an high schooler and his maturation. The Hokkaido territory and the agricultural high school are just tools. In the same way, with Fullmetal Alchemist , I was interested in showing the way the hero could grow up, not in promoting alchemy. I love telling the evolution of my characters.

Q : So Silver Spoon isn’t a green manga.
A : No, not at all ! Actually, people kill animals, eat them, etc.

Q : Readers can feel you draw a lot in your own history to tell this one. What element were made up, in the end ?
A : Everything’s true, I invented nothing ! For example, the pig farming head, who possesses a weapon carry permit and goes killing deers, is a real person. She was a teacher in my high school ! I also knew a club held by Holstein cattle fans, and there was an actual masonry oven in my high school.

Q : We can also notice you appreciate nice meals and quality food. Are you susceptible about that in your life ?
A : Yes, I always pay attention to the food I consume. I do my best to avoid buying the cheapest products because I always wonder if, with this price, the producer will get enough money. There’s something I find fantastic about France : the AOC label**. In Japan, I try to check the origin of the products I’m buying, but there isn’t a label as serious and controlled as yours. It’s a system I find remarkable because it pushes the producer towards excellency.

Q : How did you know about that label ? Did you went to France before ?
A : I did, a bit more than twenty years ago, during a trip organized by the prefecture of Hokkaido. We visited five european countries to study the agricultural specialities. That’s when we met people in charge of the AOC label, who explained us their approach.

Q : There has been a shônen renewal for a dozen of years, thanks to female writers such as Yellow Tanabe ( Kekkaishi ), Kazue Kato ( Blue Exorcist ), and yourself. Do you feel you’re bringing something different in the shônen genre ? 
A : It’s above all a matter of generation. Twenty years ago, there were in the Shônen Jump several really violent series such as Hokuto no Ken or Sajigake !! Otokojuku . Oddly enough, girls like those stories ! Those female readers found those shônen very entertaining and often more interesting than the usual shôjo manga. Ten years later, we were old enough to draw and so we made boys manga. This explains the increased number of female drawers in this area. It is often said that women are better to talk about emotions, to write dialogues that hit the nail on the head, and men know how to create stories with twists and turns. As for me, I think it’s difficult today to make a distinction between genres. Some men are really able to imagine sensitive and complex characters, while some women are able to create sometimes violent action scenes. Nowadays, each writer has their own speciality. It doesn’t matter if they’re a man or a woman.

Q : Do you have any projects ?
A : One day I’d like to follow the Silk Road, writing an episode for each city I would go through.  It would be some kind of essay, in a manga version, about that mythical route. The issue is that it would mean crossing countries that became quite dangerous, such as Afghanistan. It would be quite complicated today to come the whole way, from China to Rome. I think I’ll have to wait until peace comes back…

Q : Can we envisage an official visit in France during a convention ?
A : I’d love to, but I have two toddlers I cannot bring with me. Actually, to make this trip to Europe, I had to leave them with my parents in Hokkaido. In fact, even in Japan, I never attend public events.

Q : Any last words for the French audience ?
A : Manga is a very entertaining cultural form, made of many totally different genres. Don’t restrict yourself with a single style of manga. I would be delighted to be your springboard, but try to read as much as you can in order to branch out !

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* more info here !
** Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée , lit. “controlled designation of origin” is the French certification granted to certain French geographical indications for wines, cheeses, butters, and other agricultural products, all under the auspices of the government ( wikipedia  link)

Original translation by Grégoire Heuillot (Kurokawa).
Interview prepared in collaboration with Carla Cino and Viky.
English translation by @clewilan, with many thanks to @bayalexison for the beta :D