RISING STARS IV: AMY KIM GANTER ON SORCERERS & SECRETARIES

[MattBrady]

by Benjamin Ong Pang Kean

Amy Kim Ganter is another Rising Stars of Manga winner who’s made her presence felt in the world of American comics and manga. The animator/illustrator from Brooklyn, New York, won the Third Place prize, with $1,000 and a trophy for her work, “The Hopeless Romantic and the Hapless Girl” in TOKYOPOP’s fourth Rising Stars of Manga contest.

Since then, she has contributed a short story in Kazu Kibuishi and Image Comics’ critically-acclaimed Flight anthology.

She will soon have her first professional full-length work, Sorcerers & Secretaries published by TOKYOPOP.

“Amy Kim Ganter's new series is a continuation of her fabulous Rising Stars entry,” TOKYOPOP editor Lillian Diaz-Przybyl told Newsarama. “A romantic comedy with a brilliant fantasy element, the series is a true fusion of manga and an American sensibility. It's smart, funny and the art is just lovely and detailed. This is a book that is getting a lot of office buzz for good reason. The basic premise is that a struggling business student in New York keeps getting distracted by her really active imagination and a fantasy world that she has created. The story follows her as she tries to reconcile her ambitions to be a writer with the expectations of her family, almost to the point of ignoring the world around her, and the cute guy trying to win her affections. The merging of the fantasy world with the ordinary world around Nicole is a big part of what makes the book so special, but the characters themselves are tremendously engaging and well-rounded.”

Newsarama: What was your first published comics work?

Amy Kim Ganter: My published comics work is kind of sparse. I’ve participated mostly in anthologies (an epic fantasy that was also in the Amerimanga anthology called “Reman Mythology” which is now entirely serialized as a popular online comic, a short story contribution to Broad Appeal, another short in Rising Stars of Manga Vol. 4 and another short story in Flight Vol. 2. I also had a brief run of short stories on www.pvcomics.com.

Sorcerers & Secretaries Book 1 will be my first professionally published graphic novel. I also drew the comics and character animations in the online game Diner Dash for Playfirst and Gamelab.

NRAMA: What brought you to TOKYOPOP?

AKG: I think my pal Becky [Cloonan] was the one that referred me to them as well (thanks, Becky!). After talking on the phone for a while with some editors, I decided to enter their Rising Stars of Manga contest and landed a place in their 4th anthology with my story “The Hopeless Romantic And The Hapless Girl”. After that, they asked me to pitch something along similar lines, and I’d wanted to continue the story of those characters anyway. It all worked out in the end and I’m having lots of fun shaping this story!

NRAMA: What’re some of the inspirations behind the creation of Sorcerers & Secretaries?

AKG: Mostly my own musings on living in a metropolis and past romantic experiences are my source of inspiration for this series. I originally wanted to write a short story about something that happened when I was in high school living in an apartment complex with a guy that I had a crush on. That wound up being my third-prize winning entry in the Rising Stars of Manga contest. When it came time to pitch a series, I thought it would be fun to continue the story between the two characters in that comic. I wanted to see what happened to them, so this series is practically writing itself! It’s been a lot of fun and is a welcome break to my fantasy series, I’ve been learning a lot.

NRAMA: Who’re these two characters that you’ve mentioned?

AKG: Nicole Hayes is a part time receptionist and a business student at a large university. She doesn’t like business; in fact she hates it with a passion. Since Nicole doesn’t really know what she wants out of life, she just lets her mother make her plans for her and goes with the flow. Deep inside, though, she’s incredibly unhappy and spends her time day-dreaming the life story of an exiled sorcerer she only visits in her imagination.

[And there’s] Josh Kim, [who] is hungry for attention, and makes sure he gets it (especially from girls!). He bursts with false confidence and happiness, which Nicole finds completely unattractive. He keeps a jar in his room filled with girl’s numbers he’s managed to collect over the years, none of which he’s called back. To him, “love” is nothing more than a game that ends as soon as he’s won a girl over, but for some reason he gives Nicole more attention than anyone else.

NRAMA: And when you put the hopeless romantic and the hapless girl together…

AKG: See… Josh likes Nicole, but she totally doesn’t give him the time of day because she’s too busy writing her dreams down and trying to figure out why she’s so unhappy working as a receptionist and being a business student. Josh tries really hard to get her attention but none of his usual girl-getting tactics he learned from his smooth-talking roommate seem to be working on Nicole. Deep down inside, Josh is a total hopeless romantic no matter how brash he tries to be, and for some reason he feels like Nicole is the one he needs to be with in the end. This story is about how it happens and what they both learn about themselves from one another... and it takes place in New York City.

NRAMA: What’s a love story without friends playing Cupid, right? Who’re their friends?

AKG: Susan Mellen, who comes from a well-to-do family. She’s used to having things her way and being served by the lesser amongst her. When she finds something she likes, she usually finds a way to get it. She feels bad for Nicole, and tries to be her friend out of charity, but she really likes having someone like her around to feel bigger than.

[And there’s] William Riley. [He] is almost like Josh’s older brother that he never had. He looks out for him, he helps dress him, he gives him tips on girls, and takes him out to all the cool places. Riley’s confidence is genuine, and people just fall at his feet when he wants them to. He has a different lover on his arm every week, but has managed to not leave any bitter feelings behind him.

NRAMA: As a creator, what do you hope to achieve with Sorcerers & Secretaries?

AKG: My hopes are the same for all the comics I draw, which is that I hope the reader enjoys the story so much that the fact that it’s a comic doesn’t matter anymore because it’s just a really fun story that’s worth reading and it makes them want to share it with their friends/family.

NRAMA: As a reader, what're some of your favorite manga/comics? How have you been inspired and motivated by them?

AKG: I really love some Korean comic artists, Won Su Yon and Park Hee Jung come to mind. I’m also an admirer of Inoue Takehiko, Rumiko Takahashi, Usumaru Furuya, and Riiti Uesiba.

As for comics, it’s mostly my friends and colleagues that give me the biggest influences so it’s usually their work I enjoy the most (Becky Cloonan, Larry Chy, Jen Quick, June Kim, Kazu Kibuishi and others). I’m a big Derek Kirk Kim fan, too, and I really, really loved Scott Prilgrim. I need to read more comics.

Bits have influenced me here and there, and there’s definite remnants from a strong Rumiko Takahashi and Hayao Miyazaki stage, but I think I draw most of my inspiration from my own feelings about life and the world around me. I feel like I have a lot of things I want to say and stories I want to tell so that’s what drives me, and the influences from my friends play a bigger part in the shape of my style these days than the entertainment I indulge in.

Related articles:
TOKYOPOP’S RISING STARS I: JESS STONCIUS ON WORK BITES

TOKYOPOP’S RISING STARS II: FELIPE SMITH ON MBQ

TOKYOPOP’S RISING STARS III: M. ALICE LeGROW ON BIZENGHAST

TOKYOPOP'S RISING STARS V: LINDSAY CIBOS ON PEACH FUZZ

TOKYOPOP'S RISING STARS VI: CHRISTY LIJEWSKI ON RE:PLAY

RISING STARS of MANGA VII: IRENE FLORES ON MARK OF THE SUCCUBUS

RISING STARS OF MANGA VIII: RON KAULFERSCH & MIKE SCHWARK ON VAN VON HUNTER

RISING STARS OF MANGA IX: SHANE GRANGER (w/ JASON HENDERSON & TONY SALVAGGIO) ON PSY-COMM

TOKYOPOP'S RISING STARS X: WES ABBOTT ON DOGBY WALKS ALONE

ON FIVE SETS OF RISING STARS: JEREMY ROSS ON TOKYOPOP'S RISING STARS OF MANGA

[tania del rio]

Congrats, Amy!

I loved your RSOM entry (I thought the ending was so sad! T_T )
But I'm happy that these same characters will be given another "chance" in the pages of your new book. I'll be sure to pick it up.

Good luck!

-Tania

[kdmelrose]

That art looks great!

Way to go, Amy.

- Kevin

[Crispy]

Woah! Congratulations Amy! I didn't even know you'd been signed yet.

I'll, once again, be anticipating your work. I think yours was one of the most original and well put together entries in RSOM history.

[HartyPotter]

Usually, I'm strictly only about superhero comics, but I'm definitely going to buy Sorcerers and Secretaries. It'll be my first expose to this type of manhwa/comic, so I'm looking forward to it!

[Knightmaresbane]

Looks great!

Urg another title to add to my never ending pulllist.

Nice list of influences to esp Takehiko(Yeah Vagabond!!!) and anyone who likes Takahashi's okay in my book.

\m/ \m/

[emo_pare]

This is nice, be checking it out when it comes out.

[Ganter]

Thanks guys, I hope you'll like it! I've been having so much fun writing and drawing it so far, I can't wait to see it all in a book. I'm excited! XD

[Shanobi]

Originally posted by Ganter
Thanks guys, I hope you'll like it! I've been having so much fun writing and drawing it so far, I can't wait to see it all in a book. I'm excited! XD

Congrats Amy! I'll be looking for it at my bookstore!

-Shane (FightingFoetus)

Oh, and keep up the good work. It's great to see so many of us beginning to make moves...

[Tavisha]

Congratulations~ Amy! I'm especially loving the fashion you gave your charactes here. I'm a huge fan of the Japanese magazine "Fruits" and whether intentional or not, you've captured that unique mis-matched- layered look. I'm really liking your sense of imagination~! I can't wait to find this in bookstores . Best of luck~!

[Brad S.]

nice looking stuff Amy, I will be sure to check it out.