1. How did you come up with the idea for your comic series, Anema: Age of the Robots? What were your sources of inspiration for it?

My childhood was right in the middle of the "golden age of creativity." This period (80s-mid 90s) had many outstanding works like Looney Tunes, Visionaries, GI Joe, Smurfs and Care Bears, to name a few. Today’s cartoons cannot hold a candle to our era’s. What I strive to do is to duplicate the charisma and X-factor that we saw in those classic creations. Such qualities have become severely rare. Children nowadays don't know what they are missing out on.

Contrary to what people think, there is no such thing as an original idea. Creativity is taking bits of seemingly unrelated ideas, and fusing them into a new whole. Anema draws its ideas from many sources- some obvious, some not quite so.

2. What is your comic series about? Is it a representation of your life in any way?

The series is not a representation of my life, though I’d love to produce such works in future. Rather, my Anemals are a personification of today’s children and their loss of innocence. Animals used to be adorable creatures who did cute things like digging for honey; and the most aggressive acts they were capable of were shooting colourful rays from their tummies. My Anemals have been forced to behave like adults, take up arms and fight the Robots- a consequence of their slavery to technological progress.

3. Was drawing/reading comic books part of your hobbies when you were young?

I was a really selective reader, in the sense that I only read the best, and read them thoroughly. The only three works that interested me were Asterix, Tintin and Dragon Ball. Although I have read others sporadically, these three were classics which permeated the cultures of their countries, and rightfully so.

However, the best works are not found in comics. Rather, movies, novels and even computer games are a better source for ideas.

4. Were you previously trained in art/ drawing?

Apart from compulsory art lessons up to Secondary Two, I had no formal training whatsoever. I could draw complete comic books when I was five, even before I learnt my ABCs. From there I had to train on my own and based it on observation. There is virtually no avenue in Singapore to hone such “useless” skills.

5. When / How did you manage to get your comic series published? What was the process like?

Actual work began since last June, before I came to SMU. I had to work from scratch. First, I designed the characters, places and clothing. Next I had to devise a method to turn them into presentable artwork, using a combination of penciling, inking and computer software. To this end I had to teach myself to use Photoshop, buy a scanner and a CD R/W drive.

After much trial and error in production, I approached a distributor, who thought fantasy may sell at this point in time. He linked me up with a printer- so now the business aspects were all set. Next was the funding- I had to wait nearly a year before I could save enough to pay for the printing. I’m not rich, so perhaps the amount is peanuts to other people.

6. You mentioned in your book that the publishers in Singapore rejected Anema 2 years ago, how did you manage to convince them this time round?

This time round, I am both the producer AND the publisher. In addition to writing the books all by myself, I take care of the financing, management, negotiations and promotions for the series. Technically, I my workload is that of an entire publishing company!

7. Perhaps you could give us an idea of the agony that you went through in the making of Anema?

I can write a whole book on this topic!

First of all, the work of producing a comic alone is near impossible- ask any professional. They need to form multi-disciplined teams to produce any credible work. However, solo producers do exist in Japan. There were difficulties EVERY step of the way- refining the artwork, designing the set, moderating the dialogue and of course, the usual problems in publishing.

Second- As we all know, Singapore is a place that kills creativity. Never mind what the government says- it is still killing our creativity. From Primary One, people are telling us “Do this!” “Do that!” “If you disobey I’ll punish you!”

Even at our level, people perceive art as “inferior” to other professions like medicine, law or engineering. Let’s see if these people can draw a comic, then we’ll declare them “superior”.

Of course, there’s the tough workload from SMU. In totality, my comics are as exhausting as all my schoolwork put together. Basically, I spend all my time on these two commitments.

8. What were your family/friends'/lecturers' reaction/opinion on your work?

Sadly, the people who supported me in my life number less than ten- by this I mean real supporters, not passers-by who say “good luck” for the sake of saying it. My parents are against it, even some old friends are scornful of it. Others simply think it’s not a big deal, it’s “only” a comic. This is why now I tell very few of my plans, until publication. I’m weary of all those disparaging remarks.

9. What are you forthcoming plans for Anema? (We hear that a second book is in the cards!)

Yes, Anema is meant to be a series! As you can see, it’s actually one vast, continuous story spanning several books. However, I have to wait for my sales revenue to flow in before printing book 2, because I have drained my savings on the first publication.

10. Do you plan to pursue a career related to the creation of comics?

Why not? Once again, I detect the frowns and laughter from some bystanders. Let’s look at things in perspective. In Singapore it is inconceivable, but in countries like the US, comics are a multi-million dollar industry. Just because no one has distinguished himself here, doesn’t mean it is impossible.

My unfortunate observation is, cartoonists here are reduced to a subservient status. They are mere workers who carry out the wishes of publishers and editors. When I was approaching publishers two years ago, they assumed I was a school dropout and belittled me, while others asked me to draw THEIR stories.

11. Any advice for budding comic creators like yourself?

I have nothing positive to say.

Be prepared to face overwhelming odds; be prepared to make huge sacrifices; most importantly- don’t expect ANYONE to do you a favour, fund you, or help you. These were the revelations I was unprepared for.