Today we're chatting with @Pluvias, creator of Entwined, for our Creator Interview series. Entwined placed 1st in all its 2023 end-of-year lists: Fantasy by creators, Webcomcis by creators, and Creators Overall on the platform. That's insanely impressive, and I'm so excited to get to connect with Pluvias and share some of her experiences and history with you. It's full of great advice that anyone can enjoy and learn from.
With that intro out of the way, let's begin!
GlobalComix: Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got into making webcomics.
Pluvias: I’m a self-taught artist and content creator. I was born in Iraq, raised in the Middle East, and now I work as a self-employed artist in Japan. I’ve loved drawing ever since I could hold a pencil, and that love intensified when I got exposed to anime, as I adored its art style and storytelling. So from an early age, I started creating my original characters, giving them stories, and visualizing them in an “anime episode” format.
My ultimate dream was to have an anime adaptation of Entwined one day. But since producing an anime series is not a job that can be done by one person, I kept looking for an alternative medium that would be a good outlet for my story. Throughout the years I considered making an RPG game, a visual novel, or a manga, but none of these gave me enough motivation to pursue them. However, when I stumbled upon webtoons, I fell in love with the medium. The colors, the scrolling format and the freedom of creativity in expression that comes with it felt just the right medium for me. And the fact that a number of webtoons were getting anime adaptations gave me the final spark. Even if it’s a little tiny string of hope, I thought it’s a good path to start at. And since I had accumulated a lot of experience in digital art for more than 10 years, once the inspiration hit, I dove right into it and started drawing chapter after chapter, in a style that's very close to anime's of course!
GlobalComix: Where did the idea for Entwined start? Share its origin with us, please!
Pluvias: As I was heavily watching anime and playing games during my early teens, a number of series influenced me, and Entwined was born out of a mixture of them. For example, the swords and the monster sealed within the stone, which make up the core of the story, were inspired by the GBA game Summon Night: Sword Craft Story 2. The two boys battling with swords - Hideki and Keiichi, were inspired by Shaman King's Yoh and Ren. The modern day fantasy setting was inspired by Gakuen Alice - which will be more apparent as the story progresses. The emotional and dramatic pasts of the characters were inspired by Fruits Basket. And lastly, the intense expressions, angst, and dark twists were inspired by Pandora Hearts.
Of course, these were not the only sources, but I can say they’re the main ones. I’ve sprinkled elements from my own imagination and life experiences as well, and with that the complex story of Entwined was born, which, by the way, we are at the very beginning of. The ride will be a long one, but I want to enjoy every bit of it!
GlobalComix: Have any comics or manga you've read in the past that stood out to you the most?
Pluvias: I’m not a heavy manga reader to be honest, as I mostly spend my time watching anime. But I love reading (or watching) character-driven stories that dive deep into the emotions and background stories of its characters. And when the plot is unpredictable and leaves my heart wrenched, then that’s a favorite series for a lifetime! For that, Pandora Hearts was the manga that hit me the most and left an unforgettable impression.
GlobalComix: What is your favorite moment in the story so far?
Pluvias:The events I’m currently drawing are my favorite so far (chapter 26 ~ onwards), as I’m finally revealing the real villain of the story, and with this revelation comes a chain of backstories to be told, since the story of Entwined is -as its name suggests- very intertwined!
I’m very excited about all the dark drama that is slowly getting unveiled.
GlobalComix: Your Kickstarter for Volume 2 is just wrapping up, congratulations on a successful
campaign! What advice would you have for those wanting to use crowdfunding to get started?
Pluvias: Thank you so much, I can’t believe I’ve made it to volume 2!
For authors looking to crowdfund their stories, I highly recommend you complete the majority, if not all of your project before you kickstart it.
The reason for that is, crowdfunding comes with a promise of delivery for a number of supporters with an estimated deadline. And trust me, you don’t want to impose a deadline on yourself when you’re working on a project of passion. The pressure of promising people and keeping them waiting could end up stressing you and stripping all the fun out of it as you switch to a mental state of “just wanting to get it done”.
So consider crowdfunding as a marketing opportunity and a delayed reward for your hard work. And if you’re just starting with your comic, try to get it financed by a different source of income until you build it to the point where it’s able to stand on its own feet.
And when you’re ready to crowdfund, make sure to create a quality campaign that clearly explains who you are, what your product is, and why you want to crowdfund it.
GlobalComix: What were some of the pitfalls you didn't expect that impacted your campaign?
Pluvias: Overall I try to keep my campaign simple so I can deliver what I promise in a timely manner. But the biggest challenge that comes with every campaign is shipping - namely international shipping, as the majority of my backers are currently outside of Japan. Since shipping laws vary by country and keep getting updated throughout time, I find myself often having to implement changes and solve issues for customers. And figuring that out in Japanese is not an easy feat.
GlobalComix: When creating a fantasy story, it can be overwhelming keeping track of it all. How do you plan and keep a fantasy world consistent?
Pluvias: Since my story is based in a fictional modern real world, that makes it much easier for me to keep it consistent, as I live a daily reminder of how the real life world works. But keeping track of the characters' background stories and their interconnections is the challenging part for me. I used to keep it all in my head, but I reached a point where I felt so much mental clutter, so I pushed myself to write it down in an organized way. I’m still working on it, but using services like Milanote really help make the job easier.
GlobalComix: What do you think is important if creators want to start to take webcomics from digital to print?
Pluvias: Converting a webcomic to print format is not a matter of simple copy-pasting. You need to carefully think of the panel arrangement for each page. Page design must be done in a way that maintains the mood of the story and its pacing, while being as aesthetic as possible. Sometimes you need to redraw panels, draw the missing (cropped) parts, or add new panels altogether. I found that planning each page beforehand in a rough manner makes the job easier. It helps a lot in placing the right page cliffhangers to keep readers invested without spoiling them with upcoming panels.
GlobalComix: How did you get started tabling and what do you wish you knew before your first table?
Pluvias: My first experience of tabling was in the Middle East Film and Comic Con in Dubai back in 2016. During that time I was doing a mix of original illustrations and fanarts, so I sold a variety of products of my artworks. However, one thing I learned the hard way is to start with a small number of copies for each of your products. Testing the water is important to understand what sells and what doesn’t. By small number I mean 5 or 10 max. I made the mistake of doing 25 to 50 copies, which sounds like a small number, but it’s really not when it’s turned physical.
Now that my work is centered on Entwined and I recently got back to tabling, I’m taking it slow and focusing mainly on book sales while offering a humble collection of products, especially that I’m exposing Entwined to a completely new audience in Japan. But I plan to expand the collection bit by bit as the comic grows with time.
GlobalComix: What is your favorite part of the comic-making process?
Pluvias: Storyboarding! That’s when I get to feel the enjoyment of turning events from my imagination into reality. Because after that when the drawing process starts and I get exposed to the same artworks over and over, they start to lose their initial impact.
But nevertheless, I usually enjoy the drawing process a lot. My favorite part of that is setting the vibe with the colors, lighting and special effects. And of course, drawing intense emotions!
GlobalComix: Congratulations on making the list for the Top 10 Creators on GlobalComix in 2023
(along with multiple other Top 10 lists)! What do you think made the difference for you to perform so well?
Pluvias: Thank you so much, I honestly was not expecting to be on those lists at all! But I believe being early on GlobalComix played a good role in exposing Entwined to a good number of readers, which helped it build the initial audience. And at the same time, I take great care in writing and producing a high quality comic, so making it into the top 10 list reassures me that my hard work is reaping its fruit, and gives me a pat on the back to keep going on this rhythm.
GlobalComix: What’s next for you? Any new projects that you can tease the readers with?
Pluvias: My next project is the production of volume 3, which I have just started with the drawing of chapter 28. But of course it’s still at the very early stage, so it will take me at least a year and a half before I can get it ready for release.
Other than that, I’m looking to get my volumes officially published and distributed. I have already got Entwined officially published in Arabic and it’s now available in stores across the Middle East. But I also aspire to release it in the three other languages that I publish it in - English, French and Japanese. I’m still not sure how to go about this, but I will be on the look for good opportunities that help deliver Entwined to a wider audience!
Thank you so much Pluvias for sitting down with us for this interview. I'm so excited to see how you and your work continue to develop on the platform.
If you want all the latest updates, make sure to follow Pluvias on all of her socials.
- Follow and read Entwined here and add it to your GlobalComix Library in the App
- Follow Pluvias here to not miss any of her updates
- Follow her on Twitter
- Keep with her artworks Instagram
- Get tips and watch timelapses on her YouTube channel
- Like her FaceBook page for all the lastest updates
- Become a member on her Patreon