Mangaka Reiji Miyajima’s key principles for creating compelling characters - It’s what’s on the inside that determines the outside.

Oh no, not at all. If anything, it was my love for One Piece that made me aspire to become a mangaka, and I’m still very much inspired by it.

You nailed it. I firmly believe Rent-A-Girlfriend is the culmination of all these different stages of my life.

Haha. It’s kind of like the chicken or the egg question: which came first, my story or Kanokari?

Do you mean in general or just in terms of the illustrations?

If we’re going purely based on our art, it’s impossible for me to compete with professional illustrators, especially considering the amount of time they spend on each drawing. That’s why if I’m to have a fighting chance, I need to ensure that every aspect of my work is well-developed: title, story, characters, and all.

Gosh, that’s a difficult question. (laughs) Much of it has to do with intuition, but I try to be aware of what illustrations are trending at the moment. I constantly see cute illustrations of girls on my Instagram and X timelines, so I make sure to study them to get an idea of what drawing or coloring styles are currently trending. In addition to incorporating what I learned, I try to add my own spin on things that I think will make my art look even cuter. It feels great when I come up with my own artistic approach and I’m able to express what I want in a way that other people don’t usually do.

I think veins can convey a lot of things: they make you feel like that character is an actual, breathing human being made up of flesh and blood. I’d always wanted to show that through my drawings, and when I finally did, my editors were impressed by what I’d drawn. I was really glad I could express what I wanted in that instance.

There are times when magazines inspire me, but I can’t say I have specific references for each character. What I usually do is browse Instagram and save images of clothes or brands that I think match a particular character’s personality. I like having my characters wear outfits inspired by existing fashion since I believe that’s one of the ways people can feel they’re real.

I’m not too picky about those details, although I will say that I try not to start with their appearance first. Rather than draw a character that looks a certain way, I try to focus on what sort of person they might be and create their appearance based on that.

I think of it as the same as people in real life—people’s appearances aren’t predetermined but more so a reflection of how they live. For example, say there’s a girl with long black hair. She might have chosen that particular hairstyle because it’s what her crush likes. How you want to be perceived, or the kind of person you wish to be, often shows in the way you dress. Once you’ve figured out a character’s beliefs, morals, or motives, I think it becomes easier to determine their appearance, especially when it comes to clothing and hair.

Thankfully, there aren’t many situations in Kanokari where multiple girls appear in the same scene, which is a relief. (laughs) That said, the worst thing I could do as a mangaka is to avoid drawing them together purely out of laziness. As the writer, it’s my duty to ensure my illustrator side doesn’t slack off, even if that means pushing my limits sometimes.

I won’t deny that it’s hard. However, I don’t think being unable to work on anything else while another series is ongoing is entirely healthy either. If there’s something I want to do, I want to be able to do it; plus, it’s incredibly painful as an author to have an idea die before you’ve had the chance to bring it to life. Naturally, I couldn’t just end Kanokari without a satisfying conclusion, so my only choice was to work on them simultaneously. In terms of workload, I’d say two series is my limit.

It is, which is why I have Reiji Yukino helping me out with the art. That’s pretty much the only reason I’m able to continue this series at all; if I had to do everything myself, I would have had to drop Kanokari entirely.

Yes, exactly.

I’ve always wanted to hold a solo exhibition like this, and I’m glad to have the opportunity to do so for the first time. This way, fans who’ve been wanting to see my artwork in a solo exhibition can finally get to do so, and people who might not have heard about me or my works before can also come to know them better through this exhibition. That’s why when I received the offer from pixiv WAEN GALLERY, I immediately jumped at the opportunity.

Since this exhibition mainly features works from Kanokari and Shiunjike, I wanted that to be clear in the main visual. Choosing Chizuru was a no-brainer, but it took me a while to decide which character from the Shiunji family I wanted to draw.