The Author of "Koisuru (Otome) no Tsukurikata" Tells the Secrets To Making Things Cute - When the love for your characters inspires you.

Enjoy the interview and the exclusive illustrations!

(* Translator's Note: While Hiura is affectionately called a "heroine" as a reference to his crossdressing, he clearly identifies as male in the Japanese text, even while wearing stereotypically female clothing. As such, he/him pronouns are used in this article.)

Banjo: At the time, I had the impression that most otokonoko characters were being portrayed as proactive and a bit aggressive. I personally prefer characters who are a little shy and defiant, so I combined these traits within an otokonoko character... and Hiura was born. You can say that Hiura is my ideal character. (laughs) While I was working on the concept of an otokonoko who is also a little grumpy, I came up with the idea that he would start cross-dressing not out of his own will, but for his partner's sake. So Midou comes in, as a man who loves make-up.

Suzuki: Yeah, I would tell her that Hiura looked too much like a boy and also a bit stiff. (laughs)

I look at other works and admire some of the expressions I find, but I don't really use them as references in my day-to-day work. So I guess I'm pretty reckless, or maybe my love for Hiura is the driving force behind it all. (laughs)

Banjo: This is something that I still struggle with: what looks good in real life doesn't always translate well in drawings. Oversized T-shirts are cute in real life, but in a manga, they end up looking kind of plain. It goes without saying that it may not be the best idea to just copy everything you see in a fashion magazine. In the end, I think artists need to use various references and then arrange them to suit their characters.

Suzuki: There have been times when I have looked at copyrighted illustrations of collaborations with apparel brands and wondered if that character would really wear that type of clothing. It's crucial to think about fashion while still keeping an eye on your characters. Don't get caught up in the trends, but rather ask yourself, "What would this character wear? What would look good on them?"

I'm not familiar with fashion jargon, so I make up my own categories (e.g. "XYZ-style fashion") and then look up items that would fit. That way, when I have to decide what kind of outfit I want my characters to wear, I have a clearer picture of the overall direction to follow. Once I have chosen a specific style or category, I search for more items that would make a good outfit, and so on. It's quite a simple process.

Suzuki: If we choose outfits that are really cool and perfectly coordinated, the readers may have trouble finding the characters approachable. So we have to be careful to keep a good balance between being fashionable while remaining approachable.

Suzuki: We discussed a lot about the episode where the rival character Hayakawa senpai appears, didn't we?

Banjo: I didn't want either character to be the villain and make the readers uncomfortable. I myself like to draw and read serious stories, but I know there are many readers who don't. I talked with Suzuki to find a balance that would make everyone happy.

Suzuki: I think the theme of boys cross-dressing as girls could be portrayed in a very serious way if we wanted to, but for Ototsuku we're discussing whether we should choose a different direction.

Banjo: Ototsuku is gonna be like: "This is the story of how my days became so much more fun when I started dressing up in cute outfits!" (laughs)

I hope you'll be looking forward to it!

Here are the illustrations of the six outfits chosen among the following 12 themes!