The following is an interview with Sourya regarding the release of the graphic novel, Talli, Daughter of the Moon Volume 2, through Oni Press. In this interview, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief Barbra Dillon chats with Sourya about his creative process in returning to the world of Talli, Daughter of the Moon, how he infuses his early manga influences into his artistic style, and more! Plus, enjoy a preview from the graphic novel following the interview!
Barbra Dillon, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief: Congratulations on the second release from your graphic novel series! What can you share with us about your experience in returning to this world and characters of Talli, Daughter of the Moon and seeing them evolve over time?
Sourya: It’s such a pleasure to return to my characters on each volume.
I think the heart of the story revolves around the relationship between the characters, how they feel about each other. This is what drives me the most when writing the story of Talli.
Experience wise, working on Talli Volume 2 wasn’t easy. To be honest, it’s never been easy on any of the volumes. I always struggle with each step of the creative process: the script, storyboard, drawing… Everything is hard for me, haha.
But I guess, nothing beats the joy and satisfaction of finishing a volume, seeing it published, and in the hands of readers!
BD: As a young reader who was heavily influenced by manga, do you see elements of your own artistic style or creative process that originated in specific works that inspired you?
Sourya: There are so many manga artists that have inspired my artstyle, but I’ll just name a few:
- Akira Toriyama with Dragon Ball: the first manga I ever read, it probably built most of my artstyle when I was a child, and made me want to draw comics.
- Rumiko Takahashi with Maison Ikkoku: This was a 180° transition from Dragon Ball, where I discovered how a manga could be as interesting without consistent fighting, and just having interesting characters and storyline. She is still a huge inspiration to me to this day artwise, but storytelling wise, as well. I just think she’s amazing.
- I also want to mention Hayao Miyazaki with Princess Mononoke: It’s not a manga, but the movie left such an impact on me when I was a teenager. It made me want to improve on my script writing, characters, scenes, and message of my stories. I’m also very inspired by movies (The Sound of Music, Pride and Prejudice…), life drawing, music (mostly jrpg OST when I’m writing) …
BD: At Fanbase Press, our #StoriesMatter initiative endeavors to highlight the impact that stories can have on audiences of various mediums. How do you feel that Princess Talli’s story has been connecting with and impacting readers?
Sourya: I honestly am not sure, haha! I hope in a positive way. For me, my manga Talli tells the story of a young teenager struggling to find her place in the world, searching for her path in life. Most of her journey is about how she learns more about herself and her feelings at each volume. So, I just hope readers connect to these emotions and feel inspired by her journey!
BD: What has made Oni Press the perfect home for this series?
Sourya: Oni Press understands the project, the way Talli is a manga with many more inspirations. It was important for me to find a publisher that was in the same wavelength as I am. I could see how open minded they were with other comic book projects they’ve published, and thought Talli would fit perfectly in this new home!
BD: Are there any upcoming projects on which you are currently working that you would like to share with our readers?
Sourya: I recently started working on volume 5 of Talli and can’t wait for the readers to reach the end of Talli’s journey! I am also slowly trying to write a new story on the side. I’d like to draw a new manga series, and I was thinking of “music” as the main theme. But probably with the same messages as Talli: finding yourself, your path, etc. The storyline is still very blurry at this point, but maybe the story of a high school rock and roll band.
BD: Lastly, what is the best way for our readers to find more information about Talli, Daughter of the Moon and your other work?
Sourya: They can reach out to me on social media. I usually am quite active on Instagram and Twitter. I often post some sneak peaks of new pages.
They can also come and chat while I’m live on Twitch (twitch.tv/sulhya), even though right now, I don’t stream much, because I’m on the writing step of volume 5. But once I start drawing the pages, I’ll be live almost every day of the week!
