Singaporean illustrator Rachta Lin had what anyone would consider a successful career. She was an art director at a multinational company and had worked with high profile clients such as UOB , Airasia and Toyota . But ever since she was young, she only wanted to do one thing: to become a manga artist.
Rachta, a big fan of anime and manga, has always enjoyed drawing her favorite characters. But her need to be practical led her to work in a company. Finally, in 2015, Ella Rachta made the leap and left her job to become a full-time illustrator. Her art has earned her a legion of fans and commissions from various companies including DC Comics and Blizzard.
Seven years later, after honing her skills with a renowned Japanese manga publisher and submitting her work to various competitions, Rachta is finally living out her dream of publishing her own manga series. MS News sat down with Rachta to find out why he decided to leave his job at the company, how he makes a living from art, and how he ended up publishing a fully fledged manga series in English.
« Like many artists, Rachta, who is currently 30 years old, discovered her love for drawing when she was very young. She was watching anime on TV, specifically the magical girl series “Himitsu no Akko-chan” (The Secrets Of Akko-chan)”, when her love for drawing was awakened. As an anime and manga fan, Rachta's childhood favorites were “Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon”, “Cardcaptor Sakura”, “Mobile Suit Gundam” and “Slam Dunk”, among others ».
« Her love for anime led her to dream of becoming a manga artist, however impractical that seemed for someone who didn't even live in Japan and didn't speak the language. Surprisingly, however, her father supported her from the beginning. “In a way, she has always been very supportive of me,” she said, considering herself lucky. Despite everything, people told him: “You are not in Japan, what are you going to do here? How are you going to draw manga and make money?” Her comments affected her and she finally decided on a more practical career .
« Although she graduated in visual arts at university, she started working in corporate graphic design and became an art director. Despite being conventionally successful and "pretty happy," Rachta always had a feeling that something was wrong. "I remember sitting down and wondering: If I only had one year left to live, what would I do?" Her answer was clear: she would quit her job and draw for that one year she had left, just to see how far she could go. With it, she discovered that this was what she really wanted. After years of putting aside her dreams for practical reasons, she was finally ready to face her life goal of becoming an artist, even if it meant losing the stability that her business career offered.».
“ Though things were daunting at first, she had a supportive manager who suggested she attend conventions to get noticed, as he was familiar with the convention and events industry. Since he was handling all the logistics, Rachta was able to focus solely on drawing despite her fears and worries. “Will people like my art? Will I be able to feed myself? How many sacrifices would I have to make to follow my heart? At these conventions she was able to sell and even give away artwork, which has earned her a loyal fan base over the years, many of whom travel miles from her just to meet her ."
" In the meantime, it also caters to customer requests, and has Blizzard, Wizards of the Coast - which publishes Magic: The Gathering, a card game that Rachta plays avidly - and DC Comics as customers over the years. years. Since his first event, he has participated in more than 70 exhibitions around the world, touring the United States, Canada, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore. In the seven years since he took the leap of faith, he hasn't looked back, and can now proudly say that he earns more now than before he left his last job .
But when the COVID -19 pandemic hit and lockdowns hit in April 2020, it was an uncertain period for Rachta, as much of her travel was curtailed and conventions were cancelled. Luckily, before the lockdowns began, there was one place he was able to visit in March: Japan. And this time he wasn't going to attend a convention, but was going to meet with a manga editor from Shueisha, the publishing giant behind big hits like "One Piece," "Naruto," and "Kimetsu no Yaiba. " .
« Despite the language barrier, the editor was happy and willing to work with Rachta, and they kept in touch afterwards. This was a huge milestone, as the manga industry in Japan is extremely competitive, and it's not every day that a publisher agrees to stay in touch. And shortly after his return from Japan, all countries, including Singapore, went into lockdown. He now had to think about how he could earn money without traveling to conventions. But, through her representative, her faithful followers, who hoped to meet her at the now canceled conventions, contacted her and asked for commissions from her, which she is still grateful for ».
« The months of the pandemic also served to take stock and, finally, he set out to do what he had been postponing for years: create his own manga. Ever since she was young, Rachta had always had a notebook full of story ideas. But since he is a person who "can't do more than one thing at a time", he could never limit himself to writing and drawing manga while working. Finally, without all the traveling he usually does, he was able to sit down and really work on his craft, now with the help of a respected manga publisher in Japan ."
Source: MSNews
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