A 30-year-old female comic book artist, who uses the pseudonym Cory (顆粒), was the biggest winner in this year’s Golden Comic Awards on Friday, bagging awards for making the year’s best contribution to the field and creating the best comic book for young females with her well-received manga publication Make a Wish, Ta-hsi (許個願吧!大喜).
A total of 140 hopefuls competed in this year’s Golden Comic Awards, which were first held three years ago to boost the development of the nation’s comic book industry.
Winners in the categories of Best Comic Book for Young Men, Best Comic Book for Young Women, Best General Comic Book, Best New Comic Book Artist and Best Upcoming Comic Book Artist receive NT$200,000 (US$6,666) in prize money, while those who win an honorable mention are given a NT$100,000 cash prize.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
Make a Wish, Ta-hsi’s plot, which centers around family bonds and puppy love, depicts how its leading character, Kao Ta-hsi (高大喜), a notorious gang member, becomes a changed man after meeting a sick young girl, Tien Le (天樂), and how he accidentally encounters an angel that can grant him wishes.
“I am hoping to convey the happiness of sharing,” Cory said of her work, which was chosen as the year’s best comic book contribution by a unanimous vote.
Golden Comic Award judge Chen Chih-hua (陳治華) described Cory’s winning piece as “a creation that is filled with warmth and appeals to all ages and genders.”
A widely recognized comic artist in Taiwan and abroad, Cory is the first Taiwanese comic book creator to be featured in the International MANGA Awards in Japan, winning this year’s Silver Award in February.
Another one of her creations, Lovely Everywhere (Lovely無所不在), was also crowned the best young women’s comic book at last year’s Golden Comic Awards and was also a winner in the National Institute for Compilation and Translation Outstanding Comics Awards in 2010.
Combined, the two comic books have sold more than 100,000 copies, earning Cory her place as the country’s “new-generation comic book diva” and amassing a loyal fan base among young comic book enthusiasts.
“Creating a comic book is like sacrificing one’s life, and it’s all for the purpose of sharing oneself with the readers,” Cory said.
Other award winners include Juan Kuang-min (阮光民), who received the Best General Comic Book Award for Seasonings of Happiness (幸福調味料), which centers on a number of common Taiwanese snacks and cooking sauces that play an indispensable role in the everyday lives of ordinary people.
A rising female comic book creator who uses the pen name of YinYin was crowned the Best New Comic Book Artist for her creation, Loss of the Holy Seal (上上籤), which is a light-hearted take on national temple culture and religious beliefs.
The Best Comic Book for Young Men award went to Yeh Ming-hsuan (葉明軒), creator of Buddha Land (無上西天), while the 30-year-old comic book artist Wei Tsung-cheng (韋宗成) won an honorable mention in the same category.
Minister of Culture Lung Ying-tai (龍應台) said the ministry expected to see more original Taiwanese comic creations entering the growing global comic book industry and reaching international audiences.
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