The Taiwanese manga artist known as “Monday Recover” (星期一回收日) was met with an enthusiastic response during an appearance at Foire du Livre, a French-language book fair that is being held in Brussels, Belgium.
With four comic books that have been translated into French, the selection of Monday Recover, whose given name is Shih Chia-yu (施佳妤), as a featured artist proved to be a hit at the book fair, attracting many visitors to her book-signing events and forums at the event from Thursday to Sunday.
At a forum she participated in, Shih, whose works fall into the “girls’ love” genre, received questions from five members of the audience about her sources of inspiration, ideas for her next work and how young comic artists can become successful in Taiwan.
Photo: CNA
Perhaps best known for her book Sea You There and Us (貓與海的彼端), Shih said that “girls’ love” is a niche genre with few creators, but it has always had a very dedicated following.
Earlier works depicting same-sex relationships often had sad endings, but times have changed, and “people need teen stories with a happy ending,” she said.
Shih said she would therefore continue creating works in this genre for now.
Shih’s appearance at the event marked the second consecutive year of a collaboration between the French online manga subscription service mangas.io and Taiwan’s government-funded Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA).
Nazca, a French publisher that has published more than 10 Taiwanese comics titles, have also joined mangas.io and TAICCA to promote their content at their table.
Damien Mercier, a representative for Nazca, said that about 200 titles hit the French market every month, and Taiwanese comics, characterized by their unconventional plots and diversity, tend to fit the taste of most French readers.
Yun Inada, chief content officer for mangas.io, said his platform had just added four Taiwanese comics titles earlier this month thanks to a collaboration with TAICCA.
Shih’s works touch on self-identity and feminism, which lend themselves well to works that the book fairs’ organizers wish to spotlight, Inada said.
The popularity of “shonen manga” — Japanese comic books whose target audience is young men and boys in their adolescence — in France has created a sizable following of Japanese manga, and demand for more manga genres is on the rise, Inada said.
This has presented an opportunity for Taiwanese comics to create an impact on the French market, he said.
Inada said that unlike male readers, who often share pirated content and read shonen manga almost exclusively, he found female readers are more likely to purchase comic books and explore different genres.
Therefore, offering a variety of titles is key to discovering fresh and interesting stories, Inada said.
He also said that Taiwanese comics stand out from Japanese works as they originate from a “hybrid culture” influenced by Dutch, Chinese and Japanese elements, making them particularly fascinating.
Beijing could eventually see a full amphibious invasion of Taiwan as the only "prudent" way to bring about unification, the US Department of Defense said in a newly released annual report to Congress. The Pentagon's "Annual Report to Congress: Military and Security Developments Involving the People's Republic of China 2025," was in many ways similar to last year’s report but reorganized the analysis of the options China has to take over Taiwan. Generally, according to the report, Chinese leaders view the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) capabilities for a Taiwan campaign as improving, but they remain uncertain about its readiness to successfully seize
Taiwan is getting a day off on Christmas for the first time in 25 years. The change comes after opposition parties passed a law earlier this year to add or restore five public holidays, including Constitution Day, which falls on today, Dec. 25. The day marks the 1947 adoption of the constitution of the Republic of China, as the government in Taipei is formally known. Back then the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) governed China from Nanjing. When the KMT, now an opposition party in Taiwan, passed the legislation on holidays, it said that they would help “commemorate the history of national development.” That
Taiwan has overtaken South Korea this year in per capita income for the first time in 23 years, IMF data showed. Per capita income is a nation’s GDP divided by the total population, used to compare average wealth levels across countries. Taiwan also beat Japan this year on per capita income, after surpassing it for the first time last year, US magazine Newsweek reported yesterday. Across Asia, Taiwan ranked fourth for per capita income at US$37,827 this year due to sustained economic growth, the report said. In the top three spots were Singapore, Macau and Hong Kong, it said. South
HORROR STORIES: One victim recounted not realizing they had been stabbed and seeing people bleeding, while another recalled breaking down in tears after fleeing A man on Friday died after he tried to fight the knife-wielding suspect who went on a stabbing spree near two of Taipei’s busiest metro stations, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. The 57-year-old man, identified by his family name, Yu (余), encountered the suspect at Exit M7 of Taipei Main Station and immediately tried to stop him, but was fatally wounded and later died, Chiang said, calling the incident “heartbreaking.” Yu’s family would receive at least NT$5 million (US$158,584) in compensation through the Taipei Rapid Transit Corp’s (TRTC) insurance coverage, he said after convening an emergency security response meeting yesterday morning. National
RSS