Interview with cartoonist Xie Donglin (below): As long as you think about creation, every experience is meaningful|Talk to Xuan Xuan about EP8

In this episode, Taiwanese cartoonist Xie Donglin is invited to reveal his struggles and achievements in the comic world. He is not only a representative of Taiwanese comics, but also made his work "Shinmei Convenience Store" on the international stage. What kind of unknown mental journey is hidden behind all this?

A link to a life node

Steve Jobs once said that we don't know what we are choosing at the moment of every choice, but when we look back one day, the connection of all life nodes will constitute a unique landscape in your life.

Xie Donglin said that when he was a child, he dreamed that he would become a cartoonist, and later worked in an advertising agency, but he never thought that he could survive through the profession of cartoonist.

As a creator, what kind of choices you make and what path you take will not be the same way. Even if you go to work today and do something that seems to have nothing to do with creation, it will eventually become the nourishment of creation, as long as you have your heart and mind about creation, everything you do will not be in vain.

"Life is a kind of creation, as long as you have the courage and faith to move forward, it will not be the same way." Wei Xuan responded. Xie Donglin went on to talk about the most hated time in his life when he was a soldier, and the time of serving was monotonous and boring, which was very constrained for free-spirited creators.

But after such a time, he painted these experiences as "Enlist in the Army!" Magical Girl", using the perspective of a magical girl to interpret the experience of being a soldier, I didn't expect it to be very popular.

From then on, he realized that even the darkest memories actually came in handy one day.

(Extended reading: Our Happiest Hours|Interview with an e-commerce wife: Contact the unknown, turn the unknown into the known!) Our lives are meaning in themselves)

Picture: "Enlist in the Army! Magical Girl

Taiman's survival battle, what does Donglin think!

He said that Taiwan's comic industry is still very weak, which can be traced back to 1966 when the government enacted comic book censorship, but the 1960s was the golden age of comics, and the works of many Taiwanese cartoonists were popular.

At that time, the comic censorship system stifled the imagination through a serious and realistic perspective, stifling the imagination through a serious and realistic perspective. So at that time, many Taiwanese cartoonists changed careers because of the inability to do that policy, which also led to a large loss of Taiwanese cartoon talents, and their works also lacked imagination.

However, at that time, Japan was also in the golden age of comics, and their pirated comics were widely circulated in the Taiwanese market, while Taiwan's local creations shrank. Since then, Japan has dominated Taiwan's manga market.

In fact, it is difficult to return to the glory of the past, especially in the era of the developed Internet, comics are relatively easy to be translated and circulated. Plus, manga has a wide range of competitors, including YouTube, games, and all sorts of new and interesting things, so it's not so easy for comics to catch the eye.

However, he believes that the adaptation of comics, licensing film and television, peripheral and other cooperation methods may be the way that comics can stand out in the sea of IP.

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Picture: "Talking to Xuan Xuan"

Donglin's goal for himself

He smiled and said that he has not yet earned enough to retire, money is a realistic consideration, and the commercial market is the way to make an industry last for a long time, forming a virtuous circle. Wei Xuan also shared her experience of growing up when she was a child, her family was in business, but in the era of the Shinong business class, it was a shame for her to fill in the business column of her parents' occupation when she was a child.

But her father told her an important word: business is also a way to repay kindness. Her grandfather ran an orange shop, and he would ride an iron carriage around the village to sell goods and provide more convenient services, but everything he did in business was for the good of others.

Therefore, if you are kind and can convey positive change, business is a very beautiful activity, just like creation is priceless, but it also has a price, and I really like to support it with action.

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Picture: "Talking to Xuan Xuan"

Xie Donglin said that creation and the market are the law of supply and demand, and if his creation can make others happy and look good, then the other party can use a little money to support him, so that he has more opportunities to make good creations.

As long as you know that human beings have such needs, if you can meet the needs of the other party, there will always be a way out of this matter, and you will never need to give up, and you will not have to limit yourself to what way to express your story.

In the case of comics, it may be a serial way of paper comics now, but Korean comics have taken on the appearance of comics, and this adjustment is to match the browsing mode of mobile phones, and also change the way of reading. Maybe there will be new ways to browse or tell comics in the future, which can be tried and looked forward to.

If you like the work, you should support it with action, just like if you love someone, you should be brave enough to confess to him, so that our lives will not be in vain!