Spy x Family's Tatsuya Endo & Shihei Lin Interview

It was about 13 years ago that Mr. Endo, who started drawing manga at a young age, met his current editor, Mr. Lin. SPY×FAMILY is the third series they've worked on together, and it's now an extremely popular series that has sold over 8 million copies through six volumes.

In this interview, we'll be talking to the two members of this tag team.

--- Endo's serialization debut was in "JUMP SQ." How did the two of you first meet?

Tatsuya Endo: "I met Mr. Lin at the start of "TISTA" (his serial debut work from 2007). I submitted my first work to Jump magazine when I was in my first year of high school and later did in my second year. So Mr. Lin is the third person I've met since then. He was the first person younger than me, and when I first met him, I thought I was getting a light-hearted person (laughs). "TISTA" was set in New York, so we took a trip to NYC for an interview. Mr. Lin had just started his career, so it was like a trip between two college students. It was a lot of fun."

Shihei Lin: "I was put in charge of Mr. Endo because he was young, but we spent a lot of time together on the trip and got to know each other. We went to places that Endo wanted to go to and took pictures. Our company is rather
generous in letting us go on company trips, so I went to Kumano Kodo with Endo for the second serial "Gekka Bijin". It was in the name of reporting, but I was a little tired, so I also wanted to refresh myself (laughs)."

--- Spy x Family is the third serialization of that the two of you have worked on together, what did you talk about when you started it?

Lin: "A lot of things happened in the seven years or so after 'Gekka Bijin'. There were one-shots and projects that didn't take shape. Among them, "I SPY" was well received, so I thought it would be good to focus on the theme of spies for the next serialization."

Endo: "I was thinking of "I SPY" as a short story, so I wasn't thinking of turning it into a serial. But since I'm a military fan and I'm not averse to spy stories, we decided to do another spy project. Mr. Lin's stance was that I could draw whatever I wanted."

--- At the meeting after that, did Mr. Lin's opinion change the content of the manga?

Lin: "Basically, I didn't ask him to draw anything at all. It was more like, "This is a good idea." But now it's a little different. We talk about what we're going to do next until we're exhausted at the café. Like, what should the next volume 7 be about, who should be on the cover, etc."

Endo: "That's what we discuss and decide. After the setting and plot are decided, the most difficult part is the storyboard, but I can't ask for help. Mr. Lin says that I can consult him about anything, but I feel like I'm holding it in, or that I have to figure it out on my own."

Lin: "When I feel like he's stuck, I'll drop him a line. If the storyboard isn't finished by the time limit, I'll say, 'It's about time, isn't it?" But when he's working on a drawing, I rarely ask, "Are you okay? You're rarely late by a day or two." Also, there are many scenes that he wants to draw, so I often consult with him. It would be interesting if he could draw them, but it would be difficult to write & draw them in a timely manner."

Endo: "That's true."

Lin: "The production period is two weeks, so it's hard to write more than 30 pages. We can only use 6-7 days for drawing, so if Endo draws 4 pages a day, the limit is 20+ pages. If we still want to publish the story because it's interesting, we'll add an extra chapter and publish 31 pages in the next chapter."

Endo: "If I have to cut something, I have to use a lot of brain power to do so. Unlike the print media, "Jump +" has a free page count, which is a big help."

--- Are there any other manga that you had a little trouble with?

Lin: "Compared to the previous series, this one was a bit more difficult."

Endo: "Mentally, I'm always trapped, but I've never been trapped by the work. I'm a person who thinks too much, but since it's a comedy, I don't have to think too hard. Although, I'm a perfectionist by nature, so if I'm not careful, I tend to fall back. Even if it's just a tennis racket, I wonder what the design of a tennis racket would be like in this era. If I were a real spy, I wouldn't act this way. I keep thinking about the details that I shouldn't worry about in the story."

Lin: "A similar story that was interesting to me was how long cardboard has been in use. I'm a loose type of person, but I do look into things that Mr. Endo notices. I didn't set a strict age in the work, which is a point of escape, but it's a world where cell phones don't just appear out of nowhere."

Endo: "That's right. That's the line we're trying to follow."

--- There's a process where the manga artist draws something interesting and the editor sells it, but what do you do to promote it?

Lin: "Well... there's a charity project I was working on until recently called "Anya's Friend Project", in which the proceeds from the sales of LINE stamps are donated. It's not just a charity project, it's also a project that involves Endo's fans. The stamps were made from Endo's original drawings and the fan art was selected by him."

Endo: "I'm basically a noob when it comes to advertising, but I had a lot of fun choosing the fan art for the "Anya's Friends Project"."

--- I heard that Mr. Hayashi asked you to start a Twitter account around the time of the launch of "SPY×FAMILY".

Endo: "Well, I was forced to (laughs). I've never been familiar with social networking sites, so I had no idea what to write.

Lin: "I think that's typical of Endo."

Endo: "Once I started posting pictures when the latest chapter was updated, I couldn't stop... I try to pay attention to the number of retweets."

Lin: "I think the publicity effect of SNS is great. Readers are busy, so they forget when the manga is updated. I always announce the update date at midnight in Japan. The "Jump+" day-of-the-week ranking rule is that if there are a lot of hits after the update, a banner appears in the best place. I think all the other editors do this, too.

--- Is there anything in common between manga that sell well?

Lin: "I don't know, that's the honest answer. I can only say in broad terms that if it's interesting, it's likely to sell. It's difficult to say. It doesn't mean that if you enjoy drawing, it will sell, but it also doesn't mean that you have to suffer. It's just a personal feeling, but I think that people who continue to draw while changing are more likely to sell their work. Of course, it's not a guarantee."

Endo: "In my case, I'm not really trying to draw something that will sell, I'm just trying to draw what I can draw."

Lin: "It depends on the person. If the pictures are catastrophically bad, but the storyboard is good, there may be a way to become an author, and the drawings may change later. If it's interesting, we'll work together to create it."

--- If it's interesting, you'll work together?

Lin: "Yes. I think manga artists have a wide range of entertainment qualities. If I feel that there is even a hint of appropriateness, I will try to create something with them. The hurdle is pretty low. On the other hand, I'll talk to them for an hour or two and tell them that I'm waiting for a story, but there are many times when I don't get anything or when the writer refuses to contact me."

Endo: "I guess they're lost. I'm the same way."

Lin "If you're good at drawing, I'll sometimes give you a lettered manuscript. Sometimes that leads to a new work."

--- If you had to pick one thing that you wish manga artists had, what would it be?

Lin: "'Fun' comes first."

Endo: "In my case, I don't think drawing manga is fun..."

Lin: "I think being busy is outweighing it right now, but if you unravel it, Endo, there are definitely fun moments."

Endo: "That's true. When I first started drawing manga, I had a lot of fun drawing. If it wasn't completely fun, I wouldn't be able to draw anything, so I'd like to avoid that."

Lin: "Endo, when you couldn't draw manga before the "SPY×FAMILY" series started, you used to post your drawings on pixiv for rehabilitation.

Endo: "The people around me said that drawing what they liked was fun, so I thought it would be fun for me too, so I tried my best, but it didn't turn out so well. It was fun when I went to be an assistant in between serials. I learned a lot from the good artists, and even just talking to them was stimulating. I could feel the enthusiasm of the people around me, and it made me feel like I had to draw as hard as they did."

--- It seems that you can continue for a long time by keeping your motivation for drawing.

Lin: "It's true that the younger you are, the longer you can continue drawing, but I think it is okay to start drawing when you are 40 or 50. I went to see Mr. Sōsuke Tōka of "Ōsama Ranking" when he was popular, but he left his job in his forties to start drawing, and now he's making anime. It's a wonderful story and a dream come true. I think it's good to start drawing when you feel like it, and if you feel like it's too hard, it's okay to leave."

Endo: "I've never wanted to quit drawing manga before, either. I wasted a lot of my life because I didn't know what to draw, but I think it's because I'm older that I'm able to draw the manga I do now. I'm sure there are manga that only a 70-year-olds can draw, aren't there?"

Lin: "It would give me courage if there was a manga drawn by a 70-year-old saying, 'This is how I want to spend the rest of my life,' and I'd like to read it if someone who was a doctor until he was about 60 started drawing a manga about doctors. You might have the impression that "Jump+" is more interested in young artists, but we live in an aging society, and I think that there will be manga artists who are 60 or 70 years old."

--- Then, what does an editor mean to you?

Endo: "There are times when I can't have an objective point of view on my own, so I think I need the editor's point of view in those situations. Every time I work on a story, I don't know what's interesting, and somehow I manage to draw it, but when it's interesting, Lin tells me it's interesting. But when it's funny, Hayashi tells me it's funny. If it weren't for Lin, I don't think I'd be able to finish it.

Lin: "When it's funny, I say it's funny, and when I don't understand, I say I don't understand together with him. We often talk about how to make it more interesting."

Endo: "When I couldn't draw manga, there were times when Lin would take me out to eat and we would just talk. That alone was very supportive and I was grateful."

--- Please tell us about the appeal of "JUMP+" for Mr. Endo.

Endo: "In my case, my first contribution was to "Jump", and I also experienced print media, but I followed Mr. Lin and before I knew it, I ended up at "Jump+". I started my career in print media, but in the end, I think that "Jump+" was the best. The number of pages and the intervals between series are free, and it's easy to draw."

Lin: "It's a place where artists can put their work first."

Endo: "Also, it's easy to see the number of views clearly." It's great to know that people are reading the series. I've been looking at the comments all the time (laughs)."

--- This Million Tag is a new type of manga award that teams up with an editor who is actually active in the topic "Jump +".

Endo: "It's an advantage to be able to work with an editor rather than an individual. If I'm temporarily unable to draw, or if I'm depressed, it's reassuring to know that they care about me and will work with me to find a way out of it."

Lin: "I would like to tell you that if you ever have a difficult time, I will suffer with you. I think the prize money is higher than most manga awards, and I'd be happy if manga artists who are aiming to make their works into anime could apply."

Endo: "If the prize money is large enough, we can invest in equipment, which would be great."

Lin "Buzz in Japan doesn't reach the rest of the world, but we have a global channel, so people all over the world can read and comment on the latest chapter. The works born from "Million Tag" may also be read by people all over the world. That would be fun.

Original Article

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