My Problems With Aspiring Local Manga-Anime Artists Who "Want Work in Manga"....

I think the worst thing about aspiring anime and manga artists in America, is the hypocrisy. The lack of support for their own local medium, genre and industry. Honestly, for those who aren't aware of the state of American manga and anime, it kind of makes you look like an arrogant, snobby fanboy or fangirl asshole when you go on and on about how you have all these BIG dreams of drawing manga or anime locally, as an American, and yet you can't think of one person working IN THAT medium whose work you read, choosing instead to go on about how "everything sucks and you could do better" which obviously isn't the case (yet anyway). If you're not going to support the local American manga or anime / anime-influenced industry, and the artists and writers who draw their own, you have no right to participate. There is a connection between love of you're own genre and medium, and successful carving out your OWN niche in it. People who don't support their own industry (American manga and anime) yet have aspirations to work in it are just one big contradiction. You have to support the artists, creators, and writers in the West who do what YOU want to do...

No one makes a living at local manga because all the people who want to draw it don't actually support anyone or anything but their own aspirations and dreams, without any emphasis on the community or bigger picture of the business. REAL businesses support themselves, their communities.If artists can't be bothered to support EACHOTHER, they have no right to support themSELVES.

The main problem I see with what happened to local manga (manga made in the U.S.) was and still is all the negativity and criticism surrounding it. Criticism and negativity wouldn't be such a bad thing in and of itself: IF that  very negativity aimed at titles and creators wasn't coming from OTHER creators who wanted to do for a living the very thing they were insulting and tearing down. Not cool man. As an artists, it's NOT COOL to hate on and criticize your industry peers. An industry that doesn't play nice and get along peacefully with itself is not an industry that's going to survive for very long.

Be nice, girls. Be nice to your peers. Community is just as important as Quality of comics content.

People don't have to respect every anime drawing they see, from Japan or otherwise.
But it is important to respect the effort to TRY.

I don't recall any Japanese creator or editor (ever) saying "Hate and discourage any artist who doesn't come DIRECTLY FROM JAPAN/TOKYO" Fans say things like that sometimes. Actual manga-ka should never be so discouraging to everybody.