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How to Make Manga: Complete Guide to Creating Your Own Japanese-Style Comics

Learn how to make manga from scratch. Covers Japanese comic conventions, panel techniques, character design, tools, and publishing paths.

Making manga combines Japanese storytelling traditions with distinctive visual techniques that have captivated readers worldwide. Whether you dream of creating the next One Piece or a heartfelt indie story, understanding manga’s unique conventions helps you create authentic, engaging work. This guide covers everything from foundational concepts to practical creation techniques.

What Makes Manga Different from Western Comics?

Before creating manga, understand what sets it apart from Western comics and other formats.

Reading Direction

Traditional manga reads right-to-left, with panels flowing from the upper-right corner to the lower-left. This affects panel arrangement, word bubble placement, and even action direction—characters typically move left-to-right to convey forward motion.

Many creators outside Japan produce “manga-style” comics that read left-to-right, which is equally valid. The choice affects your layout planning and potential publication platforms. Japanese publishers expect right-to-left; global digital platforms accept either direction.

Black and White Tradition

While color manga exists, the majority—especially serialized weekly/monthly manga—is black and white with gray tones created using screentones. This isn’t a limitation but a stylistic tradition that shapes manga’s visual language.

Black and white creation is faster (essential for weekly deadlines) and creates manga’s distinctive high-contrast look. Color typically appears on covers, chapter openings, and special pages.

Pacing and Storytelling

Manga often devotes more pages to moments that Western comics might compress. A dramatic revelation might span multiple pages with close-ups, reaction shots, and atmospheric panels. This “decompressed” storytelling creates emotional impact through visual rhythm.

Manga also employs specific visual conventions: speed lines for motion, impact frames for dramatic moments, chibi expressions for comedy, and symbolic imagery (cherry blossoms, sunset, rain) for emotional resonance.

Essential Manga Creation Tools

Traditional Tools

Many professional mangaka still work traditionally, at least for linework:

Manuscript paper: Pre-printed paper with crop marks and panel guidelines. Standard sizes are B4 (257×364mm) for drawing and A4 for final print. The larger drawing size allows for detailed work that scales down cleanly.

Dip pens and nibs: G-pens for flexible lines (thick to thin with pressure), maru pens for fine details, and kabura pens for consistent line weight. These create manga’s characteristic line quality.

Screentones: Adhesive sheets with dot patterns, gradients, and textures. Applied over areas for gray tones, textures, and effects. Digital equivalents exist in most drawing software.

White ink and correction fluid: For fixing mistakes and adding highlights over black areas.

Digital Tools

Most creators now work digitally, at least partially:

Clip Studio Paint is the industry standard. Its manga-specific features—panel rulers, perspective tools, screentone libraries, vector layers—make it essential. Available as one-time purchase or subscription.

Procreate works well for iPad creators, offering excellent brushes though fewer manga-specific features.

Medibang Paint is free with cloud storage and extensive screentone libraries, making it accessible for beginners.

GIMP and Krita are free alternatives that work with additional effort.

For collaborative manga projects, platforms like Multic enable multiple creators to work on the same story simultaneously, with built-in AI assistance for backgrounds and supplementary art.

Hardware

A drawing tablet or pen display significantly improves digital manga creation. Options range from:

  • Entry-level: Wacom Intuos, XP-Pen Deco ($50-$150)
  • Mid-range: Wacom Intuos Pro, Huion Kamvas ($200-$400)
  • Professional: Wacom Cintiq, iPad Pro + Apple Pencil ($500-$2000+)

Start with what you can afford—expensive tools don’t make better manga.

Understanding Manga Page Structure

Page Anatomy

A manga page contains several zones:

Bleed area: Extends beyond the final trim size. Art here may be cut off—never put important elements in bleed.

Trim line: The actual page edge after printing.

Safe zone: Keep text and crucial visual elements inside this area.

Gutters: White space between panels. Manga typically uses narrower gutters than Western comics.

Standard Page Sizes

Japanese manga uses specific dimensions:

  • Tankobon (collected volumes): Approximately 128×182mm (B6)
  • Weekly magazine pages: Larger during serialization, reduced for volume collection
  • Digital: 800-1200 pixels wide is common, maintaining readable text at screen size

If targeting Japanese publishers, research their specific requirements. Digital-first creators have more flexibility.

Panel Layout Techniques

Basic Panel Flow

Manga panels flow from top-right to bottom-left (in traditional format):

[1] → [2]
   ↘
[3] → [4]
   ↘
[5] → [6]

Guide readers with panel shapes and positions. Larger panels draw attention; smaller panels suggest quick moments. Diagonal panel edges create dynamism.

Panel Variety

Effective manga pages mix panel types:

Establishing panels: Wide shots showing location and context. Often span full page width.

Dialogue panels: Mid-shots and close-ups for conversations. Mix shot distances to maintain visual interest.

Action panels: Dynamic compositions with motion lines, impact frames, and varying sizes based on moment intensity.

Reaction panels: Close-ups on faces showing emotional responses. Manga often emphasizes reactions more than Western comics.

Atmospheric panels: Landscape, weather, or symbolic imagery setting mood without advancing plot directly.

Breaking the Grid

Manga liberally breaks conventional panel structures:

  • Panels can overlap
  • Characters can break panel borders
  • Splash pages (full page, single image) emphasize crucial moments
  • Double-page spreads create maximum impact
  • Borderless panels suggest expanded space or time

Study how favorite manga artists balance grid structure with dynamic breaks.

Character Design for Manga

Foundational Proportions

Manga uses exaggerated proportions for expressiveness:

Head-to-body ratios vary by genre and age:

  • Chibi/cute: 2-3 heads tall
  • Children: 4-5 heads tall
  • Teens/adults: 6-7 heads tall
  • Heroic/bishonen: 7-8+ heads tall

Eyes are often larger than realistic proportions, especially in shoujo and moe styles. Eye design carries enormous character personality—experiment with shape, highlights, and pupil style.

Hair defines characters more than almost any other feature. Create distinctive silhouettes with unique hairstyles. Hair often defies physics—that’s part of manga’s appeal.

Expression Sheets

Create reference sheets showing your characters’:

  • Basic expressions (happy, sad, angry, surprised, confused, embarrassed)
  • Extreme expressions for comedic or dramatic moments
  • Various angles (front, 3/4, profile, back)
  • Full body poses with clothing details
  • Height comparisons between characters

Consistency matters. Refer back to your sheets constantly during creation.

Manga Expression Conventions

Manga employs visual shorthand for emotions:

  • Sweat drops: Nervousness, embarrassment
  • Veins popping: Anger, frustration
  • Nose bleed: (comedic) attraction
  • Spiral eyes: Dizziness, confusion
  • Chibi transformation: Comedic moments within otherwise realistic styles
  • Blank white eyes: Shock, horror
  • Sparkles/flowers: Beauty, admiration

Use these conventions when they serve your story, but don’t feel obligated to include every trope.

Screentone Techniques

Screentones create manga’s characteristic gray values and textures.

Tone Basics

Tones are measured by:

  • Lines per inch (LPI): Higher numbers = finer dots (60-70 LPI is common)
  • Density: Percentage of black coverage (10% is light, 50% is mid-gray)

Digital tools simulate tones perfectly. Physical tones require careful application with craft knives.

Common Applications

Shading: Apply darker tones for shadows, lighter for mid-tones. Leave white for highlights.

Atmosphere: Light dot tones suggest fog, distance, or dreaminess.

Backgrounds: Geometric and pattern tones for urban environments, natural textures for outdoor scenes.

Special effects: Speed lines, impact tones, radial bursts for action and emotion.

Avoiding Moiré

When tones overlap at certain angles, they create unwanted moiré patterns. Either:

  • Keep overlapping tones at the same angle
  • Choose dramatically different angles (45°+ difference)
  • Use gradient tones instead of dot patterns for overlapping areas

Digital tools often have moiré prevention, but understanding the principle helps avoid problems.

Writing for Manga

Visual Storytelling Priority

Manga is a visual medium. Show before you tell:

Instead of: Character says “I’m so angry!” Use: Close-up on clenched fist, followed by character’s intense expression

Let art carry emotional weight. Dialogue supplements visuals rather than replacing them.

Pacing Through Panels

Control reading speed through panel density:

  • Many small panels = rapid pacing, quick action, snappy dialogue
  • Few large panels = slower pacing, dramatic moments, atmosphere
  • Single full-page panel = maximum impact moment

A climactic revelation earns its full-page treatment. Mundane transitions don’t.

Dialogue Considerations

Manga dialogue appears in bubbles that read right-to-left and top-to-bottom (in traditional format). Keep dialogue:

  • Concise—panels have limited space
  • Character-appropriate—distinct voices for each character
  • Subtext-heavy—what’s unsaid often matters more than what’s spoken

Sound effects (onomatopoeia) are integral to manga. Japanese has extensive sound effect vocabulary that’s often kept in translated versions for authenticity.

Creating Your First Manga

Start Small

Don’t begin with your 500-chapter epic. Create:

  1. One-shots (8-32 pages, complete story)
  2. Short series (3-5 chapters)
  3. Practice scenes (action sequences, emotional moments, dialogue exchanges)

Complete short projects before attempting long serialization.

The One-Shot Structure

A standard manga one-shot (30-32 pages) follows this rough structure:

  • Pages 1-5: Introduce protagonist and situation
  • Pages 6-10: Establish conflict/goal
  • Pages 11-20: Rising action, complications
  • Pages 21-28: Climax and resolution
  • Pages 29-32: Denouement, final emotional beat

This isn’t rigid—adjust based on your story’s needs.

Production Workflow

Typical manga creation follows this process:

  1. Name/storyboard: Rough thumbnails planning panel layout and dialogue placement
  2. Pencils: Detailed drawings on manuscript paper (or digital equivalent)
  3. Inking: Clean linework over pencils
  4. Toning: Apply screentones for shading and effects
  5. Text: Add dialogue, narration, and sound effects
  6. Final review: Check for errors, consistency issues

Professional serialization demands tight schedules. Indie creators have more flexibility but benefit from structured workflows.

Publishing Your Manga

Traditional Publishing

Japanese publishers accept submissions through:

  • Contests: Major magazines run regular contests for new talent
  • Portfolio submissions: Send samples following publisher guidelines
  • Digital platforms: Sites like ComicWalker and Manga Plus scout new creators

Breaking into traditional publishing is competitive but offers established audiences and professional support.

Digital Self-Publishing

Numerous platforms host creator-published manga:

  • Webtoon Canvas: Large audience, but favors vertical scroll format
  • Tapas: Accepting of traditional manga format
  • Global Comic: Specifically manga-focused
  • Pixiv: Japanese platform with global reach
  • Amazon Kindle: Self-publish collected volumes

Services like IngramSpark and Amazon KDP let you sell physical manga volumes without inventory. Quality varies—research printing options carefully.

Collaborative Publishing

Platforms like Multic enable teams to create manga together, combining writing, art, and AI-assisted production. This approach suits creators who want to produce visual stories without shouldering every aspect alone.

Genre Considerations

Different manga genres have distinct conventions:

Shounen (boys’ action): High energy, tournament arcs, power escalation, themes of friendship and perseverance. Examples: Naruto, My Hero Academia

Shoujo (girls’ romance): Emotional depth, relationship focus, sparkly visual flourishes, internal monologue. Examples: Fruits Basket, Ouran High School Host Club

Seinen (adult men): Complex themes, detailed art, darker tones, psychological depth. Examples: Berserk, Monster

Josei (adult women): Realistic relationships, mature themes, nuanced emotions. Examples: Nana, Paradise Kiss

Isekai: Transported-to-another-world stories with RPG elements. Currently extremely popular.

Slice of life: Everyday moments, gentle pacing, character-driven rather than plot-driven.

Study genre conventions, then decide which to follow and which to subvert.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Overcomplicating early pages: Hook readers with clarity, not complexity. Save intricate worldbuilding for later.

Inconsistent character designs: Maintain reference sheets and check them constantly.

Wall of text: If your dialogue could work as prose, you’re probably not using the visual medium effectively.

Ignoring panel flow: Confusing panel arrangement loses readers. Test readability with fresh eyes.

Skipping backgrounds: Empty backgrounds work occasionally for focus, but consistent emptiness feels lazy.

Rushing tones: Sloppy screentone application distracts from otherwise good art.

Getting Started Today

  1. Read manga analytically—study panel layouts, pacing, and visual storytelling
  2. Practice fundamental drawing skills—figure drawing, perspective, inking
  3. Learn your tools—invest time mastering software or traditional materials
  4. Create short, complete works—finish projects to learn the full process
  5. Get feedback—share work, accept criticism, improve iteratively
  6. Develop your voice—study conventions, then find what makes your work distinctive

Making manga is challenging but deeply rewarding. Your first manga won’t be perfect—but it will be the foundation for everything that follows.

Ready to bring your manga story to life? Multic offers collaborative creation tools with AI-assisted art generation, perfect for creators who want to focus on storytelling.

Related: How to Make a Comic and Character Design Fundamentals