When I find an author I really like, I usually go deep and read everything they’ve ever written. I trust them to tell a good story, but I also like the way they tell a story. Mood, tone, pacing, flow—they matter. And there are places I don’t like to go, so when I find a writer whose tastes align with mine, ah! Bliss!
In the realm of manga, it’s not hard to figure out my favorites. If I have multiple series from a mangaka, it’s because I was willing to follow them into a new adventure. Or to dig back and find copies of their older work. Based on the teetering stacks on my shelves, CLAMP ranks high on my list of favorites.
These are some of my more recent acquisitions. I also own all of Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle, xxxHolic, and xxxHolic Rei. Oh, and I’ve seen Magic Knight Rayearth, and I finally (finally) watched Cardcaptor Sakura. Why CLAMP? While I appreciate the gorgeous art, it’s the plots that please me. Yes, there are some very CLAMPish themes that crop up in all their storylines, but I (usually) can’t predict their twists. And I love it when a story surprises me.
No surprise, my next highest manga stacks have Rumiko Takahashi’s name on them. What authors do you follow?
CLAMP – I have ever since reading Clover oh so long ago.
Tamura Yumi – I own everything she has avail domestically and much of her non-domestically released stuff in Japanese (I love 7 Seeds)
Hikawa Kyoko – her one lone English translated series (From Far Away/Kanata Kara) is one of my favs, but I own most of her other works in Japanese too. The Chizumi & Fujiomi trilogy is possibly the most adorable slice of life/romance manga I’ve ever read.
Shinohara Chie – Red River (or Anatolia Story or Sora wa Akai Kawa no Hotori) is also a fav, but her 80’s/early 90’s horror one-shots and suspense series (Yami no Purple Eyes and Umi no Yami, Tsuki no Kage) and her slightly more recent Mizu ni Sumu Hana are all favorites too
Arakawa Hiromu – aside from the fact Fullmetal Alchemist ranks as possibly my favorite manga and anime series of all time, I just like her style. Arslan has been good, and I’ve enjoyed what I’ve read of Silver Spoon. I wasn’t as keen on Hero Tales, but that’s because it didn’t have any sort of ending.
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You know, From Far Away was one of the very first manga I picked up (right after Fruits Basket). I had no idea I should be looking for more from that mangaka. I’m going to poke around (and possibly chase down) your other recs as well! ::twinkle::
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Oh def! Back when Animerica Extra was a magazine and they’d feature creators and series that weren’t yet available in english I’d find a lot of my favorites that way. I read From Far Away originally in scans because I bought most of it in Japanese from my local Book-Off, but could not figure out enough of it (my Japanese reading skills at the time were really sparse) so I broke down.
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