Cover art update!

The cover art has been updated and the title font looks amazing! It's only a month now until the book goes on sale, so hopefully I will be able to post some sample pages soon. The book's Twitter page is also active daily, so have a look! @sonnyleadsmanga
Richard

Cover art has arrived!!!

 

The cover art has arrived! Kamobayashi Sensei has really done an amazing job!

I really love the retro feel of the piece, while also reflecting the modern kumite equipment used in competition.

The building in the background is the Nippon Budokan, and it says Budokan in kanji on the red banner, as that is what the actual entrance looks like.

The kanji on Sonny's uniform says Ogami Dojo, which of course a Japanese reader would understand so I just wanted to share that fact for non-Japanese readers.

Why Ogami dojo? Ah, that comes later.

Is Sonny leaping into the kick, falling from the kick, off balance in the kick, or at the moment to extend further with the kick, it all depends on the viewer.

And um, no, Sonny is not supposed to look like me. For sure similar, but he is a fictional character having some traits of some famous karate athletes.

Again, I love cover, I love how the color really comes off the page, and I can't wait to see how the publisher incorporates this artwork into the actual front cover of the book itself.

Next stage in production is the first few pages of the first chapter...

A little longer...

First, thanks to all those people sending me messages of support!

Just like you, I can't wait to hold the book in my hands too.

For now, it seems this manga project is so big, Kamobayashi Sensei would like longer to work on it, therefore we're looking at having the book come out in June of this year.

Just a few more months to wait for even a better final product is fine with me.

On the book tour side of things, some of the tour dates are about to be confirmed in June & July.

Florida

California

Nevada

then back to Japan... to Okinawa!

Once the associated events for each location are booked, I'll be able to announce exactly what's happening.

If anyone has any questions, feel free to email me.

Richard

Reviewing cover art...

It's now February and 2 samples of the cover art have arrived for review!

The final cover art should hopefully be ready to be announced within a week or two.

Thanks to everyone for the messages of interest in the book! As soon as the cover art is ready, we can begin to get samples of the first chapter too, which I'll put up here on the website.

I'll also keep posting updates on our Twitter feed.

@sonnyleadsmanga

Richard

TBC 2014 Book Tour

The book tour is still be confirmed, but possible cities to be visited in 2014 may include:

Las Vegas
San Francisco
Los Angeles
San Diego
Portland
Seattle
Vancouver
New York
Washington
Tokyo

Cover art expected early February!

Rough artwork received!

The production of artwork has officially begun with most of the rough pages being received by Manga University from Kamobayashi Sensei just recently!

These drawings are mainly a simplified summary of the flow of the story from panel to panel - of which it is a little too early to share samples, sorry - but it allows myself and the editing staff to better understand how Sensei is imaging the story in line with how I am as well.

Also, quick thanks to all those people how have sent messages of support for the book, I really appreciate it!

Richard

News! Manga University is the official publisher!

I am proud to announce Japan-based Manga University is the publisher of Sonny Leads! The owners and I have been working on this project for years, slowly cultivating it, and now all their amazing support and expertise is finally resulting in the long-awaited release of the first volume of the story.

Who are Manga University?

Our company motto, "€œEducating With Art," reflects our commitment to creating products that are wholesome, informative and fun. We love manga, and believe it can —€” and should —€” be used for more than just great entertainment.

The educational aspect is very important for the Sonny Leads project because this story uniquely reveals the real world of Japanese karate as it is today.

My tie-up with this great boutique publishing company will make more sense when we release the official description of the Sonny Leads story in a few weeks.

For now,  I leave you with a production meeting photo from last Saturday with the owner's Glenn and Mari, Kamobayashi Sensei and myself. Manga U has a large Japanese 'washitsu' tatami meeting room beside their production offices so it's a great space to use when talking about projects. This is especially true for mine since I need lots of space for jumping around demonstrating how karate points are scored in competition, or even how spectators drop video cameras from being too excited when watching matches.

Much more news to come soon!

Richard