Here is a concise summary of the day in the life of Reiji Miyajima, a 34-year-old Japanese mangaka (manga creator):
**Occupation:** Mangaka, creating the popular manga "Kanojo Okarishimasu" (Renting a Girlfriend)
**Work Schedule:** Weekly production cycle for a weekly magazine
**Key Activities:**
1. **Morning (6:00 AM)**: Works on colored illustrations for Twitter, responds to questions
2. **Late Morning**: Assisted by 4-5 staff members, who work on various aspects of the manga
3. **Lunch Break**: Takes his dog for a walk, grabs a small lunch
4. **Afternoon**: Staff work on their own manga projects during free time; Reiji oversees and advises
5. **Evening**: Meets with editors at an Izakaya Restaurant to discuss the next episode, followed by dinner with staff to celebrate the week's completion
**Insights:**
* Works from a dedicated office space, separate from his family home
* Learns and improves through collaboration with publishing editors
* Offers advice for aspiring mangaka: develop unique strengths, submit work to publishers, and be persistent
* Japanese business culture influences, such as seating etiquette, are still observed in professional settings.
Here are the extracted key facts, numbered and in short sentences, excluding opinions:
**About Reiji Miyajima**
1. Reiji Miyajima is a 34-year-old manga creator (mangaka) living in Tokyo.
2. He is married with kids, but they don't live with him in his apartment-office.
3. His family lives in the upper floors of their home, while the first floor is used as an office.
**Work and Studio**
4. Reiji's apartment-office is a short walk from his home studio.
5. He built his home studio about five years ago, specifically designing it for manga creation.
6. The studio has extra desks for his assistants, who arrive later in the day.
7. Reiji creates the manga "Kanojo Okarishimasu" (Renting a Girlfriend), a popular love-comedy series.
**Manga Creation Process**
8. Manga creation involves a "Ne-Mu" (rough sketch) process, which is reviewed by editors.
9. The Ne-Mu process typically takes 4-5 revisions.
10. After approval, the mangaka draws a final draft called "Genko", now often done digitally.
11. Genko involves inking, adding tones, and filling in drawings in black.
**Schedule and Deadlines**
12. Reiji has a one-week production cycle for his weekly manga.
13. Monday: Meets with publishers to decide the plot.
14. Tuesday: Works on the final sketch.
15. Wednesday: Finishes the Genko (final draft) with assistants.
16. Thursday to Sunday: Drafts and creates the story for the next Ne-Mu.
**Assistants and Industry**
17. Reiji typically has 4-5 assistants, who work with him on Wednesdays.
18. Some mangaka hire up to 10 assistants on a shift basis.
19. Assistants often go on to create their own manga (Rensai) and may leave to work independently.
20. The manga industry is currently short on assistants.
**Cultural and Miscellaneous**
21. In Japan, it's common for assistants and editors to address professional mangaka as "Sensei" (teacher).
22. Certain jobs in Japan, like lawyers, doctors, and mangaka, are given the title "Sensei" as a sign of respect.
23. In traditional Japanese seating, "Kamiza" is the seat of honor (farthest from the door), while "Shimoza" is the lowest seat (closest to the door).