<No.8>

Shaka Fraser, Founder of Hoseki Publishing and MA Publishing Student at UAL

Manga and Anime—terms that have gradually settled into English whilst keeping their Japanese roots. Demon Slayer, born from the hugely popular comic magazine Shonen Jump, topped Japan’s domestic box office charts, taking both the first and second spots—truly at the centre of culture. Whilst it embodies Japanese pop culture and carries an immense presence, in the Western publishing world it still sits on the margins.

In London, however, there’s a publisher that aims to spotlight Western-created manga as hidden gems. Founded in 2023, Hoseki Publishing is run by Shaka Fraser, a passionate manga enthusiast and current MA Publishing student at UAL.

This two-part interview explores the inner workings of Hoseki – which means gemstones in Japanese – Publishing. In this second part, we explore the future of manga publishing and the potential of manga as a powerful tool for manifestos.

Kanna: Do you think there should be a greater shift towards digital manga amongst publishers?

Shaka: If you’re aiming for more of an older audience, have your physical media. But if you’re going for younger audiences, they’re on their phone, it’s more accessible for them. An app costs £1.99 while one physical manga magazine or volume will cost you £7 to £10. So online, they can ask their parents for £1.99. But some parents want their kids to start reading more physical media as well. Your parents may be more inclined to give you money if it’s for a physical book. It depends on the audience and the parents.

Kanna: What do you think about the future of the publishing industry, particularly manga publishing?

Hoseki Publishing Instagram; @hosekipublishing

Shaka: We are in an unprecedented time. The future of manga is scary because now AI is used widely, especially when it comes to art, so people have started finding ways to get around it. Japan is the one country at the moment, especially when it comes to AI art that is really cracking down on it. For example, if you’re a manga artist and you submit something to a manga company, they make you physically come in and draw in front of people. You have to prove that you can actually draw.

Whereas in the West, things are being overlooked. There was an issue with DC Comics where they released an AI comic book, and the AI went under their noses. They didn’t do any checks to see if it was AI or anything. There is more risk that there could be AI usage now. I wish I had a concrete answer as to how I think it’s going to go but I have no idea at the moment. But it’s obviously interesting to keep on top of these trends to see what’s going on.

Kanna: Our event, INK, PAPER, POWER: Margins to Manifestos, focuses on something small but powerful—something that can represent a community and give a voice to those who should be heard. Manga is often considered a form of entertainment, as you mentioned. Do you think manga can hold power as well? Do you think it can be a tool for manifestos?

Shaka: 100%. I’ve seen recently for a lot of people what they feel that they can do in life is determined by the media. People who read manga have seen the limits their characters will go through to achieve their goals and they’re manifesting them to want to achieve their goals. What you believe that you can do is based on the characters you watch and consume. So, manga, even as an entertainment media, is something that manifests in inspiring courage, belief, and never giving up. Those are the core beliefs that you see in a lot of manga. And it even creates a community in itself because you start being around people that have the same mindset and achieve that with you. It gives them a voice, it makes them not want to give up, it makes them believe, and it makes them feel like they can achieve their own goals as well. I was even inspired by manga and anime as a kid. So, I picked up writing and then I ended up doing it. I’m happy that I did.

Kanna: Thank you for taking the time to speak with us. Do you have any exciting updates about Hoseki Publishing to share?

Shaka: The website’s being built at the moment, and the magazine is being relaunched in July! Follow us on Instagram!