How Stories Inspire me!

I would say stories like anime and manga have shaped me to become the person I am today. Ever since young, I have always had a very strange but close affinity to media, especially cartoons and anime- and all these rich stories truly inspired me to create and make.

I often indulge in fandom culture because of this- and some people may wince or cringe when they hear “fandom” but I truly think that building a community of creatives- be it writers or digital artists or cosplay makers- truly inspires me to push the boundaries of what kinds of art I can make. Often in a professional setting regarding the art and animation industry, “fanart” is often frowned upon and discouraged to be put in portfolios- but personally I have a different perspective on this. For me, my fanart and contributions to fan communities mean a lot, especially with all the friends I have made online, and I have seen the passion that has come out from fan works. All of these stories from other people, the ecosystem of creatives from a fandom help shape new, original stories. Like how so many anime and cartoons now have references to older shows like Sailor Moon.

I think people often underplay the importance of stories and would just brush animated media off as “it’s just a cartoon”. But these animated media has inspired the hearts of many to build creative communities and inspires a new generation of creatives to shape new stories while retaining the spirit of media they love.