Started as a comics editor

Chapter 5 The initial dream
seriously.

If there was any other way, Tang Yao really didn't want to draw it herself.

Because she doesn't want to do the job she did in her previous life. It takes a long time, doesn't earn much, and she has to face an unpredictable future after the advent of AI... Of course, the most important thing is that she doesn't want to go through the life of painting day and night again.

Because I have experienced it once, the final result was not very good. I suffered from lumbar disc herniation, cervical strain, long-term lack of sleep, eye fatigue, and finally I seemed to have died.

It was also because of this that she could not understand the original owner's desire to become a cartoonist.

Although she has never serialized a comic book seriously, and the industry in this area in her previous life was not prosperous, but even if she has not eaten pork, she has seen pigs run... There is a good saying in "Dream Eater" that a so-called cartoonist is someone who makes a living by drawing comics.

But even if you can serialize your work in a weekly magazine, it does not mean you are safe. Once you lose popularity, you will be canceled immediately. There are less than one in a hundred thousand people who can make a living as a cartoonist. But even for those who can achieve this level, the average annual income is the same as that of ordinary wage earners.

Geniuses risk their lives on this kind of thing, it's simply gambling.

After serialization, not being cancelled only means the beginning. The road to becoming a professional cartoonist is very long, and to some extent it is like running a marathon with no end in sight.

Those cartoonists that most people are familiar with have actually been running a marathon for half their lives.

But the vast majority don’t even have the chance to start running a marathon.

So Tang Yao didn’t quite understand.

For a dream?
dream……

Tang Yao looked at the drawing paper in front of her and suddenly fell silent.

She suddenly couldn't remember why she learned to paint in her previous life.

The initial opportunity disappeared with the suffocating future and the pressure of reality, and was replaced by numbness.

In the end, all they knew how to do was criticize the planners and imitate popular mobile games to draw sexy female characters according to requirements.

Repeat day after day, year after year.

Until the moment he died, he even began to regret why he chose this career.

And after coming here, she subconsciously resisted picking up a pencil again.

why?

Why did you want to learn painting in the first place?

Oh...I think I want to be a cartoonist too.

But later, in order to survive and make a living, the initial dream gradually disappeared.

She was no longer childish and naive, and began to fight to survive in the adult world.

Think of this.

Tang Yao took a deep breath, and after a moment of silence, she muttered to herself, "My so-called lack of understanding is, after all, just an excuse for the depraved self of my past life. How despicable..."

"what are you doing?"

At this time.

Xun's voice rang out.

The girl appeared at the bedroom door and looked at Tang Yao, who was sitting on a chair and staring at the drawing paper in a daze, with some confusion.

Tang Yao turned her head and looked at the pretty girl standing there... To be honest, although their souls had no connection, she still felt that the girl in front of her was kind, and once she looked at her, the memories belonging to the original owner would keep pouring out.

She remembered the difficult years she and her sister had gone through, and every little thing that happened.

Those memories kept changing her.

It even reminded her of her original dream.

……perhaps.

Tang Yao gently shook the pencil in her hand, then said with a smile: "Sister, I am ready to pick up my dream of becoming a cartoonist again."

"Didn't you say you gave up?"

Tang Xun came behind her sister, reached out and touched her wet long hair, then went to look for something on the shelf beside the bed.

"A professional cartoonist certainly can't do that."

Tang Yao smiled again: "After all, making money is too difficult and takes too long. In comparison, I still think it is easier to make money in other industries, such as games. But cartoonists who are not interested in it are also good... right?"

"I don't understand what you're talking about."

Tang Xun returned to Tang Yao's back with the hair dryer. A humming sound was heard, along with warm wind.

“That’s right, I don’t understand.”

Tang Yao smiled and turned back to the drawing paper. With a touching smile on her pretty face, she whispered, "I just suddenly remembered my original dream."

"..."

Tang Xun looked at her sister's profile without saying anything.

After a while.

She just thought of something and suddenly said, "It's really troublesome to wash and dry my hair every day."

Tang Yao didn't hear clearly and tilted her head slightly: "Huh?"

"hair."

Tang Xun turned off the hair dryer: "It's troublesome to blow dry every time."

"Don't worry about me, I can play it myself."

Tang Yao came back to her senses, turned her head to look at the girl holding her long hair, and smiled: "Or I can cut it short after a while."

"..."

Tang Xun paused, then replied, "Why are you so hard on your hair? You said you wanted to cut it short a week ago..."

Tang Yao showed a nostalgic expression and half-jokingly said, "Isn't it like this in animation and comics? The heroine who makes a change cuts her long hair short..."

"What kind of anime are you watching? In real life, who would cut their long hair short just for no reason? Do you have to be so harsh on your hair just to stand out and make a change?"

Tang Xun complained expressionlessly, then turned on the hair dryer again and gently stroked her sister's hair, carefully separating the strands where they might have crossed. The hand holding the hair dryer kept moving, "How strange."

But on the other side, Tang Yao didn't hear it.

She began to think about what she should draw.

Although she recalled some past events, which made her suddenly enlightened, she even felt the passion she hadn't felt in a long time.

But after all, emotions can't be used to make a living. I still need to calm down and think about what I should draw.

Although I am just a substitute and I am not very famous, I will just treat it as a tribute to my past self and take it seriously.

So what should I draw?

Tang Yao began to recall the many comics she had read, and kept flipping through them until she returned to the starting point.

What comics did you read that made you decide to become a cartoonist?

It seems like... a horror comic.

A horror manga by Junji Ito.

Think of this.

Tang Yao smiled knowingly, feeling that it was quite appropriate. The comic award had a length limit, and there were many horror comic short stories. Most importantly... this was the subject matter that was most likely to have an impact.

Anyway, this is a work that will provide stability during the transition period. I don’t have any particular pursuit for it, so the more impactful the better.

Think of this.

The smile on Tang Yao's face became even brighter.

Junji Ito's comics are indeed quite impactful.

That picture.

Ok.

It seems so.

Just... "Human Head Balloon"!

"All right."

I don’t know when.

The hair dryer was turned off, and Xun's voice sounded again: "Remember to wear the clothes on the bed tomorrow."

"clothing?"

Tang Yao was still immersed in her own world, and was a little confused when she suddenly heard these words.

Tang Xun turned and pointed at the skirt lying on the bed.

Tang Yao glanced back, then said with a subtle expression: "Xun, I am your sister, not your dress-up doll."

Tang Xun looked her sister up and down. Even when she was sitting, her curvaceous figure was clearly visible. Thinking of the clothes in the washing machine, she asked, "You have such a great figure, why did you choose such old-fashioned clothes?"

“Because it’s comfortable.”

"..."

Tang Xun stared at her sister silently, with no expression on her fair little face.

"..."

Tang Yao also knew that her excuse was a bit lame, so she tilted her head and asked, "Are you dissatisfied with this excuse?"

"Not satisfied."

"Then put yourself in their shoes. Do you like being stared at while walking on the street?"

“…I don’t like it very much.”

"So, you don't have to pick out clothes for me anymore, and your sister doesn't have to dress up."

Hearing this, Tang Xun clenched her left hand, which had been hanging naturally, into a fist: "If it's about money..."

"It has nothing to do with this!"

Tang Yao smiled, then puffed out her chest and declared, "But, sister will definitely make money!"

Tang Xun looked at her sister, who was puffing out her chest proudly and full of confidence, and suddenly said, "Actually... you can just ignore me and kick me out of the house. That way you won't have to see my ugly face forever."

"Why should I drive you away?"

Tang Yao looked at her sister in surprise: "Then what's the point of me making money? Why are you talking about this?"

It seems like before I came here.

Occasionally, the younger sister would say something to drive her away.

Very strange.

"..."

Tang Xun was silent. She looked at her sister and didn't answer. She just turned and walked out: "I'll pour you a glass of water."

"Okay~Thank you."

Tang Yao looked at the girl who hurried out the door, feeling a little confused.

But she didn't pay much attention to it. She soon withdrew her gaze, turned her attention back to the table, and began to recall the comics that introduced her to the world.

Those strange and twisted heads...

Thinking about it.

Tang Yao was engrossed and her hands began to move unconsciously.

the other side.

Tang Xun poured a glass of water and gently placed it on the corner of the table. Then he glanced at Tang Yao's profile who was concentrating, turned around to tidy up the bed, played with his mobile phone for a while, walked out of the room to take out the clothes from the washing machine to hang them out, and cleaned the living room a little.

By the time she finally had some free time, it was already half past ten.

When Tang Xun returned to the room again.

Tang Yao was still sitting at the table, constantly sketching something.

She didn't disturb them, but turned around and climbed onto the bed, then turned sideways and continued to stare at the graceful figure in front of the table. After looking for a long time, she retracted her gaze, took out her mobile phone, confirmed that the camera shutter was muted, and took a picture of Tang Yao's back.

Then, I started writing a diary.

Tang Yao painted until the early morning. Except for turning off the light to replace the desk lamp so as not to disturb Tang Xun's rest, she did not leave the table at other times.

(End of this chapter)