Hello, 2.5 years later and I am still working on Rema. I think my last update said the first book would be released in 2019, but obviously that has not happened. I mentioned the reasons in replies on my twitter page, but I'm posting here for anyone wondering what happened. I'm sorry it took so long for me to get around to it!
Book 1 is fully colored at 249 pages, with book 2 roughly 50 pages into pencils. Even with book 1 colored, my team and I decided it's best to wait until book 2 is nearly complete before setting a publishing date for the series. Part of this decision is due to books 1 and 2 being two halves of a single novel, and part of it is due to the unknown nature of how long it takes me to make a full color graphic novel. The timeline is especially up in the air considering the scope of the project, and the fact that I have two school-aged kids that still need me.
This means there is no official release date for the series, but it is actively being completed in the background. When a release date is solid without any chance of it being changed again, I will update everyone here and on my twitter page. I'm doing my best to make sure it isn't too too far in the future.
I had incredible help from two talented artists for book 1 --
Audra Furuichi and
Emmy Toyonaga. Together we made the colors for book 1 really shine. There is no way I would've been able to do this without them.
I still have to pinch myself sometimes when I see the finished pages, because it feels like seeing an actual dream of mine come to life. It gives me the strange feeling that these characters aren't "mine" anymore, they are slowly leaving my hands and my head to become someone else's. It's hard to describe, but it's definitely a good feeling. In fact, it's the feeling I've been waiting for my entire life, carrying these characters and this world with me these last 27 years. It's why the project had so many false starts in the past -- I wasn't getting the sense the story was ready to leave.
In summary, keep an eye on this page for an update on the final release date. I obviously can't wait to share all of this hard work with any of Rema's readers that still remain! I just want to be sure I do it right.
I'll be posting my usual sporadic check-ins on
my twitter page. If there are any questions, feel free to leave them in the comments. Until then, I wish whoever is reading this love, peace, and happiness.
I followed the comic as it was being published online waaay back in the day, and it's never left me. I was heartbroken when you took it down (because I would reread it often), and heartbroken again when I discovered there was an online novel that was *also* taken down before I even knew it existed! TT.TT My bad timing! I am overjoyed to see real, real progress happening on an actual real novel that I can actually buy and put on my bookshelf! It's crazy to think I have been waiting to see this world, and these characters, again for almost two decades now, and the time is almost here! I'm so excited, you have no idea. Thanks for not giving up on this story and working so hard to make it a reality.
ReplyDeleteIt's messages like these that keep me going, anonymous. Thank you so much for your patience and interest, it's been such a long journey! There was no way I would give up on these characters. We finally have a release date for book 1 - March 1, 2022. I will make a proper announcement once the cover is finalized. :) Thank you for remembering Rema!
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