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Creator Highlights are featured posts where we interview comic artists and novelists within the Tapas community. Shei is the creator of I Wish For A Boyfriend, a brand new series exclusive to Tapas. We thought it would be fun to get to know Shei a little bit more and explore what goes into bringing this story to life!

Tell us a little bit about yourself, where you're from, and what got you interested in art?

Hi! My name is Shei and I’m a Filipino currently residing in the beautiful wonderland that is Canada. I’m a software developer by day and a digital artist by night. I love making illustrations, fan art, and of course, webcomics. I also play games, travel, and write sometimes.

I actually remember the instance that got me into drawing. It was back in first grade when my teacher asked the whole class to draw a portrait of ourselves. I ended up with my very first self-portrait (a very bad one, not to mention) and I just couldn’t’ stop since then.

How did the idea for IWFAB come about and where did you draw inspiration from for this series?

IWFAB is a hundred percent unplanned. And it’s quite evident in the first episodes. It started out as a redraw of some characters I made when I was a kid. Before I knew it, I was putting texts and balloons in it and bam! I woke up with an episode for an unnamed comic. For some reason, I thought it was a good idea to post it on social media. I did and got some good responses so I decided to continue doing it and officially name it I Wish for a Boyfriend.

I draw inspiration from a lot of anime and comics for this series. The comedy is mostly inspired by Monthly Girl’s Nozaki-kun, Ouran, and Working!!.  Macy, in particular, was inspired by a bunch of webcomics with female leads that are so unlike the protagonists in traditional shoujo manga that I constantly fed myself during my younger years. My awe at these badass characters pushed me to create one myself. Although Macy, I guess, is less badass and more of the shameless kind.

You mention that the comedy is inspired by Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun, Ouran, and Working!!, all three series that are labeled romantic-comedies, with a heavy emphasis on the comedy. Those three series are also best known for playing with a lot of classic romance tropes and giving it a twist, are there any tropes you’re planning on tackling in future episodes?

I do plan on introducing more male leads as the story goes by, each one a different kind of stereotype. I think it would be interesting to see how they'd interact with the main trio. Although, they won't all be appearing at the same time. Harems are a bit too much work for me. Haha!

Could you share which artists or works you draw inspiration from?

Oh no. I am in love with a thousand artists. This is why I couldn’t do the art vs hero meme. There’s just too many!!

Ahh I totally understand, it’s incredibly difficult to pick only 8 artists. On Tapas, are there any creators you’re particularly fond of?

I enjoy the works of Yudori of the Curious Case of the Ring Brothers, Spark Kim of Villains, and Chanjoo Noh of Did The World End Yet?.

Can you describe your process, from idea to finished work? What does the average day look like for you?

I feel like years of consuming anime and manga has finally paid off in the form of ideas for episodes. Haha! But, you know, ideas could come from all sorts of places. Games, movies, sitcoms, a twitter post, a random comment, your experiences, other people’s experiences. I make mental notes of what could possibly work for future episodes.

Once I settle with an idea, I try to flesh it out a bit more by answering these questions:

- Which character would do this stupid thing?

- How would other characters react?

- How do I make it funny?

Once I have that down, I’ll start drawing it on my digital canvas. Sometimes I’d make thumbnails first but only if I still hadn’t got the episode clear in my head.

A lot of energy also goes to searching for references. If I’m lucky, I find references for backgrounds, poses, hairstyle, and clothes. If I’m not, then I make my own by taking photos.

Coloring doesn’t take a lot of my time since I only fill out the hair (obviously).

When I’m done, I do a run-over to check for errors and when I’m satisfied I send it over to my editor.

I make it sound like it’s a proper process but it’s not as systematic as it sounds. Haha! Most of the time, I just do whatever I feel like doing.

Other than webcomics, do you experiment in other art mediums?

I do a lot of digital artworks, original and fan art. I used to do oil paints but I no longer have the resources to continue doing so. It does have a special place in my heart though. I also dabbled in watercolor and markers but it didn’t work out for me. Haha! Such unforgiving mediums.

Do you find working with fanart and working with original concepts very different? Are there things that are similar and have you come across any difficulties?

I don’t think it’s too different. Even if it’s fan art, there is still a degree of originality to it. What makes it a bit easier than original concepts, I guess, is that you at least have a starting point, which is usually the characters or whatever thing you’re making fan art of.

As for original works, the fact that you can absolutely do anything could either be a boon or bane. For me, it has always been a challenge to create something original, especially when not a lot of people seem to respond to it. It could be quite discouraging at times.  

Who's your favorite character in IWFAB? What can readers expect from this character as the story unfolds?

Oh goodness. I love all my babies! But if I really have to choose, it would be Macy (Caleb is a very close second). She’s the unrelenting force that started all this craziness and she will also be the one who will end it. Expect more embarrassing behavior from this uncouth woman.

Who's the most challenging character to draw?

Background-chan.

Kidding aside, I think the most challenging character to draw is actually the extras. I made it a point to not draw the eyes for the extras. I didn’t think it would be such a challenge to express emotion without it. I know that now. I at least draw the eyebrows. Haha!

I’m impressed with the way you’re able to convey emotion with the extras, especially since they lack facial features. And the extreme facial features of the main characters (mainly the best ladies Macy and Callie) are what initially drew me to your webcomic.

AAH Thank you! The faces are one of my favorite things to do!

Since IWFAB is a comedy, which is probably one of the most challenging genres to write in, have you run into difficulties in coming up with punchlines? Could you share any rejected punchlines?

Oh yes! Lots of times! One of the most common difficulties for me is deciding what kind of reaction would be the funniest. Should I exaggerate it? Should I make the reaction dry instead? Should this character react like this? It feels like a gamble most of the time. One good indication is if it makes me laugh, then that’s probably it. If no one else finds it funny, then at least I do.

There’s this one episode where I originally wrote Callie to knock Caleb to the ground after pointing out a flaw but I opted to change it because I didn’t want Callie to seem like this violent sister who likes hitting her brother all the time. The episode was already done and ready for posting but it bothered me so much I changed it. Also, it didn’t really make me chuckle so, yeah, I had to write that out.

In three words, please describe IWFAB.

Idiotic. Funny. Relatable?

If readers wanted to follow you on social media, what accounts should they follow?

I'm on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram.

And now for some exciting This or That questions:

Cereal or Milk first?

Cereal. So I can gauge how much milk I need.

Pineapple on pizza, yay or nay?

I don't hate it but I don't love it either so yay, I guess?

Ovaltine or Milo?

I grew up drinking Milo, so Milo it is.

Friends to Lovers or Enemies to Lovers?

Enemies to Lovers!

Slow burn romance or fast-paced romance?

Slow burn! All the suffering makes it so much more glorious at the end.

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I Wish For A Boyfriend updates every Monday exclusively on Tapas! The exciting conclusion to the first season will be up on July 30 so make sure you catch up! You can read the first 18 episodes here!

Season 2 will begin on August 6th as Wait or Pay and you won't want to miss out on the antics of Macy, Caleb, and Callie (and more new characters?!). 

Stay tuned for more Creator Highlights. See you next time!