Hiromu Arakawa

Hiromu Arakawa (荒川弘|Arakawa Hiromu), born May 8, 1973 is a female Japanese manga artist from Hokkaidō. Her renowned manga, Fullmetal Alchemist, became a hit, and was later adapted into two television animes, one based on the manga and one with a new story.

Biography
Arakawa's self-portrait is usually that of a bespectacled cow, as she was born and raised in a dairy farm with five sisters. Arakawa started out as Etō Hiroyuki's assistant writer for Mahōjin Guru Guru and a friend of Shakugan no Shana author Yashichiro Takahashi. Arakawa's career started with a work titled Stray Dog, but she is best known for creating the Fullmetal Alchemist world and manga. During the making of the anime she was present in meetings to give the Bones staff insight in the world of Fullmetal Alchemist, though she didn't actively take part in any writing for the TV series.

She attracted to the idea of using alchemy in the manga. She liked it so much that she started reading books relating to alchemy, which she found very complicated due to the fact that some books contradicted others. Arakawa was attracted more by the philosophical aspects than the practical aspects. For the Equivalent Exchange concept, she was inspired by the work of her parents who had a farm in Hokkaidō and always had to give all their effort in order to earn the money to eat. Arakawa wanted to integrate social problems into the story. She gathered information watching news programs and talking to people, such as refugees, war veterans and former yakuza. Several plot elements expand on these themes, such as Pinako Rockbell caring for the Elric brothers after the death of their mother, and the brothers helping people all over the country, to gain an understanding of the meaning of family. When creating the fictional world of Fullmetal Alchemist, Arakawa was inspired after reading about Europe during the Industrial Revolution period; she was amazed by how different the people from different countries were, in terms of their culture, architecture and clothes. She was especially interested in England during this period and "added to it her own original flavor to turn it into a fantasy world"

When the manga began serialization, Arakawa had in mind how the story would end. As the plot continued, however, she felt some characters were maturing and decided to change some scenes, resulting in some sketches of the faces of the characters were improvised. In creating the characters' designs, she comments that the manga authors Suihō Tagawa and Hiroyuki Eto are her main inspirations, and describes her artwork is a mix of both of them. Arakawa made comedy central in the manga because she thinks it is intended for entertainment, and tried to minimalize focus on sad scenes.

Works

 * Stray Dog 1999
 * Totsugeki Tonari no Enikkusu 2000
 * Shanghai Yōmakikai 2000
 * Fullmetal Alchemist 2001 - 2010
 * Raiden 18 2005
 * Souten no Koumori 2006
 * Hero Tales 2006 - present

Awards

 * 1st prize, 9th 21st Century "Shōnen Gangan" Award for Stray Dog
 * 49th (2004) Shogakukan Manga Award for shōnen for Fullmetal Alchemist'

Quotes

 * Interviewer: "Which do you prefer, Japanese food or Western food? Which dish is your favorite?" Arakawa: "Japanese! And my favorite food is ramen! Hokkaidō's ramen is really good." (Hiromu Arakawa, 2003)


 * Interviewer: "If you had to choose a favorite episode, which one would it be?" Arakawa: "It would be the side story "Dog of the Military." It was really easy to draw. From a recent episode, I would have to say volume 7, the end of chapter 27. The interaction of "Who the hell are you!?" "I'm a housewife!!!!!" That's a scene that I wanted to do for a long time." (Perfect Guidebook 1; Fullmetal Alchemist Profiles) {on a side note apart from the scene being in Chapter 27 (towards the end, page 42) she also did a similar scene in Chapter 83 (page 24) of FMA.


 * Interviewer: "Okay, what would you like to say to your fans today?" Arakawa: "Love!!" (Perfect Guidebook 1; Fullmetal Alchemist Profiles)


 * "I always draw ridiculous looking self-portraits for this series, so I have a really hard time when I need to draw one for other magazines. It's regrettable how they always use the "underwear" picture from volume one. Really regrettable." (Hiromu Arakawa, 2004)


 * "I've been very touched by letters from young boys and girls in the hospital, or even from adults who tell me that they felt better after reading Fullmetal Alchemist," she says. "Reading manga gave me hope as a kid, and it makes me so happy to think that now I've been able to cheer people up with my own manga! It's such an honor, it really is." (Newtype USA January 2006)

Quotes from the Fullmetal Alchemist Manga, (coverslip flap for various volumes):

 * I like B movies. I take a look at this and that, while thinking, "What the hell is this!? This makes no sense!" till the end. I like that sort of feeling. So an alchemy manga was born because I wanted to have that kind of feeling in my manga. Thanks to everyone who bought it. While getting into it and thinking, "What is alchemy supposed to be like this?" Please enjoy it.(Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 1)
 * I left home, and I wasn’t going back until I could make a living on manga. I’m happy that my wish was granted and that I’ve gotten a series, but now I’m busy and have no time to go home. I’m kind of happy and kind of sad.(Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 2)
 * "I love to read manga!" "I love to draw manga so much I don't know what to do!" "I draw,therefore I am!" "That's all the proof I need to know that I exist!! I’m satisfied with just that!!!" The point is I’m a manga idiot. (Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 3).
 * What do I look forward to in a volume? That would be drawing the omake pages. I don’t care if there are 180 pages, as long as I have my omake.(Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 4)
 * Apparently, when my neighbor's 3-year-old daughter found out that I'm a manga artist, she said with a sparkle in her eyes, "I wonder if she draws princesses and stuff?" Sorry little girl, I only draw grubby old men. (Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 6)
 * After starting to draw manga, a lot of unexpected things happened, leaving me quite stunned. But it is these sudden events that make life interesting.(Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 7)
 * The self-portraits that I draw here are usually not up to scratch, so when magazines do author profiles, it becomes quite a hassle. Repeatedly using the "Fighting Panties" from Volume 1 makes me feel regretful. Very regretful.(Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 8)
 * A few friends that also drew manga gathered at the pub regardless of the fact did we drink any alcohol, we would talk excitedly about manga. We will get so preoccupied with the topic, that we always miss the last train. Although we all have the feeling, "We’re so old already, why are we still mucking around like this?" But whenever we hear something like “I want to draw this!!”, the passion from everybody, our spirits are refreshed with new enthusiasm. This time I even got Moritaishi Sensei to draw the omake for me. Wah!! (Happy)(Fulmetal Alchemist Volume 9)
 * The cover for Volume 9 seems to be very well liked. I received many letters discussing their opinions regarding it. "Follow me! That’s what it is trying to convey!!" or "Men speak with their backs!!" or "It’s like saying everybody’s fate is resting upon my back, what a great cover!!" and stuff like that. ... Can’t bear to say "It’s because drawing the colonel’s face is really troublesome" ... Can’t say it ...(Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 10)
 * This happened when I went for a massage after finishing the drafts for the manga. Because I was really sleepy, I was thinking drowsily about "How should the next chapter develop?", when the massager suddenly commented: "Your right shoulder is really tight." I unwittingly answered "That’s because it’s automail." Getting confused between the manga and reality…!!" (Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 11)

Trivia

 * Due to her always drawing self-portraits, most of her fanbase has no idea what she really looks like, even to this day.
 * Arakawa's birthname is "Hiromi"; Hiromu is reportedly a masculine penname she uses in order to avoid putting off shonen readers.