Here are 7 tips for aspiring artists from ‘Kikomachine’ author Manix Abrera

Over the years, Manix Abrera has gained some wisdom that has helped him as a comics artist.

In an episode of “The Howie Severino Podcast,” he shared a few lessons he learned along the way that could help aspiring artists, from fighting writer’s block to sustaining one’s passion.

Have your own style

Manix said it wasn’t always easy having a legend for a father. Before he entered the comic art scene, his father, Jess Abrera, was already a renowned artist and an editorial cartoonist for the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

The “Kikomachine” and “News Hardcore” author, however, said he did not feel the pressure when he was growing up because his parents gave him and his siblings the freedom to pursue what they wanted.

“Pero nahirapan din pala ako noong college kasi ang tawag sa akin, ‘anak ni Jess,’ lalo na ’yung mga professor ko. ‘Anak ni Jess ’yan so dapat magaling ’yan. Ganito ang style niyan siguro. Siguro political ano rin ’yan, cartoonist din,’” he said.

[But I had a hard time in college because they called me, the ‘son of Jess,’ especially my professors. ‘That’s the son of Jess so he has to be good. This would probably be his style. Maybe he would also be a political cartoonist.]

Despite the expectations, Manix said he really wanted to be like his father.

“Honestly he was really my idol. When Papa was drawing, I would always be beside him,” he said in Filipino. When he was younger, he said he would copy his father’s drawings.

“He’d tell me, ‘don’t copy my style. You should have your own style. Even if you think it’s ugly, you should have your own style. And just develop that.’”

Inspired by his father, Manix studied Fine Arts at University of the Philippines and later pursued his own journey in the industry.

“Later I learned that Papa was happy we were on the same path,” he said.

Different sides to a story

Aside from his father, his mother also had a great influence on him, said Manix. A historian and a UP professor, she’d tell him different stories from the past, and he learned early on that there’s always different sides to a story.

“We saw how each event had many points of view, not just the most popular one that most people look at. If you’re a historian, you look at it from different sides,” he said.

“That’s what I noticed with Mama that I noticed I’ve been carrying with me to this day in storytelling. I avoid the usual way of telling a story about something. I always try to look for a point of view that other people don’t notice.”

Laugh off bashers

He may not be a political cartoonist, but Manix said his works tackled socio-cultural issues that could be relevant to many people.

“I saw how beautiful are the stories that we have in the Philippines. I was able to include those (in my works) especially last year, during the pandemic. Things were chaotic,” he said.

“It’s like I’m adding a political theme to my comics but I do it in my subtle style ... I don’t drop names, but when the readers see it and know what’s going on, they would think, ‘ah, I know who this is. Maybe he’s calling out this person.’ That’s my style of comics.”

Despite his “subtle” style, however, Manix said he still received negative comments from bashers from time to time.

“Even back then, when I’d release something on social media, I don’t read the comments. But if I read something that’s bashing me, I just laugh at it because I don’t really know the person,” he said.

“It would be better if we could have a discussion about it, but it’s not like that.”

You as your audience first

When he was just starting, Manix said his mom always reminded him that he had the power to influence his readers, so he should avoid cursing, among other things.

He said his creative style, however, was different, and he’d rather think of himself as his audience first before imagining other people reading it.

“When I make something, I forget that someone else is going to read my work. Because once I think, ‘hey, someone will read this. Many people will read this,’ I get really pressured and nervous. And my work won’t be honest anymore. So I try to not to think of that,” he said.

“The comics that I do, it only speaks to me first. I look at it. I should be happy with it. If I want it to be funny, I should find it funny before I release it. And when I’m done with the comic strip, that’s the only time I edit it. ‘Oh, this might be wrong. This might be bad influence.’”

Play with your writer’s block

Even Manix himself isn’t a stranger to writer’s block.

“Some days your mind just go blank, but there are days when the opposite happen and you can think of so many things. So I write them down immediately on my notebook or whatever I am holding so when the time comes that I can’t think of anything, I have something to go back to, like a bank of ideas, things I’ve thought of before that I can do,” he said.

If he got to a point where he really couldn’t think of anything else, he said he would make the situation the very subject of his art.

“And if there came a time that I really can’t think of anything, I’ll use that as the topic, that my character can’t think of anything, can’t write. And I think, because I really love what I’m doing, that I can keep it going.”

Don’t stop

Before Manix had his own books, he remembered the advice given to him by the well-known editorial cartoonist Pol Medina.

“‘Kung gusto mong karirin ’yung paglabas ng comic books, dapat every year naglalabas ka. Tuluy-tuloy. Huwag kang titigil kasi ’pag tumigil ka, tatamarin ka. Tapos ang hirap bumalik,’” said Manix, quoting Pol.

[If you want to keep publishing comic books, you should have a release every year. Do it continuously. Don’t stop because when you stop, you will get lazy and it will be hard to go back.]

“So I just followed that,” he said.

Find a way to sustain your passion

According to Manix, being a comic artist isn’t for those who want to be rich or famous.

“Ise-share ko lang ’yung sinabi ni Papa na, ‘pag gusto mo maging artist, ’wag mo munang isipin ’yung pera at saka ’yung fame. Parang bonus lang ’yun dapat.’ Tapos mapapansin mo naman kung kaya kang buhayin o hindi, e,” Manix said.

[I’ll just share what my Papa said. “If you want to be an artist, don’t think about the money and the fame. That should just be a bonus.” And you can gauge if it can sustain you or not.]

Manix said when he graduated, he really wanted to be a comics artist but at the time, he didn’t have money.

“I couldn’t see it sustaining me. I cried to my father and mother. ‘Why is it like this? The government should be supporting artists.’ My father scolded me and said, ‘being a hungry artist is old news. You should find a way. Look for another job that can sustain you and you can continue doing comics.’”

He listened to his father and ventured into other projects, including working for ad agencies and magazines.

“I got into so many sidelines to sustain myself and be able to do comics. So for young artists, find out if it can sustain you. If not, find a job that will but don’t let go of your passion,” he said.

“Bonus na lang kung sumikat ka o yumaman ka (it’s just a bonus if you get famous or rich).” – Kaela Malig/RC, GMA News