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WHY JOIN THE AUDITION?

The SILENT MANGA AUDITION® (SMA) isn’t just a manga competition, it’s a gateway to your potential Japanese manga debut. By winning high awards in the contest, you will be invited to join the SMA MasterClass where our dedicated team of editors will help improve your abilities for a potential debut through a series of exclusive opportunities.

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1. INTRODUCTION TO SILENT MANGA

1.1 The “LANGUAGE” of Silent Manga

A Silent Manga is a visual narrative told without dialogue, that relies entirely on illustration alone. You may, however, make use of onomatopoeia by incorporating SFX into your art.

We welcome all emotions – happiness, sadness, and everything in-between.
Like a good chef, the mixing of opposing flavors can sometimes produce the best results!

1.2 Judging

The entries will be judged mainly on “the creator’s ability to direct an effective narrative through an entertaining story.” As a creator, your story should be able to ignite your reader’s imagination!

The SMA Judges assess each entry’s  “message and how it makes the reader feel within a short, limited number of pages.”  There are no limitations to what you can draw, as long as it’s an original creation that perfectly captures the theme.

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2. DRAWING YOUR SILENT MANGA

2.1 Page count

The page count for a single SMA entry is 17 pages or less. (The page count may change depending on the round so please be sure to always check the current round announcement page).

2.2 Canvas size

Paper

  • B4
    Trimmed artwork area: 220mm x 310mm
    Main content area: 180mm x 270
    Trim margin: 20mm

    If B4 paper is unavailable: You can use any paper size (e.g. A4) but please keep the drawing area’s aspect ratio unchanged.

  • A4
    Trimmed artwork area: 279mm x 198mm
    Main content area: 261mm x 180mm
    Trim margin: 9mm

    *Might differ according to paper brand, please take this as an average ratio. For A3 you can simply double the ratio.

  • NOTE: Entries done on paper should be scanned and digitized with a 300 dpi resolution.

2.3 Working in digital

  • Please follow the same dimensions stated in 2.2 Canvas size.
  • All digital drawing tools are welcome in SMA (Clip studio, Manga studio, GIMP, Adobe Photoshop, Medibang, Paint, etc).
  • Please DO NOT use any copyrighted materials, imagery, or characters as part of your creation. However, pre-set tools like brushes and screen tones are welcome.
  • Preset photos or drawings of people and backgrounds are FORBIDDEN by the submission agreement as their use may be subject to copyright infringement. The ONLY exception is photos you’ve taken yourself.

2.4 Final output

Entries should be TRIMMED at the trim lines before uploading to the Entry System.

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3. TIPS AND ADVICE FOR YOUR SILENT MANGA

3.1 What IS NOT allowed

  • Dialogue: the use of dialogue to tell the story is strictly forbidden in SMA.
  • Copyright infringement: using copyrighted characters or imagery.
  • Distributing / uploading your ENTIRE entry to social media and other channels if you win an SMA award. However, uploading or distributing a PREVIEW of your entry is acceptable, and it is also acceptable to upload or distribute your entire entry if you do not receive an SMA award. If you receive an SMA award, your entry will be legally owned by COAMIX Inc., meaning you will not be able to sell or distribute your entry to any third party.

3.2 What IS allowed

  • Speech balloons containing “!?”: Exclamations and other punctuation marks are fine, but always keep in mind that they ENHANCE your characters’ expressive emotions, not SUBSTITUTE them. For example, many artists draw expressive marks near characters’ faces, often without speech balloons.
  • Signs (e.g., Parking / Flower Shop / Restaurants, etc.): Signage is also OK, provided they are very common and universally understood.
  • Onomatopoeia: drawn letters that represent sound is welcome and actually encouraged in ANY LANGUAGE. In most Japanese manga, sound effects are usually incorporated into the art by the original artist in a unique style that sets the tone of the sound.
  • Entries from partners, groups, etc.
  • Multiple entries are WELCOME!

3.3 To take into consideration

  • Utilize the first page as part of the storytelling and not just a cover page.
  • We encourage you to make good use of a “double page spread” (a pair of two adjacent pages in a book). Treat the page spread as ONE WIDE CANVAS.
  • Complex stories are often difficult to incorporate in SMA. It’s a good idea to plan ahead, and think of a simple, yet effective story before you begin your final manga.
  • We want to see what “message(s)” the story clearly presents to the reader – evoking emotions and feelings to entertain the reader.
  • FLOW: Though manga displays the action on a single page, it is designed to be read as a “double page spread”, with the action starting from the right and flowing from page to page. This same rule applies even when reading manga on a smartphone or tablet. The key is to ensure the reader turns the page! Use effective “Hiki-goma” (the last panel before turning over the page to the following panel) and other techniques for effective storytelling.

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4. TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

4.1 Starting your manga

We recommend starting your manga as A SINGLE PAGE on the left side of the spread.

4.2 Layout

Your manga should be drawn from right-to-left (Japanese standard).

4.3 Setting up and exporting your pages

Check out our tutorial on how to set up and export your pages in Clip Studio Paint EX!

4.4 Image data

Preparing the image data of your work (data format).
Please prepare the image data of your work according to the format below. (One image file for each page / two-page spread divided into two image files).
Once finished, please put all of your files into one folder and then compress it into a zip file.

  • Image format: JPG or PNG format
  • File size: 1 file 2 MB or less
  • Image file name: Your image files should be labeled with a two digit number in sequential order based on the page number of the image file (Example: page_01.jpg, page_02.jpg, etc.)
  • Resolution: 300 dpi

4.5 Uploading

Pages MUST BE uploaded as “1 page / 1 image”. For “double page spreads,” please upload each page as “2 separate image files.”

If the file name is not correct, it may be displayed in the wrong order after uploading.

[Correct example]: page_01.jpg, page_02.jpg, etc. …
[Incorrect example]: page1.jpg, 1_page.jpg, etc. …

　　 *NOTE: Be sure to omit the first zero when you reach double figures.

[Correct example]: page_10.jpg, page_11.jpg, etc. …
[Incorrect example]: page_010.jpg, page_011.jpg, etc. …

4.6 Removing Trim Marks

Images will be displayed on the web exactly as you upload them, so please be careful about gutter, trim marks, etc.

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5. INFORMATION TO BE SUBMITTED WITH YOUR WORK

The following information is required when you upload your entry on our web system.

5.1 Entry information

At the time of the results announcement, the following information will be published on our website along with your entry.

  • Entry title
  • Detailed Credit (in case of a team creation, team pen name)
  • Comments (to the SMA Editorial Dept. / the reader)

5.2 Personal information

In the event that you win an award, we will contact you individually via email to ask for the below information. This information is necessary for international bank transfers, and will not be used for any other purposes. At the time of submitting your entry, you will only be asked for your pen name.

  • Full legal name
  • Address and country
  • Email address
  • Phone Number

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6. UPLOADING YOUR SILENT MANGA

6.1 Submitting Your Entry

Please submit your entry via our Google Form. Please be aware that, in order to submit, you must have a Gmail account. If you do not have a Gmail account, please create one before submitting.

Once your Gmail account is ready, follow the above guidelines regarding file size, file name, and file type. Then, compress your entry into a zip file and upload it via the Google Form.

If your upload has been received successfully, you will receive an automated email confirming your submission. If there were any issues with your submission, you will receive an automated email that details the issues and asks you to resubmit. The email will have the subject line “Submission Issue – Action Required” and will appear as below.

If there are any issues with the content of your submission (i.e., dialogue, nudity, explicit violence, etc.), the Editorial Department will get in contact with you privately via email, so please be sure to check your Gmail account regularly.

6.2 Issues with Your Submission

    It is not possible to edit an entry once it has been submitted, so if there are any issues with your entry, please edit it and resubmit it through the same form. If you have submitted multiple entries, but you would only like one to be considered, please contact the SMA Editorial Department via our Online Inquiry Form , and the Editorial Department will delete any entries you would not like to be considered.

6.3 Deadline

The deadline for each round is listed on the current round announcement page.

*However, we will consider delays due to internet connectivity issues, etc. In this case, the SMA Editorial Department will approve your entries, so please do not panic even after the deadline.

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7. THE RESULTS

7.1 Results announcement

The results will be announced between three to four months after the deadline, and the exact date will be announced through the SMA social media accounts.

7.2 Winning an award

SMA winners will be contacted via email in one to two weeks after the results are announced. The SMA Editorial Dept. will then guide all of the winners through the process of receiving their prizes!

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