We got in touch with Xibang again and asked him even more questions about his work. This time, the artist shared with us some behind-the-scenes stories and fun facts about his comic creation process: “I do most of my drawings on my old smartphone these days. So I end up drawing at some really odd places - late night supper spots, computer cafes and a karaoke bar now and then. Mostly I'm just looking for a bright and lively place - because I tend to draw at night when I'm already pretty tired.”
When asked how he develops the characters featured in his series and their personalities, Xibang explained: “I use some general stereotypes for creating my characters - cats are mean, dogs are nice, etc. But I like to keep my other characters a little vague, so they can embody other themes or emotions when I draw. But in general, the pink guy in my comics is the sensible one, the blue guy tends to be the idiot.”
We were also curious about how the comic artist handles creative blocks and periods of low inspiration. The creator of the series told us: “I handle them very, very badly LOL. In fact I'm going through a creative block now. I'm trying to get over it by just making myself draw and create, even if I personally don't think the ideas are very good. I think it's helping! Anyway, I've come to the conclusion that I should just draw and make things I enjoy, and not care so much if people like it or not. I try to remind myself of that when I'm struggling to create.”
Lastly, Xibang shared more details about some of the collaborations he has done with other artists in the past: “I've collaborated with Larkness and I really enjoyed it! I've also talked about doing stuff with other artists, but nothing has come of it. I feel like I'm too random and inconsistent to really bring anything to the table, so I'm glad people are interested in working with me still.”
