Welcome fellow readers! Meet one of our four graphic novelists, Odunze Oguguo the man behind the magical series Apple Black. Let’s see what Whyt had to say about his upcoming graphic novel. If you’re a fan of this man, look forward to his graphic novel in a store near you!
Whats’ it like having your first published? How does it feel to be published by a distributor?
It’s a dream come true to be published in this fashion. It feels great to have this difficult goal amongst many accomplished, I never imagined things would work out this way, especially growing up in Nigeria, to then make manga published worldwide thanks to the Saturday AM X Quarto deal. All we need now are spin-offs, anime, video games, merch, toys, and YouTubers making theory videos.
How does it feel to know that readers may be able to learn about you and your book on a shelf?
I’m excited to learn from this experience and all that it comes with. It feels nice knowing that our content will be exposed to completely new audiences while also adding further street cred to our name and our hard work. Hopefully, these audiences enjoy the blood, sweat, and tears.
How long did it take you to complete the first volume?
It took about a little over a year to complete the first volume, counting just the times I was working on it. I started putting Apple Black together in college, so one can imagine how little time I had to make it happen and not completely fail at school. Over the years, I’ve made adjustments and edits to the work to give it a stronger first impression where possible.
How much research went into formulating your story?
Can you tell us some mythology or history you’ve used? A lot of research and studying of media of all kinds to build Apple Black. I also have taken from several religions, cultures, and stories in history to build what I have.
For Instance, the concept of Nirvana is derived from Buddhism. I take from what I know, add a fun spin on it and go from there.
What was the most difficult thing about writing this story?
Sometimes I have too many ideas and don’t necessarily know which route may be the best. That said, sometimes, it can be a fun problem to have. If I choose wrong in hindsight, it’s also a struggle coming up with solutions to course correct, however, writing has always been fun, even when I hit brick walls.
You can PREORDER both volumes here:
