How Yutaka Hara, creator of 🦊"Kaiketsu Zorori"🦊, crafts his stories

Celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, and with the theatrical film releasing on Friday, December 9th"Kaiketsu Zorori: La La La♪ Star Birth"also hitting theaters, the "Kaiketsu Zorori" series is a massive long-seller. "Kaiketsu Zorori" series. Releasing on Wednesday, December 7th, "Kaiketsu Zorori: Save the Dinosaur Mom!" marks the 72nd volume of this major series. How does the author, Yutaka Hara, write his stories and draw his illustrations? We asked him about the secrets behind his production process.

How did you become a children's book author?

　Although I had created my own picture book titled "Chiisana Mori" (1975, published by Froebel-kan), I was originally an illustrator who drew pictures for stories written by other authors, not an author myself.　I loved drawing from childhood and kept at it, and I also loved movies, so I aimed to become a children's book illustrator, thinking that in picture books and children's literature, I could direct the story through my illustrations.

　At that time, the style for children's book illustrations generally involved drawing pictures in spaces designated by the publisher. However, I began to devise ways to reconfigure the page layout within a limited number of pages so that the child readers could enjoy the story even more.　To that end, I would make suggestions to the authors, such as, "Since this scene can be shown through illustrations, couldn't we cut the text?" or "Couldn't we expand this part because it could make for a more fun page with illustrations?" Some authors found these suggestions interesting, but I was also scolded quite often.
　While doing that, I ended up writing the stories for "Kaiketsu Zorori" as well.

　However, when I actually faced the blank manuscript paper, I couldn't write anything.　I realized the difficulty of creating a story from scratch.

How does someone who was originally an illustrator create stories?

　That's when I thought that if I took things I liked and remade them in my own way, it might become a new story.　　Since I was a child, I loved various forms of entertainment, such as books, manga, rakugo, television, movies, and games. I was especially obsessed with monster movies, Hitoshi Ueki's "Irresponsible Man" series, and Kiyoshi Atsumi's "Tora-san" series.　　Because of this, I had plenty of material to use as a foundation for my stories.　I attempted to create a story where, like in the movie "Indiana Jones" that surprised me when I saw it, dangerous things happen one after another even after escaping danger, which became the first volume,

"Kaiketsu Zorori: Dragon Slayer"

.　I thought that if I made the progression such that they couldn't take their eyes off it until the end, even children who aren't good at reading books would read it to the end.　　At first, I thought writing about five volumes would be enough, but because the children read them, I kept writing with passion, and 35 years later, it has reached 72 volumes.

Do you start from zero every time?

　People often ask me, "Since you've written 72 volumes, don't you have no trouble writing?" However, I feel anxious every time that I might not be able to write the next one.　　For that reason, I read many books on how to write screenplays and relearn how to construct stories before I write.　I learned that in Hollywood movies, the protagonist's goal—who, where, and what they are doing—is clearly conveyed to the viewer in the first 15 minutes to capture the audience's heart.　　Therefore, I sometimes analyze the movies and dramas I liked, minute by minute.

　Then, I realized that engaging stories have appropriately created climaxes and are carefully crafted so as not to get boring.　I replaced the method of making an approximately 113-minute movie with the method of making a 113-page book, aiming for a development where the protagonist's goal is conveyed in the first 15 pages and the reader wants to cheer for the protagonist.　On top of that, I scattered many happenings so that they wouldn't want to close the book until the end, and I also devised ways to make them turn the page by using phrases like "Then," or "However," at the end of the pages.　Because once a book is closed, it's difficult to get them to open it again. I aimed to create books that even people browsing in a bookstore couldn't help but read to the end.

How do you actually create the stories?

➊ First, I think about what kind of story it will be. As I mentioned earlier, I often come up with ideas inspired by manga, television, movies, and games.　When I'm thinking about a story, I think about it even when I'm sleeping or in the bath, so I always keep paper and a pencil within reach so I can take notes as soon as I think of something.

➋ Once the subject of the story is decided, I collect materials. I read books and watch movies and dramas.

➌ I confirm the introduction, development, turn, and conclusion (kishōtenketsu) of the story I thought of.

➍ Next, I confirm the flow using a Hollywood-style chart. Within the flow of getting caught up in an incident and reaching a happy ending, I create several climaxes and check if it gets boring in the middle or if the ending is too obvious.

➎ Create a mini-rough draft of the overall flow. I write out the mini-rough drafts for all pages on a single sheet of paper and turn the story flow into text. I examine the overall structure while refining it.

➏ Write it on cards and file them. To make it easier to swap pages, I write the detailed flow on cards, store them in a file, and examine the story's progression.

➐ Decide on the 113-page layout and write the text on the layout paper. This is the first rough draft in the official size, and I start by focusing on the text. ➑ I carry the rough draft around and rethink it. I


examine and rewrite the rough draft many times while in the bath or out and about.

➒ My wife, Kyoko, who is also a children's book author, reads the text to check if the flow and writing are easy for children to understand. Furthermore, since there is a limit to the number of characters, she helps me think about how to make the text as short as possible.

➓ Based on the revised text, I redo the layout. This time, I add drawings and create the entire page.

⓫ I ink the drawings
on the completed rough draft. I use disposable Rotring pens. Refillable ink pens are difficult to use because the tips get crushed or clogged, so I keep dozens of pens of different thicknesses in stock.

⓬ I scan the drawings and clean up the lines on the computer. Kyoko helps by adjusting the line thickness and sometimes making the expressions of Ishishi and Noshishi more expressive.

⓭ We both color the drawings. In the beginning, I used cel animation techniques, but now I color them on the computer. Also, since I am not good at fashion for girls, I have Kyoko think of clothing designs and the like. The drawings are completed by adding hidden pictures and such. Basically, I write the story in one month and draw the pictures in about a month and a half.

⓮ After this, the editor checks for any mistakes in the text or drawings, makes corrections, and submits it to the printing company.

⓯ I check the proofs that come back multiple times, and finally, the book is finished.

I have written Kaiketsu Zorori this way every time, but whether it is the first volume I wrote 35 years ago, Kaiketsu Zorori no Dragon Taiji (Zorori's Dragon Extermination), or the latest work, Kaiketsu Zorori Kyoryu Mama o Sukue! (Save the Dinosaur Mom!), my desire to create books that even children who dislike reading can enjoy has never changed. When I look back at the stories so far, no matter how many times Zorori fails, he never gives up and moves forward, thinking about the next time. Just as I was cheered up by the "Irresponsible Man" series by Hitoshi Ueki and Tora-san from the "Otoko wa Tsurai yo" series by Kiyoshi Atsumi, whom I loved in the past, I hope that the children who read Zorori will feel that even if they fail, there is a next time, and that they should try to move on without giving up.

The books and movies introduced this time are as follows.

🦊 Please read this article for the story of Yutaka Hara from his childhood until he became a children's book author.