I'm not at retirement age yet, but I've decided to rebuild my life. ―A self-introduction from the middle of my journey―

Nice to meet you, I'm Yoshie Aono.
This year, I resigned from the company where I had worked for many years and jumped into the world of freelancing, which is the complete opposite of being a corporate employee.

I have over 10 years of experience in pastel art. I've held solo exhibitions of my work, participated in group exhibitions and international open calls, and even worked as an instructor. I also create AI manga.

I love traveling, art in general, reading, languages, dancing, alcohol, and delicious food.
And also mental and physical health.
I usually travel alone.
When it comes to overseas, I especially love Turkey, and I can speak Turkish for travel and daily conversation.
My special talent is that I tend to meet people with mysterious powers.
(I hope to write about these episodes in articles someday.)

As far back as I can remember, I was already drawing pictures as a child.
The scene of me drawing pictures of princesses with sparkly eyes on drawing paper is still burned into my memory.

Also, according to my mother, I loved books even before I could read.
I especially loved books about space for children, mysterious stories, and adventure tales. Also books about yokai and occult topics.
I was already showing signs of being an otaku in my early childhood.

I would even secretly read books I borrowed from the library during class so the teacher wouldn't find me, chasing the words and immersing myself completely in the worlds inside the books (as you might have guessed, I wasn't good at schoolwork).

Eventually, I became the kind of person who doesn't feel at ease unless I have a book in my bag wherever I go.

Decades have passed, and I still have a strong habit of daydreaming.
Since I have a long history as a working professional, I've acquired various things like common sense and social graces, but the core of who I am might not have changed.

From elementary school through high school, I drew stories and manga, joined the art club in junior high to learn oil painting, and joined the anime research club in high school.
We all worked together to produce a short anime for the school festival. At that time, I even did a tiny bit of voice acting.
Even though it was just one line, I had to redo it over and over. I was trembling, thinking, 'Voice actors are amazing!!'

I'm from a generation where, not so long ago, people who liked anime and manga were called 'otaku' and often laughed at.
Now, both are respected parts of Japanese culture that Japan is proud to share with the world.
(It's become a better world, hasn't it? ♡)

Being an 'otaku' means having something you love.
You have a 'specialized field' and a dedicated curiosity for that field, so no matter the genre, people who have something they love are strong.
They are full of love.
Otaku will save the worldI truly believe that.

I often get lost because I have too many interests, but since I've finally shed the rigid armor of being a corporate employee, I'm going to try to enjoy everything.

Here, I would like to share the things I love and the things I've actually experienced through my own perspective, using manga, illustrations, and story-style writing.

Since I'm a foodie and a drinker, I might introduce restaurants I like, and sometimes the topics might not be all sunshine and rainbows.

※Please note that I have embellished this to be 200% more beautiful than the real person.

Life is like a journey.
I'm still in the middle of my journey, so there are times when my heart aches, but I take that as spice called experience.

I would be happy if you could enjoy this with me.

On this note, I plan to post gentle manga and articles that will make you chuckle, so I would be happy if you could feel at ease and come visit.

Thank you for reading this far.

Yoshie Aono

#MangaYouCanReadOnNote #YoshieAono #GentleEssayManga