The WEBTOON Creator Residency program had its third cohort conclude a while ago. The program aims to bring participating WEBTOON Original creators to Los Angeles for 2 weeks. There, near the WEBTOON US offices, they would get to work directly with editors and the creator care team in various workshops and mentorship opportunities. The intent of the program is to help these creators with their goals and hone skills in regards to their series, fanbase, business, and even build long-lasting bonds with other creators and staff.
I was given the opportunity to sit down and chat with two WEBTOON editors during that time. One is Editor Valeri Alemania and the other is Senior Editor Sonia Tagari. So if you’d like to learn about the inner workings of what goes on from an editorial level behind many of your favorite webtoon stories, the story behind these two editors, and more, you’ve come to the right place.
So without further ado, feel free to introduce yourselves to us here at K-Comics Beat.
Valeri: Hi, I’m Valeri Alemania, I’m an editor and I’ve worked on series like The D!ckheads, Haze Shift, I’m Dating a Psychopath, Primrose Academy who is currently attending the CRP right now.
Sonia: I’m Sonia Tagari, I use the pronouns She/her. Been at WEBTOON for six years. I started as a content intern, but now I’m a senior editor, so I, much like Valeria, worked on many series bringing them from Canvas to Originals. Notably, I’ve worked on Osora, Ordeal, and for the creators who are at the residency, I’ve worked with Zaanart, the creator of The Queen and Court Jester who also made Rooftops and Roomates.
What were your careers before joining WEBTOON? How did you both become editors?
Valeri: Actually I was working as a freelancer for Tapas right before I got to WEBTOON. I was pretty set when it comes to wanting to work in webcomics. Webtoon, I guess, was my goal. But before that, I studied creative writing. I knew that I wanted to be an editor and work in publishing in some form. It took me discovering webtoons to be like, “This is the exact niche I want to be in.”
Sonia: I took a bit of a twisty-turny route. When I was growing up I always loved comics. I would be in the library reading whatever Manga was available, whatever comics they had available. I would go into the Barnes & Noble and hide behind the stacks looking to catch up on a chapter before an employee caught me. But I never really thought I could have a career in comics. I was very fast at drawing when I was in art school.
I studied print making, I took a few comics classes, but I didn’t think I’d be cut out for it as a creator. And at that time, WEBTOON wasn’t even present in North America. So it wasn’t until I actually finished school and started down a path in the sciences that I discovered webtoons and was like, “Wow! This is really amazing.”
There are all these stories that are so different from anything that I’ve ever read in the bookstores, in the library, even on individual digital comics sites or sites like DeviantArt. So I started in WEBTOON as a reader more than anything, and when I saw that there was an opening for an internship on the content team that was basically like, “Hey, read comics and get paid!”. So I was like, “This sounds amazing!”
During that Internship I got exposed to editorial and the practices of editorial. That was my way of realizing that this is a direction that I can take that involves everything that I love about comics and a way to interact with comics that I never thought was possible. So I really jumped on that opportunity and WEBTOON really liked to keep me around.
How was it like being an intern editor at WEBTOON?
Sonia: It was really, really insightful. It was so cool to see that there is this ecosystem around creators and supporting them with telling their stories. So the idea that I think in my mind, I’ve always pictured it because I wasn’t as familiar with the publishing industry. I always imagined it where the creator works really, really hard by themselves and somehow a book is made. I know I didn’t dive into it because I wanted to be a doctor and that didn’t pan out. So in the internship being able to see how many people are working really hard to make sure that a creator is telling their story in a way that really suits their skills, and in a way that gets it to so many readers is what makes it so exciting for me personally.
Seeing how so many people, especially those leading the internship were editors, were passionate and excited about what they’re working on was really cool to me. I thought if I didn’t have the skill to make comics, that it was the end and that I would always be separated from that. So editorial is a really great way to take that passion and be able to help creators just get their foot in the door for the journey and let their stories shine.
How is it like to manage other interns within editorial?
Sonia: So it’s really high level as it depends on the needs of the editorial team at the time. When we bring on content interns it is mainly to support what editors are doing presently at the time. It might be needed to do a first review of a contest entry for example. Or just be able to support them day-to-day. It’s a great way to just onboard people and give people the idea that in their minds that editorial can be something that is for you. I’m going to keep saying it but I never thought that it was something that I could embark on as a career partly because I was so interested in manga and I was like, “I don’t know Japanese and I don’t live in Japan.
So I guess it’s not going to work out for me.” So it is supporting the editors in their day-to-day and it’s a way to see if people are interested in that career path. It’s just a way to get fresh eyes on some things. A lot of the interns that we work with are readers first and are passionate about finding stories from other creators, different voices around the world, and it’s a way to keep me sharp because I haven’t been sixteen in a long time. So sometimes I have to remind myself what would I want to read if I were sixteen? What would I want to read if I was still Twenty Five? And just being checked by the youth.
Is the role of editor within WEBTOON any similar or different to editorial in the broader comics industry or even Manga?
Valeri: That’s a really interesting question. I’m not fully aware of everyone else’s work processes. I think that there will be a lot of similarities that we will find sometimes in the Asian markets. It seems it could be a bit more P.A or sometimes a bit more project managing. I think both sides have a general sourcing and working relationships with your creators. I wouldn’t be able to fully comment on theirs.
Sonia: I do think for the webtoon editorial role specifically, a lot of my time and effort goes into preparing a story for digital reading first and for mobile reading first as well. I think there might be similarities in editorial across all comics in how are the panels looking? and how will the story progress? How appealing are the characters? But a lot of what we do for editorial in WEBTOON specifically is how do you prepare for the platform and the format? Meaning, maybe you are inspired by manga or inspired by western comics.
How do we take the things that are exciting to you from the page format and optimize them for mobile. Because the scrolling pacing is much different than the page turn in terms of pacing. So that would be a big element that was what makes it unique to the WEBTOON editorial and then also preparing creators for the digital engagement with their readers as well. Because the comment section is something that is also exciting for a lot of readers. The creator profile is also something that is exciting.
It’s like how do you engage with your audience? How do you build your audience directly on the platform as opposed to with book sales where maybe you don’t meet your fans until signings, or comic-cons. So there’s a direct engagement that comes with the WEBTOON platform as well and an element of the editorial is preparing creators for that engagement.
As editors how has the experience been being involved with so many series on the platform?
Valeri: I love it, I love working with the creators. I think that they are so inspiring and for instance just watching them in that room I think it’s just the most determined group. These are professionals who dedicate their lives to their craft and it’s amazing to get to work with them. They’re constantly ideating in their stories, bouncing around even though they are already working on other stories too!
I think it’s definitely more rewarding creatively watching them go from start to finish and being able to see their visions through is just wonderful. I was just talking to the creator of The D!ckheads who are entering the final season, and it was my first green light. So I can’t believe we are going from start to finish here the full way through. And the way we have both grown as an editor and them as a creator I-I love it!
Sonia: I think the word that comes to me is “privilege”. It is the biggest privilege in the world to be able to take a creative voice and a talent with someone who has such a unique story to tell and be able to support them and be able to be a part of that journey even if it’s just being a cheerleader in some ways. Being able to provide all tips and tricks, ways to get their careers started, is always really cool to me. I have a similar experience where Zaanart, the creator of Rooftops and Roommates, was one of my first green lights as well. That was a series that was maybe my first as when I started as an itty-bitty associate editor.
To be here at the residency with her, working on her second series, and working on a third unannounced series, that to me is all that is what’s most worthwhile. Something that is really cool about WEBTOON is that we can get creators to connect with readers no matter where they are in the world, no matter what story they have to tell, and to have this longer career is just really cool to see. To just be a small part of that is the most rewarding part.
Valeri: I do think some part of the reward as well that may differentiate us from the other markets, is that with a lot of our creators, it is their first time becoming a professional comic artist. Just the way that we source from CANVAS ends up being a lot of new professionals. Showing them that this can be their career path and seeing how they’ll grow is amazing. The professionalism that they grow into is beautiful.
Sonia: I think that you saying it’s their first career and it’s their first foray into comics, it’s to me again, like my own experience. The internship where I thought I would never be able to do this. A way that I think is really cool about CANVAS and the CANVAS to Originals process is the more really talented storytellers who have something that they are really passionate to say through their story and through their medium, who are then able to have a career out of it.
Either because their story would be something that would not fit within traditional publishing, but fits really, really well on WEBTOON and fits well with digital audiences. I’m just gonna keep saying that it’s cool, but it is! That’s the magic!
With the creator residency program, how is it like to finally be physically in the same space as the creators you have worked with for some time?
Sonia: I think the first five minutes are always the most awkward. I’m like, “Oh you’re not just living in my screen? I’m not just living in your screen?” But then it eases in immediately. I think there are some conversations that can happen really quickly in person. But because we already have that foundation of already working together digitally, it just takes it to another level. It is a really amazing opportunity.
There are creators who I have worked with for years who live on the other side of the world, and it’s through events like the creator residency or other in-person events where I can meet them and confirm that this is all real. I think it also builds another level of camaraderie and trust to know that I’m not just living in their computer.
Valeri: This is actually my third residency. I had GummyBunni from The D!ckheads meet me for the first time and Puik of Hiding in the Moon came. Each time it has brought something unique, but we also work together really well. I think that it verifies that–one interesting part is that I did not know what any of them looked like, so at first I was just looking at all of the creators, wondering which one is mine. There have been so many more ideas that pop up.
I think that oftentimes that’s because we are so focused on the work that we are doing through messages and through zoom calls that we don’t really branch out as much. I think that there’s just a natural conversation in person that we can talk about so many more ideas. The world just definitely gets bigger and really more rewarding. We also talk a lot more about their future dreams as well and their larger goals with WEBTOON and with comics in general. It’s good because we can really narrow in on what to do with their series right now. So that’s been rewarding.
Sonia: Another element is being able to physically see the creator’s work. To see what techniques they are using and what their process they’re using, and what tools and software is also hugely informative to me as an editor. Not just learning from what they’re doing but also from being able to see, you know, what other tips can i give for their workspace or to streamline their process because I am able to share screens with them digitally. But to be able to actually see what physical hardware they are using, are there suggestions I can give for them.
Like, “Hey, maybe try another program.” or “Maybe it’s time to upgrade that really battered screen that you are using.Maybe we shouldn’t be using the keyboard that is taped together. Even though it is tried and true.” I think that something that’s really cool about the residency program is that it becomes more of a two-way conversation as opposed to like, “Hey I am your editor and here are the tips and tricks that I am giving you.” I can then learn about elements of production and process from the creators that I wouldn’t see because I was not in their workspace.
How has the experience been like just being present for the Creator Residency Program?
Sonia: It’s so sick! I feel like I’m surrounded by creative geniuses at all times! Seeing the creators interact is so exciting to me because I know that there are some creators that I have worked with where they do not know anybody in their city who is doing what they do. Maybe they are in an area where they can’t go to conventions because they aren’t nearby. So meeting other creators and having that community is maybe not as possible for them. The residency program in my opinion gives them that connection.
In editorial we are lucky because we have a team, and I can bounce ideas off of Valeri and I can say when I am struggling on giving feedback on these story beats, and I think seeing the creators be able to interact, share all the tips and tricks and things that work for them, and learn from each other is really cool. Just hearing how they ideate is like, “I need to get better than that. You’re so free!” I think it’s a different relationship than the creator and editor relationship.
I think the creator-editor is always special and really supportive. But creator-creator, there are things in the experience that they understand together and by being able to have some of that community building in person is just really beneficial overall.
Valeri: They have created these bonds beyond–what happened with the other two residencies, they’ve created their own group chats where they still talk to this day. I think they were discussing their own work times now where they will all meet up and just virtually work together on an episode. So I think it has created long-lasting bonds which is really great to see because it can be kind of quiet in a bubble working by yourself as a creator. As much as I’d love to introduce them to other creators, it feels like trying to set up a play-date. That’s not as organic as meeting one another and understanding one another on these professional and personal levels.
Any fond memories during your career as an editor?
Sonia: I use this example a lot because this is my favorite part of the job. I think one of the most rewarding things about being an editor is being able to give a suggestion and see how the creator runs with it. So being able to suggest to the creator something like, “Hey this panel composition that you have is really cool. But, what if we ramped it up? What if we are taking cues from one of your favorite manga artists or your favorite movies? How do you think that would look?” And then the creator will just say to me, “Oh yeah! Just wait!”
Basically in a couple of hours I will get back a panel sketch and be blown away in a manner that I wouldn’t have been able to foresee. That is a fond memory that happens to me on almost a weekly basis. Being able to just have that collaboration and those second set of eyes to see how far a creator can take something creatively within their artistic potential. Another fond memory that I have is just seeing how much creators grow over their journey.
Working with Zaanart for example, now that she is on her second season I’ve been able to see across many years how her artistic and writing talent has exploded. I think for any creator that I work with, it’s a journey, because they’re drawing every day, writing every day, they are inevitably going to get better. Being able to see that growth is one of those privileges.
Valeri: I have some similar ones. I’ve mentioned that I came from a writing background, so when I send my stick figures to the creators, they deliver the most beautiful picture that you’ve ever seen. It’s like day and night. I’ve had creators screenshot my stick figures and show their readers and go, “Look what my editor sent me.” But, yeah, seeing their growth and thinking that I come from a lot of romance series and i’ll tell you every time there is a first kiss or a hand hold, I am always scouring the comments and seeing how everyone is so excited. Look at where we have gotten. I think a recent one that was really exciting is the creator of Edith’s second series just launched and we were just talking about it.
Edith is just amazing and I love it so much. For that creator, she was saying that it was very much geared towards a contest which is where Edith came from originally. This new series is their passion project, so it’s really beautiful to watch that growth as well going into the second series or the third. Seeing how they grow and what other stories they’d like to tell is really rewarding.
Any achievements/accomplishments you feel proud of as an editor for WEBTOON?
Sonia: There is not one single accomplishment that I think the things that fill me with pride are always launch day. The preparation for launch creates so much work behind the scenes. So much work with the editors, so much work with some of the other teams at the company to get ready for that moment, where they basically debut. So any launch that I have is a huge milestone and a huge point of pride. Seeing all of the readers so excited even for a sophomore series or a secondary or tertiary series, seeing those readers come back to be so excited for the same creator is a huge point of pride for me. A series ending is bittersweet, but is another point of pride.
I think comics are a marathon and the creators we have worked with have so much endurance to get to the end of their story, that being able to see a conclusion is always a proud moment for me and then getting a new pitch from a creator and seeing their career continue is another point of pride. ‘Cause at the end of the day, I am not the one making the work. I’m the one who is supporting the work and I think for creators and any point of pride that I feel, are the ones who take up the mantle. Because I can’t do what they do. I’m mainly here to make it as easy as possible for them to do what they do.
Valeri: Launch day is beautiful. It’s a great day! Because usually the creators have a minimum of six months behind the scenes and they are anxiously awaiting. We’ve had these beginning episodes that they’ve worked so hard on just lying in wait. So it’s definitely a feeling of pride for them. But, yeah, I’m proud of our team. Especially when we congratulate each other whenever there is a launch. We do work very hard for them but it is the creator’s day to shine. The editors would congratulate them, and we want the world to congratulate the creators as well.
At the residency please indulge me on the topics of the Omega-verse and the wolf game I’ve overheard amongst the creators and editors.
Sonia: (Laughs) I think that is a really exciting example of showing how creators are able to collaborate and take any topic no matter if it’s niche online, and be able to develop a story out of it. That showcases the creators talent for storytelling and immense talent for character, design, creation. But also how much fun they have. At the end of the day, comics are fun. And it should be fun in my opinion. Even if it weren’t, if it was any other specific type of topic, we would just be getting amazing ideas out of the creators we work with because they are professionals and because they are so talented.
Valeri: It’s funny to see how it has started and where it has ended. They’ve taken it and done these beautiful ideas that I don’t think you’d be able to trace back to this honestly. Listening to some of them you think you just want to create beautiful stories and as much fun as you are having, you move into this new direction. They have been bonding over it but, as long as they also know how to bounce ideas off of each other responsibly.
Has the Creator Residency experience strengthened the bond between the editors and creators?
Sonia: I hope so! I hope they didn’t say, “Oh no…that’s what Sonia looks like?” (Laughs) I definitely think it has. I think anytime that I get to have just one-on-one with a creator, it brings us closer together. Again, even getting to meet creators for the first time in person and getting to show them where I work, you know, it is a real place! Because so much of the work is digital, I send an outreach email at the beginning.
We discuss things over email, we discuss things over Zoom, I think bringing it into the physical realm by being able to meet a person does give it a life of its own beyond the computer screen. So I think in that sense it strengthened the editor’s one- on-one sessions, being able to have a very dedicated time to deep dive on a topic that they want to talk about, be it season beats, episode production, or even getting ready for a new idea and pitch. Just having that designated time was really helpful.
Valeri: I definitely think it strengthens the bond. If you can’t tell, we really love our job. They can see the sincerity that we have ‘cause I am at my core a fangirl. So when I see their work and having my fangirl reactions, I think that it strengthens the bond. We are the same. We both love comics, and we both want their work out there. All of us have so much time dedicated to the creators that we are working with that it would be hard not to strengthen the bond. We do have a lot of core similarities and interests and it helps show that off.
Would you recommend the residency program to any interested creators?
Sonia: Yes! I want every creator that I work with to come to the residency just so they can have this experience. Again, because a lot of the creators that I’ve worked with are global, and maybe they’ve never been to Los Angeles. Maybe they’ve met another creator. Maybe they’ve never been to a convention. So, being able to have that experience at the residency and then being able to also strengthen the one-on-one professional relationship between creator and editor is huge! As Valerie said, we all started as readers. We all started as fans. Even on the series that I’ve worked on. I’ve read it and I’ve thought, “Oh, I love this.” and I believe that other people should love it too, and other people should see this.
Being able to meet these creators who are telling these kinds of stories that I’ve been obsessed with is a huge honor. Beyond that, selfishly, I just want to meet more creators so I can work with and be like, “You are amazing! Keep doing what you’re doing!” I would definitely recommend it. It’s beyond the element of connection, it’s a great experience to learn from other creators about how they work. Different shortcuts, different processes, and then again to learn more about the way WEBTOON is supporting the series, not just from an editorial, but also as you saw, the other departments making up the company. We are all rooting for the creators and we’re trying to do our best to make their stories shine.
Valeri: It’s my third time at the residency because I vehemently requested my creators to at least apply. I think even if I were not to attend, I would still want them there. Meeting other creators is so important. Every single one, I’ve seen them offer so many different tips and tricks for their own production, and for being a WEBTOON creator I think it is so important. I think it’s great when they meet each other at cons, but having this dedicated workspace for these two weeks and seeing each other work I think changes a lot of them. I constantly request them to do so. I’m like, “Please, if you can come. Come.” (Laughs)
Any inspiring words to any webcomic artist/creator out there regardless of the platform?
Sonia: Regardless of the platform, please keep making your story. Put it out there because I would want to read it.
Valeri: There’s always an audience waiting. I was actually doing portfolio reviews recently and some of the people that I was talking with said that they were too afraid to post their work. They were showing it to me and I was like, “This? This is gorgeous!” Please, Please publish it. Self publish it. Do whatever you want. But put it out there because there’s people like me who are just eating it up. Keep going. Sometimes it just takes time. Sometimes you don’t get the acknowledgement you want, but I think the self worth part is worth it as well. You never know what kind of audience you’ll get.
Sonia: You never know what kind of audience you’ll get. Even if you are feeling like you aren’t ready now, the more you make comics, the more you tell stories, the more you draw, the better you are going to get. You are going to learn so much just by making it and you’ll look back in two years and be like, “Wow! I’ve grown so much!” Keep moving forward. Just do it! Pick up a pencil. Pick up a stylus. It’s a journey that you won’t regret going on.
If you’d like to read more about the WEBTOON Creator Residency Program, you can read all about it right here on K-Comics Beat!
