Frequently Asked Questions
Q: I wrote to you, like MONTHS ago! I still haven't heard back!
A: Unfortunately, due to the high volume of email I get, I am no longer able to respond to everyone who writes. I do try to write back whenever I can and I appreciate every letter I get and read them all! If you have a question that has not been covered in the FAQ, please put "question for the FAQ" as your email subject, send it to us and we will add the answer to the site! In the meantime, here are some recent interviews with me that may provide useful information:
Q: Can I ask you some questions or interview you for a school project?
A: It's an honour that you'd consider me as a subject for your school project, but I often don't have a lot of free time to answer questions, especially when I'm trying to finish the next book by a deadline. (These days, that's most of the time.)
Q: Can you be my mentor for school?
A: I'm honoured that you want me to be your mentor. Unfortunately, as I've indicated above, I have very little free time available to me and that means that I'm unable to be a mentor.
Q: Do you run workshops?
A: Yes, depending on my work schedule. I usually do workshops as courtesy to the conventions that bring me in as a guest, so you can contact your favourite con and request that they invite me. Outside of conventions, I can be booked for workshops via Skype or in person by your local library or school — just contact them to say you are interested in attending and point them to my About page!
Q: Will you be at ______Con so I can get my books signed?
A: My con presence depends on two things — my work schedule (7 days a week!) and whether the con in question invited me. I am a working artist which means I don't have a lot of time or money that I can spend on trips. :( If you would like me to appear at your favourite con, please write to them and request that they invite me! If they do so and I am able to take the time off work (a con trip is usually 5 days with the travel… yikes!), I will happily attend. :3
You can see a list of cons where I will be a guest (or have been a guest) at FanCons.com. My webmaster, Mr. Raccoon, also tries to keep the schedule on my home page up-to-date.
Q: Will there be more Awkward?
A: THERE IS! It's not called "Awkward volume 2". It's called Brave and it's about other students at Berrybrook Middle School. (Go Wiener Dogs!) You can see more of our friends from Awkward in that book too...even Mr. Raccoon. The third book in the series is called Crush and is followed by Diary and Enemies. All these books are available in bookstores in the US, Canada, and UK. Some are available in other countries and other languages too!
Although they do take place in alphabetical order, they can be read in any order you'd like without spoiling the other books too much. Although some online stores list them as "volume 1", "volume 2", "volume 3", etc., they really aren't supposed to do that.
Q: Is there a book after Crush? Will it start with the letter "D"?
A: Yes, the fourth book is called Diary. The fourth volume represents an exciting variation that, in addition to exclusive short stories featuring familiar faces from Berrybrook, doubles as a real journal featuring a "One Sketch a Day" section, stickers, and free note pages with fun journal entries from one of the main characters. The book after that, Enemies returns to the format of the first three books.
Q: Is there a book after Enemies? Will it start with the letter "F"?
A: The next book in the series has not been announced. A name has already been chosen, so please refrain from making suggestions.
Q: What about after that? Are you going to do the whole alphabet?!
A: On November 21, 2019, JY announced that there would be a fifth, sixth, and seventh book in the Berrybrook series. The fifth book, Enemies, was released in 2022. No other information has been announced yet.
Q: Will there be more Nightschool?
A: Yes! It isn't "Nightschool volume 5", but it's an all-new cast of characters set in the same world. The series is called The Weirn Books. Volume 1 of The Weirn Books was released in the summer of 2020 and Volume 2 will be released in October 2024. (You don't need to have read the Nightschool series to enjoy the new series, but it doesn't hurt!)
Q: Will there be more Dramacon?
A: Sorry, but there is no Dramacon volume 4. It is extremely unlikely it will ever happen.
Q: How do you pronounce Jorge's name in Brave and Crush?
A: He goes by the Spanish pronunciation. It sounds like "hor-hey".
Q: What's it like to be a professional comics/manga author?
A: It's kind of like high school and college art/creative writing projects without the teacher but with a billion times the deadlines and the amount of work. And you even get paid for it sometimes!
Q: How does one become a professional comics/manga author?
A: This is a long and involved topic and I am hoping to write a few in-depth essays on this in the future. The short answer for now — become good at drawing and writing, get your work out there (established webcomics communities, submissions to contests, etc.), be ready to face a lot of rejection, and be ready to work even harder when you land your first job.
Also, please read Dave Roman's absolutely excellent Guide to Being a Freelancer. (It's mostly for artists, but is very applicable to aspiring manga authors too.) It's a treasure mine of Very Good Advice.
Q: Do you do requests?
A: Not anymore, sorry ^___^; I barely have time to complete paying work on time, so haven't been able to do favours like that in a looooooong time....
Q: Do you do commissions?
A: I'm not taking any at the moment — the last people had to wait a year before I managed to get around to their requests! Some are still waiting. >.> No one deserves that...
Q: I really like your "_____" picture, may I put it on my website/use it as my RP avatar/stick it on my wall?
A: I don't mind people using my pictures for role-playing or displaying them on their site, etc, under following conditions:
- No hotlinking/linking to the image on my server for your own uses. That's bandwidth theft!
- No making profit off my images in any way — they're not yours! ^___^;;
- Please remember to credit me as the picture's creator and provide a link back to my site.
- Once you decide which images you'd like to use, please e-mail me their names, to which purpose they will be used and on what site. You don't have to wait for a reply from me. I will only be contacting you if I see a problem with the way you are using my stuff.
Q: Where can I download your comics?
A: Amazon, Comixology, Apple iBooks, and Google Play have some of my books available in e-book format. Every book purchased (of both physical books and e-books) help make future books possible!
Q: Where is Mr. Raccoon hidden?
A: You'll have to find him yourself. He can be found in Dramacon volumes 1-3 (and the Ultimate Edition), Nightschool volume 1, Awkward, Brave, Crush, Diary, and The Weirn Books, Vol. 1: Be Wary of the Silent Woods. My niece confirmed that he has 24 appearances in Awkward, mostly in the Art Club room. He appears over a dozen times in Brave and Crush, but I'm not exactly sure how often. He's all over Diary, but only appears in one of the stories in that book. He also appears just a few times in The Weirn Books. His story throughout all these books can be found in his coloring book, The Art Adventures of Mr. Raccoon, which I sell at conventions and on those rare occasions I open my online store.
Q: Who is the "Mr. Raccoon" that posts on your Facebook page and web site?
A: That's my husband.
Q: When will your store open up again?
A: I tend to only open it a couple times a year because it takes a lot of time and effort to package everything and ship it out in a timely manner. It sometimes opens up before Christmas...but never when I have a pending deadline. When it opens, I'll announce it on Twitter and Facebook, so follow me there! Otherwise, you may have better luck finding my table at a convention. I no longer sell autographed books in my store because books are heavy and shipping books is not cheap...especially when shipping internationally.
Q: How can I ask a question not listed here?
A: I work so much that it is notoriously difficult to get a hold of me both online and in real life. I'm like that rare Pokémon that they didn't even add to Pokémon Go yet. However, if you have questions that you'd like included in this section, contact me.
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