This is the sketchblog of Sara E. Mayhew–that’s me! Nerdy ramblings on my favourite topics are combined with geek-a-licious manga artwork. I suppose this is also a bit of a skeptical blog with manga doodles thrown in…skeptimanga!
The title of the blog is a reference to a line spoken by Jean-luc Picard in an episode of Star Trek:TNG, “Chain of Command”.
Why create this blog?
I want to share my passion for learning about science and, perhaps, encourage others like me with no background in science to take an interest. Maybe my little manga doodles will lure anime and manga otaku into listening/watching/reading about all the wonderful nerdtastic stuff out there!
What is a mangaka?
A mangaka is a creator (write and illustrator) of manga. Manga is a form of sequential art which originated in Japan. Most people are more familiar with the animated form of manga, anime, with popular series like Pokemon, Sailor Moon, Astroboy, Dragon Ball Z, etc. The word ‘manga’ is basically the Japanese word for ‘comic book’. There are a lot of key differences between manga and traditional western comics, which I often discuss in my panels and workshops I speak at during my guest appearances at anime conventions and local schools/libraries.
About Me:
My professional bio can be found on my main site, www.saramayhew.com.
I live and work in my hometown of Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada, where I grew up spending my time daydreaming and drawing doodles. I’ve always loved to make up stories, characters, and the worlds they live in. From the age of nine and on through highschool, I practiced figure skating and have my Gold in dance, skills, and artistic freeskate as well as Senior Silver in interpretive dance and freeskate elements. Currently, I’m completing my level 1 NCCP coaching certification. I’m also quite fond of martial arts and have my greenbelt in Goju Ryu karate.
One of my favourite hobbies is astronomy and bought myself a nice little Sky-Watcher Maksutov-Cassegrain 102mm telescope a couple years ago. I really love learning–I like listening to lectures and watching documentaries–I enjoy SETI’s “Are We Alone?” podcast and watch a lot of talks posted on the TED.com website. Another great conference available online is Beyond Belief, a favourite of mine as well.
I’m a big fan of Star Trek and Star Wars. I still have a big soft spot for my childhood heroes, He-man and She-ra, from Masters of the Universe. Though I’ve only read the last two books, I really enjoy the kind of storytelling in the Harry Potter series and really admire J.K. Rowling’s writing and character designs. Obviously, as a mangaka, I have an interest in manga and anime. My favourite series are Fushigi Yuugi, Rurouni Kenshin, Saikano, and NANA. More recently, I’ve watched Lovely Complex and Itazura na Kiss.
Selfishly, however, I’m most interested in my own series that I create. I’m really passionate about one particular story I’m working on, Legend of the Ztarr (pronounced ’star’). When it comes to my own work, I write for myself–stories that I like and want to read–and my motivation for publishing what I create comes from my desire to have other readers to talk and share with.
