Today we’d like to introduce you to Jodie Pham.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Jodie. So, let’s start at the beginning, and we can move on from there.
I was at a brutally low part in my life at the beginning. At the time, I was getting over a break-up, my sister who I was really close to, moved overseas, and to fulfill my parent’s wishes, I started working in a pharmacy rather than attempt to pursue what I wanted to do. And through all of this, I lost friends. I fell into this hole that I couldn’t seem to climb out of.
At the time, I haven’t drawn in two years since I graduated high school because my parents always looked down on it. It’s not considered a stable job, nor is it in the standards of ‘success’ to society. I felt like I lost myself in the expectations set for me– standards I was pressured to meet. But I remembered that I always loved to draw.
Creating was the one way I felt connected to myself. It was tiring to wake up every day with the same routine– to wake up just to wake up and work. I needed an escape. So I started drawing a story. It’s about a kpop idol who’s misunderstood to be someone he’s not to the media, and essentially how he comes to terms with his experiences.
I named it “LOST in TRANSLATION” to describe it respectfully. It wasn’t going to be anything more than something I’d work on whenever it’s convenient for me. But when I posted the first chapter, the response was more than I had expected, and I felt so inspired to keep going. Instead of posting a chapter every month, I somehow managed to upload every week while working full time in the pharmacy.
My audience played such a huge part. Without them, I wouldn’t have been as motivated as I was to keep the story going. I actually didn’t even anticipate for my webcomic to be that long. But as I kept working on it, I felt it was important to invest parts of myself in the characters. Thus, every character branched from experiences and personal feelings I’ve had and felt. I don’t want to sugarcoat the process. It was definitely hard.
I starved and burnt myself out countless times. But the payoff was definitely worth it. I was able to see my series grow from 500 subscribers in the first chapter, to now with over 100,000 subscribers nearing 60 chapters. I remember always thinking it’ll never pass 5k– 10k– 20k, but here we are. I owe it to everyone who supports my work. I owe it to them to have given me the motivation I had lost– something I never thought I’d have again.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It was most definitely a smooth journey. I didn’t really have an audience at the beginning, so I promoted my series at conventions and festivals to scrap up as much as I could. I remember staying up until two in the morning to finish a chapter. I remember starving myself from ten in the morning until nine at night, so I could draw.
When I was uploading weekly, I had to work around 40 hours a week, so when I got home, I had to immediately start drawing. On days I was off, I drew practically all day, and allowed myself maybe one meal until I finished the update. It’s been tough.
Some days, I lose motivation, some days, I get artist’s block, some days, I just want to rest. Lately, though I’ve adjusted the uploading schedule to offer me more days to rest, so I’ve been able to take care of myself properly.
We’d love to hear more about what you do.
I wouldn’t necessarily consider it a business, at least, not right now. But I do remotely everything for my webcomic– from the storyline to sketching it, to lining it, to coloring, to scripting it– everything. I even made an Instagram account for the characters in my story, which I run 100%, as well as a Twitter for the main character, which I also run.
Since the webcomic is about a kpop idol, I made a discord for the main group, but I have friends who help me run that, which I’m so thankful for honestly. I think what sets me apart from other webcomic creators is essentially that– involving other forms of media to help my audience stay engaged in the series rather than just keeping my series limited to the platform it’s uploaded on.
I wanted to make it more than just a webcomic. I wanted it to make a community of people who could understand the characters, and perhaps each other. I don’t think I draw that well, and I’m not that great at writing, but if I could bring people together, and help someone heal from situations they have faced, then that’s enough to keep me working harder.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I’m actually not entirely sure where the future will carry me. I know my story will still take another year before it’s completed, so I don’t think I’m going to travel very far, but I do know that I want to keep making stories.
I thoroughly enjoy creating content that people could invest in, and I already have some ideas for potential stories, so it’s only a matter of time of when “LOST in TRANSLATION” will end. I think the only major change next year will be merchandise that I’ll be creating to sell both locally and internationally if things work out for it.
Other than that, I don’t think there’ll be any major changes. But who knows? Perhaps there’ll be good opportunities for me!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/lost-in-translation/list?title_no=98085
- Email: chanhunny@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/byunghunnie/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/95wyld
- Other: https://www.instagram.com/official.mayhem/
Image Credit:
jjolee
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