Hi Owen,
I would be very happy to help you with your school project. Are you in Christchurch, New Zealand?
1. There must be a list of my books somewhere on this site. There are 23 published so far, counting Space Usagi. Here is a list from Steve Hubbell's thread about UY hardcovers. The hardcovers are just hardcover versions of the regular paperback, but there are very few of them. Maybe someone here knows if there is an official list.
http://usagiyojimbo.com/forum/viewtopic ... 07&start=0
Besides the story collections, there is also The Art of UY, which is contains artwork in various stages and medium, a look at how I create a story, and a couple of painted stories.
2. The pen I usually use for drawing is a Koh-i-noor Sketch Pen. Unfortunately, it was discontinued about 15 years ago. When it was, I drove to every art store in Los Angeles buying everything they had in stock. It is a good, flexible-tip pen that gives me a nice variation in line (from thin to thick in a single stroke) that I like. The pen nibs only lasts a couple of years, so I am starting to look for a replacement.
3. I am fortunate in that I have received a number of awards. Here are some of them:
Will Eisner Comics Industry Award (3)
American Library Association Award
Young Adult Library Services Award (4)
National Cartoonists Society Comic Book Division Award
Harvey Kurtzman Award
Inkpot Award
Haxtur Award (4)
There are a few more, but I think these are the more prestigious ones. Again, there must be a complete list somewhere that someone can link onto.
I have also been exhibited in galleries and museums worldwide, such as in:
Nationale Centre de la Bande Dessinee in France
Japan Tower in Belgium
Society of Illustrators in New York
Pacific Asia Museum in Los Angeles
Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco
4. My favorite book is UY Book 12: Grasscutter. That is my longest single story arc, and the one for which I did the most research. It opened with the creation of the Japanese archipelago by the gods, and followed the sword Grasscutter as it was found in the tail of an eight-headed dragon, then lost at sea during the Gempei Wars, Japan's Civil War. This story was given an Eisner Award, a Spanish Haxtur, and was used as a text book for Japanese history classes at the University of Portland in Oregon, USA.
5. I grew up reading comics, and watching samurai movies. When I wanted to write and draw my own comic, I chose to do a story inspired by a 17th century samurai named Miyamoto Musashi. It was going to be with human characters, but I was sketching one day and drew a rabbit with his ears tied in a "chon-ma-ge", a samurai top knot. I liked the design of the character, and named him Miyamoto Usagi (usagi means "rabbit" or "hare" in Japanese).
6. Usagi uses an unusual sword technique, though I have never elaborated on why it is unusual. It was taught to him by the hermit Katsuichi, who rejected the traditional styles to create his own. Musashi, himself, developed a unique style of fighting with two swords.
7. The wakizashi is the smaller sword, worn alongside the katana. Together they form the "daisho", meaning "big and small". The wakizashi was used as a secondary weapon (as by Musashi), and was often used to commit "seppuku" (ritualized suicide). A shorter blade called a "tanto" could also be used for seppuku.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
If you think it will help your grade to get something from the subject of your interview, PM me with your mailing address--it can be a parent's work address if you like, or a post office box if you have one--and I will mail you a poster or something.
