These past few years have been a whirlwind for global manga artist Madeleine Rosca. With her first webcomic Hollow Fields, she got a publishing deal with Seven Seas Manga within days. In Summer 2007, this Tasmania-based comics creator won honorable mention in Japan's First International Manga Awards, getting the seal of approval from some of the most discerning manga critics in the world. By that point, winning our Best New OEL Manga Award for 2007 was probably anti-climatic.

On April 29, the second volume of Hollow Fields will be arriving at your local bookstore. Rosca's whimsically wicked tale of a young girl at a sinister boarding school for mad scientists takes a slightly darker turn as we learn more about the origins of the Miss Weaver and the Engineers.

I'll be posting a preview gallery of pages from Hollow Fields Vol. 2 in a few days, but to get you warmed up, here's my interview with global manga creator, Madeline Rosca. In our email exchange, Rosca reveals the inspirations for her steampunk adventure tale, her impressions of her first trip to Japan to pick up her International Manga Award, and her advice for aspiring manga artists.

Image credit: © Madeleine Rosca