Interview with Joanna Ho, Author of Saphie: The One-Eyed Cat

By: Michele Kirichanskaya
Aug 29, 2025

Joanna Ho (Joho), hailing from a lineage of cat butlers, earned her BFA from George Mason University. Her artistry and lineage showcased in “Saphie: The One-Eyed Cat,” captures hearts by melding her profound feline connection with illustration. She is also the artist of an action rom-com comic called “Love On Target” on Webtoons.com. Through her artistry, she aims to use her creations to infuse joy to all who come across her work.

I had the opportunity to interview Joho, which you can read below.

First of all, welcome to Geeks OUT! Could you tell us a little about yourself?

I feel like there isn’t much to tell about myself… But if I did, I’d say I’m travel-sized, possibly funny and appreciate cute and dorky things ?

What can you tell us about your comic, Saphie: The One-Eyed Cat? What was the inspiration for the book?

The conception of Saphie: The One-Eyed Cat was simple. It was inspired by how my life just panned out to be this way. One by one, the pets of my book just appeared in my life and I wanted to draw about them. The first chapter of the book “In the Beginning” was inspired by this feeling; God made the cats in his heaven kitchen and dropped them into my life.  

As a creative, what drew you to the art of storytelling, especially webcomics/graphic novels?

I loved dioramas as a child (and still do!). The wonder of looking at dioramas got translated into reading comic books because it’s like a diorama in a book form; like peeking into another world.

How would you describe your creative process?

Simple and straightforward while being complicated at the same time. Once an idea pops into my head, it’s easy to write and draw a scenario. However, the ideas don’t come as easily and as consistently as I’d like them to. *sigh

What are some of your favorite elements of writing/illustrating? What do you consider some of the most frustrating and/or difficult? 

When making a comic, there are two parts. Making the blueprint of the comic (planning the story and art design), and then the making of the comic (drawing and coloring etc.) If I could describe why, it’s probably because the abstract ideas are hard to quantify when it’ll be completed, thus I can get easily overwhelmed. The step-by-step process of drawing has more tangible evidence of when a project will be completed.

As a creative, who or what would you say are some of your greatest artistic and creative influences and/or sources of inspiration in general?

I read a lot of Garfield and Peanuts when I was stuck at home as a kid. Once I got access to the library, my exposure expanded to other comics like manga like What’s Michael. (This was a cat comic, but I didn’t have cats back then so the cat behaviors in the comic made no sense to me. It gave me a perspective of what people would feel like if they have never owned cats and read Saphie *chuckle). I’m sure there are a lot more but those are the few I can remember in the comic genre. 

Aside from your work, what are some things you would want readers to know about you?

I have recently become a mother! Currently to one and hopefully to many more to come! <3

I hope they’ll adore cats too (and not be allergic to them).

What’s a question you haven’t been asked yet but that you wish you were asked (as well as the answer to that question)?

My mind is drawing blank on this one because if a question is not asked then I don’t think about it. Sorry!

What advice might you have to give for aspiring storytellers out there?

I learned the hard way that trying to be original not only stunts a lot of aspects in life. Knowing that you don’t know speeds up the learning process in more ways than one!

Are there any other projects you are working on and at liberty to speak about?

Yeah! Currently while this book is being printed, My husband and I are working on another webtoon called ‘Love on Target’ on Webtoons.com. Check it out!

Finally, what books/authors would you recommend to the readers of Geeks OUT?

For the adults, The Horizon by Ji-Hoon Jeong.

For the kids, Saphie: The One-Eyed Cat. Nyahaha 😛

The Latest from Our Blog

0 Comments