Finishing your manga is only part of the job.
If you’re submitting to a manga contest or digital platform, the export process can create an entirely new set of problems: oversized PDFs, unreadable dialogue, moiré, damaged hatching, grayscale conversion, and upload limits.
I ran into all of those while submitting Futari Inari Taihen!!.
My original manuscript was built at 600 DPI with heavy black ink, tone, and fine hatching. That looked great in Clip Studio Paint, but the finished PDF was too large for the contest uploader.
This was my own personal hell from 10:30 p.m. EST - 3:32 a.m. EST.
Reducing the file size too aggressively created another problem.
The delicate hatching started breaking apart and becoming pixelated.
If your manga relies on fine linework, texture, or traditional-style shading, this is something you need to check before submitting. A file can technically export correctly while still looking terrible inside the actual reader.
The next problem was grayscale.
Even though I used tone throughout the manga, I still needed a digital file that would display cleanly without creating moiré. I handled that during export instead of manually altering the original manuscript pages.
Then came the dialogue.
My lettering was set at 14 pt in Clip Studio Paint, but once I uploaded the PDF and viewed it through the contest previewer, most of it was too small to read comfortably.
I ended up increasing much of the dialogue to around 22–24 pt and rebuilding speech bubbles before submitting.
That preview step was critical.
If you’re preparing your own manga for publication or competition, I would strongly recommend:
checking the contest’s maximum file size before your final export
testing your PDF inside the actual submission reader if possible
reviewing fine hatching and tone after compression
checking dialogue at the size readers will actually see it
creating your submission account early
doing a test upload before deadline day if the platform allows it
I went much deeper into the full submission nightmare, including the 200 MB limit, broken hatching, font fixes, cover problems, and the final upload panic in the Adventurer’s Guild.
