Renta! Chats | Interview with Asahina Mashiro-sensei!

This content is age-restricted

Your current Content Restriction Settings do not allow you to view this title.

Please be aware that you won't be able to access age-restricted content in any of the following scenarios:

・You are a Renta! user under the age of 18, and therefore cannot view this content.

・Your Content Restriction Settings are set to "Safe content only, please."

・You are using the Renta! app, where certain content cannot be displayed by default due to App Store regulations. In this case, please use the web browser version of Renta! to access that content instead.

You can confirm your Content Restriction Settings through the link below.

Confirm Age Settings Back

Next Update: Jun. 26

(Updates on the last Friday of each month!)

We love connecting authors with our users. Join us in getting the insider view from the creators of your favorite works!

Profile

Asahina Mashiro

茉白あさひな

@msr_ashn

Read sample

Asahina Mashiro-sensei's debut manga, The Fox's Favorite, is known for its beautiful linework, emotional storytelling, and ethereal atmosphere. The story follows Koyomi, an exhausted office worker suffering from burnout, and Mitama, a fox spirit who watches over a shrine and has a fascination with humans. Their encounter one night sets off a gentle tale of unwavering love and happiness found in everyday life.
Renta!'s BL team had the chance to interview Sensei about how this work came to life!

View Chats

May 2026

Jun. 2026

Coming Soon

III

Jul. 2026

Coming Soon

All About Sensei

Released: May 29, 2026

Please introduce yourself in any way you'd like, with any information you'd like to include!

Hi everyone, I'm Asahina Mashiro! My birthday is October 12th, and I live with my cat. I like a younger top with an intimidating gaze paired with an older, sexy bottom.
Thanks for having me!

Do you have any background in art? If not, how did you learn to draw?

I actually don't.
But, I've been into drawing ever since I was little, and that's how I learned to draw like I do now.

Did you always dream of being a mangaka, or were there other jobs you dreamed of doing growing up?

Becoming a mangaka wasn't something I dreamed of growing up, so I used to just draw as a hobby.
I loved animals, though, and I remember taking the entrance exam for a middle school I was interested in with the hope of becoming a veterinarian. But in college, I ended up choosing a different major that was still in the medical field.

Was there any manga growing up that inspired you to become an artist? If you don't mind sharing, which stories or artists inspired you?

While I originally wasn't set on becoming a mangaka, I grew up reading a wide array of shojo manga, which my mom was also a fan of. So, I think all those stories have influenced me in one way or another.
Then, one day, I happened to pick up Fullmetal Alchemist by Hiromu Arakawa-sensei, which I came across in the hallway at my friend's house. Reading that pulled me into the world of action manga, and that's around when I started drawing manga myself.

When you're not writing your own manga, what kind of manga do you enjoy reading? Do you have any current favorite series?

I read all kinds of manga, from action to murder mystery and revenge stories as well as heartwarming ones. I follow a lot of ongoing series, but my current favorites are: Aoi-kun no Waidan ga Tamaranai!! and The Mortifying Ordeal of Being Seen by mmk-sensei, Haruno-san no Koto nante Zenzen Suki by Kisarahi Yasaka-sensei, The Apology of Noumi-Senpai by Koala Omugi-sensei, and Ask and You Will Receive by Niyama-sensei.
Also, this isn't really an ongoing series, but I heard that nocori-sensei's doujin continuation of He Is My Supreme Playmate is supposed to be released around summer, and I can't wait!

When you're planning your stories, where do you usually start? Do you write a full timeline, just important parts of the story, or do you use a different planning process?

I start with a scene or a line that suddenly comes to me when I'm not expecting it, and then I build the story around it.
As I continue developing the details, new ideas will come to me as well, so I try to expand on my ideas and make them fit together to form a complete story.
As for The Fox's Favorite, it was when I was visiting a shrine that I got the idea for the final scene and lines. So, I worked backwards to build a plot that led to that ending.

What tools (hardware and/or software) do you use to create manga?

I use the Wacom Cintiq 22 FHD tablet, and as for the software, I use CLIP STUDIO PAINT EX.

Do you have a BL origin story? What was the first thing that interested you in the world of BL?

I came across BL when I was looking for some fanart of a series I really liked at the time, and I ended up on a BL site... (lol) I was caught off guard at first, but then, before I knew, I was into it…

What type of scenes are your favorite to draw? Which scenes do you find most challenging?

I enjoy drawing scenes where characters get emotional, and I often cry along with the characters I'm drawing. Conveying their inner feelings to readers isn't always easy, and that's one of the most challenging yet fun parts of the drawing process.

In The Fox's Favorite, the love between Koyomi and Mitama is incredibly gentle and pure. Are those the types of love stories you usually prefer, or do you also like darker stories?

I'll read just about any kind of story! But lately, it's getting harder and harder for me to read ones that don't have a happy ending (haha)…