"And the witty remarks are funny to many readers. But I don't believe there's much deep meaning."

Liang had many dreams growing up in Shaanxi province's countryside. He hoped to become a pilot, an actor and a painter, among other things.

"But it's comparatively easy to realize the dream of drawing," he says.

He was obsessed as a kid with the comic-book character Doraemon, a blue-and-white robotic cat from the future.

He dropped out of the Xi'an Academy of Fine Arts before his third year, partly because of the high tuition costs.

"Graphic design is too general a subject. You have to learn a lot of things but not painting, which is what I wanted to do. I tried to study painting while working."

He spent 10 years illustrating sci-fi works, and working for publishing houses and advertising companies. He spent this time trying to improve his technique and develop his own style.