Japanese Literary Awards

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Emi Kitagawa

きたがわ えみ

Kitagawa Emi

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1981 （Suita, Osaka, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese

Career

Occupations
Novelist
Active Years
2015-

Awards

Dengeki Novel Prize (21st)
2014
Work: I'm Going to Quit My Job Right Now
Category: メディアワークス文庫賞
Organization: KADOKAWA (Dengeki Novel Prize)
Result: 受賞
Shizuoka Bookstore Award (4th, 'Want adapted to screen' bunko category)
2016
Work: I'm Going to Quit My Job Right Now
Category: 映像化したい文庫部門
Organization: Nippon Shuppan Hanbai
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

I'm Going to Quit My Job Right Now

2015 Contemporary fiction

A contemporary novel about characters struggling with work and life decisions; it follows themes of quitting, renewal and interpersonal relationships. The book became a bestseller and was adapted into film, stage and manga.

workplaceoverworkpersonal renewalhuman relationships
Adaptations
  • [Film] I'm Going to Quit My Job Right Now / 成島出 (2017)
  • [Stage play] I'm Going to Quit My Job Right Now / 深作健太 (2019)
  • [Manga] I'm Going to Quit My Job Right Now / 鈴木有布子（作画） (2017)

Heroes Co.!!!

2016 Novel

An ensemble novel set around company and work themes (detailed synopsis not available).

companyworkplacehuman drama

Heroes Co.!!! (Continued)

2017 Novel

2018 Novel

I'm Going to Change My Life Right Now

2019 Novel

Heroes Co.!!! (Further)

2019 Novel

Heroes Co.!!! (Complete)

2020 Novel

Midnight Mentor: Do Not Forget Death

2021 Novel

A work addressing mentorship and themes of life and death (detailed information not available).

views on life and deathmentor

Bibliography

  • I'm Going to Quit My Job Right Now
  • Heroes Co.!!!
  • Heroes Co.!!! (Continued)
  • I'm Going to Change My Life Right Now
  • Heroes Co.!!! (Further)
  • Heroes Co.!!! (Complete)
  • Midnight Mentor: Do Not Forget Death

Adaptations

  • I'm Going to Quit My Job Right Now (film, 2017; dir. Izuru Narushima)
  • I'm Going to Quit My Job Right Now (stage, 2019; dir. Kenta Fukasaku)
  • I'm Going to Quit My Job Right Now (manga, 2017; art by Afuko Suzuki)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
clear prosestraightforward depictiondialogue-driven
Recurring Motifs
workfresh startinterpersonal relationships

Legacy

Her novel 'I'm Going to Quit My Job Right Now' sold over 700,000 copies and was adapted into film, stage and manga. It is recognized as an influential contemporary work addressing work culture and mental health in Japan.

In Popular Culture

  • Film, stage and manga adaptations of 'I'm Going to Quit My Job Right Now'

Quotes

  • It begins cleanly, the story progresses cleanly, and it ends cleanly. Because the narrative flows so smoothly there may be little surprise until the end, but personally I don't think that is a flaw.
    Source: Keiichi Shigurezawa (review) (2015)

Trivia

  • She worked in Australia and Canada using a working-holiday visa.
  • Her debut novel sold over 700,000 copies and became a bestseller.
  • She won the 21st Dengeki Novel Prize (Media Works Bunko Award) and debuted as a novelist in 2015.