Japanese Literary Awards

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Hajime Shimizu

しみず はじめ

Shimizu Hajime

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
Karatsu, Saga Prefecture, Japan
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Resides in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan

Career

Occupations
Novelist
Active Years
2003-
Affiliations
Saga Mystery Fan Club, Henkaku Mystery Writers Club
Memberships
Saga Mystery Fan Club, Henkaku Mystery Writers Club
Influenced By
Ken'ichi Sakemi, Fuyumi Ono, Natsuhiko Kyogoku
Nominations
Japan Fantasy Novel Award — Finalist (2017)

Education

Baiko Gakuin University
Country: Japan

Awards

Novel Taisho
2001
Work: Kami Asobi
Result: Winner
Readers' Prize
2001
Work: Kami Asobi
Result: Winner (Readers' Prize)
Japan Fantasy Novel Award (Finalist)
2017
Work: Okotsu Kitan (revised: Kitan Shuushuu: Requiem of the Mourning Girl)
Result: Finalist

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Kami Asobi

2003 Light novel

Debut novel blending fantasy and mystery elements; the work launched the author's career.

Otherworldly phenomenaFantasyComing-of-age

Kitan Collection: Requiem for the Mourning Girl

2018 Fantasy / Mystery

A collection of strange tales mixing folklore and mystery; stories often draw on local traditions and uncanny phenomena.

The uncannyLocal colorRequiem/atonement

Kitan Collection: Iconup of the Northern Land

2020 Fantasy / Short story collection

Short stories themed around northern landscapes and traditions, where local scenery intertwines with the supernatural.

Topography and folkloreEthnic/folk motifsSupernatural

Kusurigui

2022 Mystery / Horror

A tale involving medicines and food, with unsettling depictions related to the body and folk remedies.

MedicineThe bodyTaboo

Kitan Collection: The Iron Ring Girl and the Visiting Deity

2023 Fantasy / Folkloric uncanny

Contains mid-length and short pieces with folkloric elements focusing on visiting deities and rituals.

Visiting deitiesRitualCommunity

Ikusa Jimata: Aftermath of the Usuki Campaign

2024 Historical fiction

A historical novel portraying the aftermath of a campaign, interweaving regional history with individual trajectories.

Aftermath of warLocal historyMemory

Bibliography

  • Kami Asobi
  • Kitan Collection: Requiem for the Mourning Girl
  • Kitan Collection: Iconup of the Northern Land
  • Kusurigui
  • Kitan Collection: The Iron Ring Girl and the Visiting Deity
  • Ikusa Jimata: Aftermath of the Usuki Campaign
  • Tabidachi — contribution to Felissimo Happy Short Shorts (anthology)
  • Someone Behind You — contribution to Eight Sleepless Night Stories (anthology)
  • Hunting Season — contribution to Ikei Collection LII (anthology)
  • School Ghost Stories — contribution (anthology)
  • Tonight: Hot Pot — contribution to Seven Warm-Meal Stories (anthology)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
A light-novel narrative tone fused with mystery devices and folkloric motifsOften employs calm, somewhat dark descriptive passages
Recurring Motifs
The uncanny and yokaiLocal landscapes and traditionsRequiem and ritualTaboos around food and medicine

Legacy

Originally from the light-novel field, he is known for blending folkloric elements with mystery. Recognized for uncanny tales rooted in local landscapes, he has reached a broad readership through awards and contributions to anthologies.

Academic Societies

  • Saga Mystery Fan Club
  • Henkaku Mystery Writers Club

Quotes

  • He cites Ken'ichi Sakemi's 'Gokuu Shousetsu', Fuyumi Ono's 'Tokyo Imin', and Natsuhiko Kyogoku's 'Ubume no Natsu' as books that influenced him.
    Source: Interview / source unspecified (from Wikipedia excerpt)

Trivia

  • Born in Karatsu, Saga Prefecture.
  • Debuted in 2001 winning the Novel Taisho and Readers' Prize for 'Kami Asobi'.
  • After leaving fiction writing to work as a company employee, he later submitted under another name to the Japan Fantasy Novel Award and re-debuted in 2017.
  • He is known to be a cat lover.