Otsuichi

Otsuichi
is the pen name of , born 1978. He is a Japanese writer, mostly of horror short stories, as well as a filmmaker. He is a member of the Mystery Writers of Japan and the Honkaku Mystery Writers Club of Japan.
He made his debut with Summer, Fireworks and My Corpse while still in high school. Major works include the novel Goth, which was adapted into a comic and a feature film (Goth: Love of Death) and the Zoo short story collections which were also adapted into a feature film. Goth won the 2003 Honkaku Mystery Award.
Tokyopop has published English-language translations of his short story collection Calling You, the novel Goth and the comic adaptations of both. Another short story, F-Sensei's Pocket, appears in the English edition of the literary magazine Faust.
Career
Otsuichi was born on October 21, 1978 in Tanushimaru (now part of Kurume), Fukuoka Prefecture, as the eldest son of a family of four with his parents and two older sisters. He attended Kawai Elementary School and during his later years there, he became overweight, surpassing 60 kilograms. This led to Otsuichi getting bullied and gaining an inferiority complex, which he used playing video games alone to deal with. After Kawai, he attended Kurume Shiritsu Tanushimaru Junior High School. At the age of 14, he decided to go on a diet, and was elected class president in the third year of junior high school. Despite this, he still felt inferior to his classmates.
In 1994, he entered the National Institute of Technology, Kurume College. Despite calling the 5 years at the college "the gloomiest in all of his life," during summer vacation when he was around 15 years old, he read the first volume of the light novel series Slayers by Hajime Kanzaka which he borrowed from a friend and discovered his love of reading, and began dabbling into the world of light novels and manga. For the next year and a half, Otsuichi read as many light novels as he could get his hands on either from friends or his older sisters, while also encountering mystery novels such as Takemaru Abiko's Satsuriku ni taru Yamai, Yukito Ayatsuji's The Decagon House Murders and Sōji Shimada's Detective Kiyoshi Mitarai series.
He started writing his own novels when he was 16 years old. To qualify for the Fujimi Fantasia Novel Awards, Otsuichi starting writing an isekai fantasy novel, but feeling that it was not going well, he decided to rewrite the setting to a rural town nearby where he grew up. This reworked novel was called Summer, Fireworks and My Corpse and it won the 6th JUMP Novel Grand Prix award in 1996 after a strong endorsement from Kaoru Kurimoto, making his official debut at only 17 years old.
In 1999, he graduated from the National Institute of Technology, Kurume College, and transferred to the Department of Ecology Engineering, Toyohashi University of Technology, and started living on his own in Toyohashi, Aichi Prefecture. At university, he belonged to a science fiction research group.
In 2002, Otsuichi graduated from Toyohashi University. This year, one of his most known work, Goth, was published and the following year, it won the 3rd Honkaku Mystery Award. In 2003, he moved from Toyohashi to the vicinity of Tokyo's Gakugei-daigaku Station, and a few months later to the vicinity of Musashi-Nakahara Station in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture.
At that time, Otsuichi was invited by an editor to watch the sound editing of Mamoru Oshii's Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence. There, he met Oshii's daughter Tomoe Oshii who was a writer for the film, and the two later got married in 2006. In February 2007, they moved from Kawasaki. In 2010, the couple had a child together.
Style and influence in the field
In his early career, Otsuichi's works could be described as mainly short stories with interesting ideas and heartwarming light novels. Furthermore, some of his early work were horror or sad stories, named Black Otsuichi and White Otsuichi respectively. However, Goth, one of the work he is most known for, was a highly acclaimed mystery novel, even winning the Honkaku Mystery Award.
Under the name Otsuichi, his work has been published mainly by Shueisha, Kadokawa Shoten (now KADOKAWA), and Gentosha.
Describing his writing process, Otsuichi says he first decides on the storyline and then creates characters to match it. In addition, he adopted movie scriptwriting techniques from a book called Shinario Nyūmon (シナリオ入門) shortly after his debut. In particular, his stories tend to have a turning point at the midpoint and many of his works are divide into four or even sixteen parts.
His wife, Tomoe Oshii, says that Otsuichi is "not obsessed with [using] either novels or movies [as a medium in telling a story]." Otsuichi himself says that he "just enjoys working on his works as they take shape."
In 2012, Kono Mystery ga Sugoi! Award of Excellence winner Hitsuji Tomoi self-described himself as a "serious Otsuichi fan" and said that reading and studying Otsuichi's work inspired him to become a novelist.
Otsuichi and light novels
Light novels have a peculiar position in the publishing world, according to Otsuichi. "None of the editors I've known read light novels." This is connected to how light novels are perceived as lesser compared to other forms of literature, a fact which Otsuichi only learned after becoming active in the publishing industry. When he debuted, there were no awards for light novels.
Otsuichi wrote and published Goth as a light novel to introduce people who only read light novels to the mystery genre in the hope of expanding the horizons of readers to other forms of literature.
Works in English translation
Calling You (original title: Kimi ni shika kikoenai: Kōringu Yū), trans. Agnes Yoshida (TokyoPop, 2007)
Calling You
Kiz/Kids
Flower Song
Goth (original title: Gosu: Risutokatto jiken), trans. Andrew Cunningham (TokyoPop, 2008 / VIZ Media, 2015)
Zoo (original title: Zū), trans. Terry Gallagher (VIZ Media, 2009 / Shueisha English Edition, 2013)
Zoo
In a Falling Airplane
The White House in the Cold Forest
Find the Blood!
In a Park at Twlilight, a Long Time Ago
Wardrobe
Song of the Sunny Spot
Kazari and Yoko
SO-Far
Words of God
Seven Rooms
Summer, Fireworks, and My Corpse (original title: Natsu to hanabi to watashi no shitai), trans. Nathan Collins (VIZ Media, 2010)
Summer, Fireworks, and My Corpse
Yuko
Black Fairy Tale
Summer, Fireworks, and My Corpse (original title: Natsu to hanabi to watashi no shitai), trans. Nathan Collins (Shueisha English Edition, 2013)
Summer, Fireworks, and My Corpse
Yuko
Black Fairy Tale (original title: Ankoku dōwa), trans. Nathan Collins (Shueisha English Edition, 2013)
Short story
F-sensei's Pocket (original title: F sensei no poketto), trans. Andrew Cunningham, illustrated by Takeshi Obata (Faust 1, Del Rey, 2008)
Where the Wind Blows (original title: Mado ni fuku kaze), trans. Andrew Cunningham, illustrated by Takeshi Obata (Faust 2, Del Rey, 2009)
Firestarter Yukawa (original title: Faiasutātā Yukawa-san), trans. Matt Treyvaud, illustrated by KEI (Kindle Single, 2015) written under the name Eiichi Nakata
Awards and nominations
Japanese Awards
1996 – Weekly Shōnen Jump Novel Award: Summer, Fireworks, and My Corpse
2003 – Honkaku Mystery Award for Best Fiction: Goth
2004 – Nominee for Yamamoto Shūgorō Prize: Zoo
U.S. Award
2009 – Nominee for Shirley Jackson Award for Single-Author Collection: Zoo
Bibliography
Novels or short story collections
Summer, Fireworks and My Corpse (Shueisha, 1996: , Shueisha bunko, 2000: )
Summer, Fireworks and My Corpse
Yuko
Tentei Yōko (Shueisha, 1998: , Shueisha bunko, 2001: )
A Masked Ball – Or, the appearance and disappearance of the bathroom smoker
Tentei Yōko
Ishi no Me (Shueisha, 2000: )/Heimen Inu (Shueisha Bunko, 2003: )
Ishi no Me
Hajime
Blue
Heimen Inu
Shissō Holiday (Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko, 2001: )
Happiness is a Warm Kitty
Shissō Holiday
Calling You (Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko, 2001: )
Calling You
Kiz/Kids
Flower Song
Ankoku Dowa (Shueisha, 2001: , Shueisha Bunko, 2004: )
Shinizokonai no Ao (Gentosha Bunko, 2001: )
Kurai tokoro de machiawase (Gentosha Bunko, 2002: )
Goth Wristcut Case (Kadokawa Shoten, 2002: ) – the winner of the 3rd Honkaku Mystery Award
Goth
Wristcut
Dog
Twins
Grave
Voice
Goth Yoru no Shō (Kadokawa Bunko, 2005: )
Goth
Dog
Twins
Goth Boku no Shō (Kadokawa Bunko, 2005: )
Wristcut
Grave
Voice
Samishisa no Shūhasū (Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko, 2003: )
Mirai Yoho Ashita, Harereba ii
Te o Nigiru dorobō no Monogatari
Film no naka no Shōjo
Ushinawareta Monogatari
Zoo (Shueisha, 2003: )
Kazari to Yōko
Ketsueki wo Sagase!
Hidamari no Shi
So-far
Tsumetai Mori no Shiroi Ie
Closet
Kami no Kotoba
Zoo
Seven Rooms
Ochiru hikoki no Naka de
Zoo 1 (Shueisha Bunko, 2006: )
Kazari to Yōko
Seven Rooms
So-far
Hidamari no Shi
Zoo
Zoo 2 (Shueisha Bunko, 2006: )
Ketsueki wo Sagase!
Tsumetai Mori no Shiroi Ie
Closet
Kami no Kotoba
Ochiru Hikoki no Naka de
Mukashi Yuhi no Kōen de (Not included in the original edition of Zoo. Originally appeared on Otsuichi's now defunct website.)
Ushinawareru Monogatari (Kadokawa Shoten, 2003: , Kadokawa Bunko, 2006: )
Calling You
Ushinawareru Monogatari
Kiz/Kids
Te wo Nigiru Dorobō no Monogatari
Happiness is a Warm Kitty
Maria no Yubi
Boku no Kashikoi Pantsu-kun (Only in bunko edition)
Usokano (Only in bunko edition)
Gun and Chocolate (Kodansha Mystery Land, 2006: )
Picture book
Kutsushita o Kakuse! (Kobunsha, 2003: )
Essays
Shosei Monogatari (Gentosha, 2004: )
Collection of essays written for the web
Toruko Nikki ~ Dame Ningen Sakka Trio no Datsuryoku Tabi Nikki~ (Shueisha, 2006: )
Serialized on the web, heavily revised; in tandem with Shinji Sadakane and Makoto Matsubara.
Uncollected Stories
Ugoku Omocha (Shosetsu Subaru, August 2000)
Tsuma no Denwa (Shosetsu Subaru, August 2000)
Kamikakushi (Shosetsu Subaru, August 2000)
Shufuku sareta Mizu (Da Vinci, November 2002)
Kaidan (Akumu seigyo Sochi horror anthology, November 2002)
F-Sensei no Pocket (Faust vol. 2, 2004)
Kodomo ha Tōku ni Itta (Faust vol. 4, 2004)
Dare ni mo Tsuzukanai (Faust vol.4, 2004)
A relay novel written with Takekuni Kitayama, Yuya Sato, Tatsuhiko Takimoto and Nisio Isin.
Mado ni fuku Kaze (Faust vol.6 Side-A, 2005)
Kono ko no e wa Mikansei (Nanatsu no Kuroi Yume, March 2006)
Utopia (Light novel o kaku!, August 2006)
Manga
Hajime (Weekly Shonen Jump)
Script. Art by Takeshi Obata. Two part short story, appeared in Jump in 2003.
Misshitsu Kanojo (2006, gekidan, Yukiko Mototani)
Planning. Not published, but his plot in script for was distributed at performances.
Shonen Shojo Horyuki (Shosetsu Subaru)
Script. Art by Usamaru Furuya.
Movies
His movie work is often done under his real name.
Nikako no Hitomi (2002)
Directed by Keisaku Sato. Script by Keisaku Sato and Hirotaka Adachi.
Pool de Oyoda Kaerimichi (2002)
5-minute-long short film. Written and directed by Hirotaka Adachi.
Rittai Tokyo (2007)
Scheduled to be shown at the Yubari Ouen Eigasai. Directed by Hirotaka Adachi.
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure novelization
In 2000, it was announced that Otsuichi would be writing a novel set during the fourth arc of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. The novel proved difficult to complete; in Kono Mystery ga Sugoi 2004, Otsuichi claimed to have written over 2000 pages, but thrown them all out. Intent on writing a novel that lived up to the manga, it took him until 2007 to complete it.
The Book: JoJo's Bizarre Adventure 4th Another Day.
Adaptations
Movies
Te o nigiru Dorobo no Monogatari (2004)
Made for web, released on DVD
Zoo (2005)
Anthology film, covering five of the stories in the Zoo short story collection. Kazari to Yoko, Seven Rooms, So-far, Hidamari no Shi, and Zoo. Hidamari no Shi was animated; each film had a different director.
Kurai tokoro de Machiawase (2006)
Calling You (2007)
Kids (2008)
Goth (2008)
Manga
Goth (Monthly Shonen Ace)
-Kiz/Kids- (Asuka)
Calling You (Asuka)
These two were collected as Calling You and published in English by Tokyopop.
Kimi ni shika Kikoenai (Shonen Ace)
Shinizokonai no Ao (Mystery Bst.)
Collection from Gentosha comics, collectsion Shinisokonai no ao, Kurai tokoro de Machiawase, and Happiness is a Warm Kitty.
Zoo (Young Jump Special Mankaku)
Collection contains Kazari to Yoko, Kami no Kotoba, Youdamari no Shi, and Zoo.
Shisso Holiday (Beans Ace)
Shonen Shojo Hyonikki (Shueisha)
Collects the serial from Shosetsu Subaru. The authors name is given as Furuya x Otsuichi x Usamaru
Drama CD
Calling You (2003, Sneaker CD Collection)
TV Drama
Shisso Holiday
Broadcast from February 10, 2007, on Terebi Asahi
Ultraman Geed
References
External links
Otsuichi.com | English-language website for works in translation by Japanese author Otsuichi
Twitter
Otsuichi official site
Otsuichi approved fan site
Otsuichi at Hatena Diary
Profile at J'Lit Books from Japan
"On The Right Corpse" -(ANN review of Summer, Fireworks, and My Corpse anthology)
Otsuichi in Media Arts Database
20th-century Japanese novelists
21st-century Japanese novelists
Japanese male short story writers
Japanese horror writers
Japanese mystery writers
Light novelists
Honkaku Mystery Award winners
Writers from Fukuoka Prefecture
1978 births
Living people
Toyohashi University of Technology alumni
20th-century Japanese short story writers
21st-century Japanese short story writers
20th-century Japanese male writers
21st-century male writers
Weird fiction writers