Mori Ōgai
The start of his career was hardly auspicious. When he brought a sample of his writing to Mori Ōgai, he was encouraged to “look for another profession”. Undeterred, he visited Ozaki Kōyō, who confided to Izumi Kyōka that Kosugi would “never realize his ambition” to become a novelist. However, in 1890, Kosugi became a disciple of literary critic and satirical author Saitō Ryokuu, and began writing political novels under Saitō’s direction.