The is a Japanese

literary award A literary award or literary prize is an award presented in recognition of a particularly lauded literary piece or body of work. It is normally presented to an author. Organizations Most literary awards come with a corresponding award ceremony. Ma ...

for unpublished

genre fiction Genre fiction, also known as popular fiction, is a term used in the book-trade for fictional works written with the intent of fitting into a specific literary genre, in order to appeal to readers and fans already familiar with that genre. A num ...

novels, mainly for

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' Films * ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film * ''Mystery'' ( ...

novels. It was established in 1996 by the editors of ''Mephisto'' magazine and is awarded on an irregular basis. The winning work is published by

Kodansha is a Japanese privately-held publishing company headquartered in Bunkyō, Tokyo. Kodansha is the largest Japanese publishing company, and it produces the manga magazines ''Nakayoshi'', ''Afternoon'', ''Evening'', ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' an ...

and the winner receives a statue of

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...

Winners whose works are available in English

; Writers engaged in The BBB The BBB is a publishing group in which some Mephisto Prize winners participate. The group was established in 2012 by Ryusui Seiryoin and other Mephisto Prize winners to translate their works into English and publish them as ebooks. * Hiroshi Mori * Ryusui Seiryoin (Chief Editing Officer of The BBB)Ryusui Seiryoin (Chief Editing Officer of The BBB) - The BBB
/ref> * Kenichi Sobu * Kyosuke Tsumiki * Takafumi Takada * Ryosuke Akizuki * Ryuoh Yano ;Other writers * Otaro Maijo * Yuya Sato *

Nisio Isin , stylized as NISIOISIN to emphasize the palindrome, is a pseudonymous Japanese novelist, manga author, and screenplay writer. Nisio debuted in 2002 with the novel ''The Beheading Cycle'' (the first in his ''Zaregoto'' series), which earned him ...

Winners

''Mephisto'' (magazine)

is a Japanese literary magazine of

, mainly of

mystery fiction Mystery is a genre fiction, fiction genre where the nature of an event, usually a murder or other crime, remains wiktionary:mysterious, mysterious until the end of the story. Often within a closed circle of suspects, each suspect is usually prov ...

. It has been published triannually by

since April 1994.

Koji Suzuki is a Japanese writer, who was born in Hamamatsu and lives in Tokyo. Suzuki is the author of the Ring (novel series), ''Ring'' novels, which have been adapted into other formats, including films, manga, TV series and video games. He has written ...

's ''Promenade of the Gods'' was serialized in the magazine from 1995 to 2002. The first three stories of

's ''

Monogatari is a literary form in traditional Japanese literature – an extended prose narrative tale comparable to the epic novel. ''Monogatari'' is closely tied to aspects of the oral tradition, and almost always relates a fictional or fictionalized st ...

'' series were published in the magazine in 2005-2006. ;Short stories available in English translation which were originally published in Mephisto magazine * Hiroshi Mori ** "The Girl Who Was the Little Bird" (December 1997 issue) ** "A Pair of Hearts" (October 1998 issue) ** "Which Is the Witch?" (September 1999 issue) *

Rintaro Norizuki is a Japanese mystery/crime writer. He is the President of Honkaku Mystery Writers Club of Japan and one of the representative writers of the new traditionalist movement in Japanese mystery writing. His works are deeply influenced by Ellery Que ...

** "An Urban Legend Puzzle" (September 2001 issue) *

Soji Shimada is a Japanese mystery writer. Born in Fukuyama City, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. Biography Soji Shimada graduated from Seishikan High School in Fukuyama City, Hiroshima Prefecture, and later Musashino Art University as a Commercial arts d ...

** "The Locked House of Pythagoras" (September 1999 issue) * Takafumi Takada ** "Three Little Bonzes: The Case Diary of Chinami Chiba" (September 2000 issue) ** "A Goat on a Boat to Float: The Case Diary of Chinami Chiba" (September 2002 issue) ;Contributors

References

External links

Official Website of ''Mephisto'' magazine

The BBB: Breakthrough Bandwagon Books
- Website of some Mephisto Prize winners {{Japanese literary awards 1996 establishments in Japan Mystery and detective fiction awards Japanese literary awards Awards established in 1996 Kodansha Nisio Isin

Winners whose works are available in English

Winners

''Mephisto'' (magazine)

See also

References

External links