is a Japanese publisher 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 ...

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

literary fiction Literary fiction, mainstream fiction, non-genre fiction or serious fiction is a label that, in the book trade, refers to market novels that do not fit neatly into an established genre (see genre fiction); or, otherwise, refers to novels that are ch ...

and

social science Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soc ...

, based in Tokyo.

History

In 1925, a publisher called of Osaka was established with a branch in Tokyo. In 1948, the Tokyo branch of Sogensha spun off into a separate company with the same name, Sogensha. In 1954, Sogensha (Tokyo) was officially reorganized into Tokyo Sogensha Co., Ltd. Between 1962 and 1970, Tokyo Sogensha changed its name to due to its reconstruction from bankruptcy. Both Tokyo Sogensha Co., Ltd. and Sogensha Inc. exist as unrelated publishing companies. In 2013, the official mascot cat named Kurari was released. Kurari's name is from Japanese kanji of Sogensha. can be divided to kanji and katakana .

Imprints

* Started in 1959. It is one of the leading

Bunkobon In Japan, are small-format paperback books, designed to be affordable and space saving. The great majority of ''bunkobon'' are A6 (105×148mm or 4.1"×5.8") in size. They are sometimes illustrated and like other Japanese paperbacks usually ...

(small-format

paperback A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with adhesive, glue rather than stitch (textile arts), stitches or Staple (fastener), staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) book ...

) labels focusing on mystery, science fiction, fantasy, and horror. The label had specialized in translation until 1984 then the company started publishing Japanese works. * See below. * Started in 1995 * Magazines ** 1992-2000 ** 2001-2003 ** 2003-2021 ** 2021-

Mystery

Science Fiction

As a science fiction publisher, Tokyo Sogensha began with the translation of

Fredric Brown Fredric Brown (October 29, 1906 – March 11, 1972) was an American science fiction, fantasy, and mystery writer.D. J. McReynolds, "The Short Fiction of Fredric Brown" in Frank N. Magill, (ed.) ''Survey of Science Fiction Literature'', Vol. 4 ...

's works as a division of ''Sōgen Suiri Bunko'' in 1963. The division and its continuation, which was renamed as in 1991, are Japan's oldest existing Sci-Fi ''bunkobon'' label. It published 677 books as of 2015 including the works of Arthur C. Clarke,

Isaac Asimov yi, יצחק אזימאװ , birth_date = , birth_place = Petrovichi, Russian SFSR , spouse = , relatives = , children = 2 , death_date = , death_place = Manhattan, New York City, U.S. , nationality = Russian (1920–1922)Soviet (192 ...

Robert A. Heinlein Robert Anson Heinlein (; July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was among the first to emphasize scientific accu ...

Ray Bradbury Ray Douglas Bradbury (; August 22, 1920June 5, 2012) was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of modes, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery, and r ...

J. G. Ballard James Graham Ballard (15 November 193019 April 2009) was an English novelist, short story writer, satirist, and essayist known for provocative works of fiction which explored the relations between human psychology, technology, sex, and mass medi ...

, Philip K. Dick,

Lois McMaster Bujold Lois McMaster Bujold ( ; born November 2, 1949) is an American speculative fiction writer. She is an acclaimed writer, having won the Hugo Award for best novel four times, matching Robert A. Heinlein's record (not counting his Retro Hugos). Her no ...

Vernor Vinge Vernor Steffen Vinge (; born October 2, 1944) is an American science fiction author and retired professor. He taught mathematics and computer science at San Diego State University. He is the first wide-scale popularizer of the technological singu ...

, James P. Hogan,

Kim Stanley Robinson Kim Stanley Robinson (born March 23, 1952) is an American writer of science fiction. He has published twenty-two novels and numerous short stories and is best known for his ''Mars'' trilogy. His work has been translated into 24 languages. Many ...

Robert Charles Wilson Robert Charles Wilson (born December 15, 1953 ) is an American-Canadian science fiction author. Career Wilson was born in the United States in California, but grew up near Toronto, Ontario. Apart from another short period in the early 1970s ...

, and

Greg Egan Greg Egan (born 20 August 1961) is an Australian science fiction writer and amateur mathematician, best known for his works of hard science fiction. Egan has won multiple awards including the John W. Campbell Memorial Award, the Hugo Award, an ...

. It scored early success in the post-war period with the Barsoom books of

Edgar Rice Burroughs Edgar Rice Burroughs (September 1, 1875 – March 19, 1950) was an American author, best known for his prolific output in the adventure, science fiction, and fantasy genres. Best-known for creating the characters Tarzan and John Carter, he ...

and the words of

E. E. Smith Edward Elmer Smith (May 2, 1890 – August 31, 1965), publishing as E. E. Smith, Ph.D. and later as E. E. "Doc" Smith, was an American food engineer (specializing in doughnut and pastry mixes) and science-fiction author, best known for the '' ...

. Sogen SF Bunko had specialized in translation until 2007 then it started publishing Japanese works. The first Japanese titles were reprints of ''

Legend of Galactic Heroes , sometimes abbreviated as ''LOTGH'', ''LOGH'' or in Japanese (and also depicted as ''Heldensagen vom Kosmosinsel'' in the anime intro), is a series of science fiction novels written by Yoshiki Tanaka. In humanity's distant fu ...

'' #1 by

Yoshiki Tanaka is a Japanese novelist. Early life and education He was born in Hondo, Kumamoto, Hondo, Kumamoto Prefecture and took his doctorate degree in Japanese Language and Literature in the Graduate School of Gakushuin University, Gakushūin Universit ...

and ''Babylonia Wave'' by

Akira Hori Akira Hori (堀晃, born 1944 in Tatsuno, Hyōgo, Tatsuno, Hyogo) is a Japanese science fiction writer. He has been involved in science fiction since high school and has a degree from Osaka University in engineering. He won the first Nihon SF Tais ...

Recognition

Tokyo Sogensha won the

Seiun Award The is a Japanese speculative fiction award given each year for the best science fiction works and achievements during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by , the awards are given at the annual Nihon SF Taikai, Japan Science Fict ...

for Best Translated Long Work for 18 works out of 52 times (as of 2021); the

Nihon SF Taisho Award The is a Japanese science fiction award. It has been compared to the Nebula Award as it is given by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of Japan or SFWJ. The Grand Prize is selected from not only Science Fiction novels, but also various SF mo ...

in 2012, 2013 and 2019 for Japanese Works.

Horror/Fantasy

Notable authors published by Tokyo Sogensha include

Shirley Jackson Shirley Hardie Jackson (December 14, 1916 – August 8, 1965) was an American writer known primarily for her works of horror and mystery. Over the duration of her writing career, which spanned over two decades, she composed six novels, two me ...

, H. P. Lovecraft and

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wide ...

Prizes

Tokyo Sogensha awards some prizes for unpublished Japanese works to recruit new writers of specific genres: * - Started in 1990. An annual contest for mystery fiction, named after Tetsuya Ayukawa, a notable novelist of the genre. * - Started in 2004. The short story counterpart of the Tetsuya Ayukawa Award, named after the bimonthly magazine the company published. It was the continuation of the Sogen Suiri Prize for New Writers (1994-2003). * - Since 2010. An annual contest for broad-sense science fiction and

speculative fiction Speculative fiction is a term that has been used with a variety of (sometimes contradictory) meanings. The broadest interpretation is as a category of fiction encompassing genres with elements that do not exist in reality, recorded history, na ...

short stories. * - 2014-2020 (5 times). A contest for fantasy novels.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Book publishing companies in Tokyo Comic book publishing companies in Tokyo Publishing companies established in 1948 Japanese companies established in 1948