The is a Japanese literary award established in 1988 in memory of author

Shūgorō Yamamoto , better known by the pen name of , was a Japanese novelist and short-story writer active during the Shōwa period of Japan. He was noted for his popular literature, and is known to have published works under at least fourteen different pen nam ...

. It was created and continues to be sponsored by the

Shinchosha is a publisher founded in 1896 in Japan and headquartered in Yaraichō, Shinjuku, Tokyo. Shinchosha is one of the sponsors of the Japan Fantasy Novel Award. Books * Haruki Murakami: '' Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World'' (19 ...

Publishing company, which published Yamamoto's ''Complete Works''. The prize is awarded annually to a new work of fiction considered to exemplify the art of storytelling, by a five-person panel consisting of fellow authors. Winners receive ¥1 million. Unlike the

Mishima Yukio Prize The is a Japanese literary award presented annually. It was established in 1988 in memory of author Yukio Mishima. The Mishima Yukio Prize is explicitly intended for work that "breaks new ground for the future of literature," and prize winners te ...

, which was established at the same time and focuses on literary fiction, the Yamamoto Shūgorō Prize is more broad, encompassing a wide range of genre fiction that includes historical and period fiction, mysteries, fantasy,

erotica Erotica is literature or art that deals substantively with subject matter that is erotic, sexually stimulating or sexually arousing. Some critics regard pornography as a type of erotica, but many consider it to be different. Erotic art may use a ...

, and more. Candidate works and prize winners for both prizes are typically announced in May each year and covered in national print media. Notable winners have included

Banana Yoshimoto is the pen name of Japanese writer . From 2002 to 2015, she wrote her name in hiragana (). Biography Yoshimoto was born in Tokyo on July 24, 1964, and grew up in a liberal family. Her father is the poet and critic Takaaki Yoshimoto, and her sis ...

, whose winning novel '' Goodbye Tsugumi'' was later published in English, erotic and romance novelist Misumi Kubo, and crime fiction and thriller author Kanae Minato. Several prize winners have gone on to win the

Naoki Prize The Naoki Prize, officially , is a Japanese literary award presented biannually. It was created in 1935 by Kikuchi Kan, then editor of the ''Bungeishunjū'' magazine, and named in memory of novelist Naoki Sanjugo. Sponsored by the Society for ...

, including

Riku Onda is the professional name of , a Japanese writer. Onda has won the Yoshikawa Eiji Prize for New Writers, the Japan Booksellers' Award, the Mystery Writers of Japan Award for Best Novel, the Yamamoto Shūgorō Prize, and the Naoki Prize. Her wo ...

Miyuki Miyabe is a Japanese writer of genre fiction. She has won numerous Japanese literary awards, including the Yoshikawa Eiji Prize for New Writers, the Yoshikawa Eiji Prize for Literature, the Shiba Ryotaro Prize, the Yamamoto Shūgorō Prize, and the N ...

, and Kaori Ekuni.

List of winners

An official list of winning and nominated works is maintained by

, the prize sponsor.

Nominees available in English translation

* 1991 -

Mariko Koike is a Japanese novelist. Biography Mariko Koike is a popular detective and horror novelist. Koike was born in Tokyo and graduated from Seikei University. Her first collection of essays was ''Recommendations to Women of the World'' and it became ...

, ''A Cappella'', trans. Juliet W. Carpenter (Thames River Press, 2013) * 2004 -

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, Fire ...

, ''Zoo'', trans. Terry Gallagher (

Viz Media VIZ Media LLC is an American manga publisher, anime distributor and entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ M ...

, 2009 /

Shueisha (lit. "Gathering of Intellect Publishing Co., Ltd.") is a Japanese company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The company was established in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The foll ...

English Edition, 2013)

References

External links

J'Lit , Awards : Yamamoto Shugoro Prize , Books from Japan

Yamamoto Shugoro Prize official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yamamoto Shugoro Prize 1988 establishments in Japan Awards established in 1988 Japanese literary awards

List of winners

Nominees available in English translation

See also

References

External links