People :
Awarded 43rd Bungei Prize!
Mr. Iora Ogiyo

Iora Ogiyo was born in Kyoto in 1983 and graduated from Nihon University Mishima High School. Now, he is a fifth year student in the School of Letters, Arts and Sciences II, majoring in expression and art. He was awarded the 43rd Bungei Prize in October 2006. His winning novel, Koen (Park) was published by Kawade shobou shinsha in November.

“If you write a novel seriously, you may succeed as a writer.” These were the words Iora Ogiyo was told by his teacher, Yo Henmi, a writer, when he took a class in "Creative Writing". According to Henmi, even if someone can manage to debut as a writer, there are only a few who manage to last. According to Ogiyo, “Mr. Henmi highly evaluated the work which I submitted in class. I had not written a novel yet, so I thought that my teacher might be saying this to everyone. So I did not take his words very seriously.” However, three years have passed since then, and Ogiyo has made the great achievement of winning the Bungei Prize. His senior as a writer, Yo Henmi, had the insight to recognize Ogiyo's ability as a writer.

Ogiyo only began to write novels after he entered the university, but he had written a scenario before writing a novel. This July, he won a prize in a film festival for a work he had written and directed. He said, “I'm always searching for a way that I can express myself more clearly and for the means of expression that fits me best.” “Expressing myself” was much harder than he had expected. “To do this, I have to face my own weakness. However, to write a novel or a scenario showing what people truly are, it is first necessary to understand one's own background or character without comparing oneself to anybody else. People often say easily, ‘He doesn't have the talent to be a writer.’ But I think everybody has some kind of talent. For instance, the circumstances that one has grown up in or the name that one is given are different to others. These differences can be considered as creating individuality, and if pursued they can become an expression of oneself.”

After he faces himself and his conflicts, he can feel the heavy burden of his inner conflict lighten for a moment. “It is like the unconsciousness which comes after being keenly aware of oneself. It is very difficult to write a novel but I can do it because I can see the light of hope ahead.” And the more he faces himself and his feelings, the more he becomes kind and affectionate to others. He does not deny others completely, because he is aware that others have their own personality, “their backgrounds and circumstances are different from those of others”. He also said, “I was fortunate to be able to think so in creating my own novels.” His winning novel is filled with his feelings and reading it will help the readers feel his warmth and depth.