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Japanese organizing expert Marie Kondo gained fame with her bestselling books on organizing, such as The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, which have been translated into languages such as Italian, Korean, French, and German. She also earned an Emmy nomination for her Netflix show Tidying Up with Marie Kondo.
Daughter of Hollywood actor Steven Seagal and Japanese aikido specialist Miyako Fujitani, Ayako Fujitani appeared as a lead actor in Man from Reno. A skilled writer, she has also released several books, both fiction and non-fiction. She has also directed a short play and performed as part of a band.
Japanese pop icon Ayumi Hamasaki had started a TV career after moving to Tokyo at 14. She later gained fame with her dance hits and ballads. Also known for her dramatic costumes and videos, The Empress of J-pop has been rendered totally deaf in one ear, owing to a ear infection.
Murasaki Shikibu was a Japanese poet and novelist. She is credited with authoring one of the world's first novels, The Tale of Genji. Murasaki's works played a key role in establishing Japanese as a written language and she continues to influence Japanese writers. Over the years, she has also been a popular subject of illustrations and paintings in Japan.
Megumi Yokota is a Japanese woman who was among at least 17 Japanese citizens abducted by North Korea. Yokota was kidnapped by a North Korean agent in 1977. Yokota has been missing for more than 43 years and several Japanese citizens have waged a campaign seeking her return. However, the North Korean government has claimed that she died in captivity.
Ai Iijima was a Japanese writer, media personality, actress, and activist. She is best remembered for appearing in a softcore porn variety TV show titled Gilgamesh Night. After ending her career as a softcore porn actress, Iijima became associated with campaigns that aimed at educating people about HIV/AIDS.
Masako Natsume was a Japanese actress who achieved worldwide fame after playing Tripitaka in the popular Japanese television series Monkey. Throughout her brief career, Natsume won several awards like the Elan d'or Awards. Masako Natsume remains a household name in Japan; calendars and picture books featuring pictures of Masako Natsume are still popular today.
Banana Yoshimoto is a Japanese writer whose debut work Kitchen inspired a couple of film adaptations. Kitchen also earned her the sixth Kaien Newcomers' Literary Prize in 1987. The following year, she received the 16th Izumi Kyōka Prize for Literature for a novella titled Moonlight Shadow. Her 1989 novel Goodbye Tsugumi inspired the 1990 movie Tugumi.
Widely known by her penname, Natsuo Kirino, celebrated Japanese writer, Mariko Hashioka, began her writing career in her early thirties, earning a degree in law, attending script-writing classes and doing odd jobs before that. When her initial attempt to write romantic novels proved a non-starter she switched to mystery, very soon becoming a leading figure in the Japanese detective fictions.
Yosano Akiko was a Japanese author, social reformer, poet, pacifist, and feminist. One of the most controversial and popular woman poets of Japan, Yosano was an important exponent of a genre of classical Japanese poetry called Tanka. She also contributed immensely to several publications like Bluestocking.
One of Japan's most distinguished female authors, Yūko Tsushima wrote mostly about marginalized section of the society, including abandoned women who try to break out of the assigned gender roles, drawing many of the characters from her personal experience as single mother. Winner of numerous national and international awards, her works have been translated into at least 13 languages.
Enchi Fumiko was a Japanese writer whose novel, Days of Hunger, earned her the Women's Literature Prize in 1954. One of the most important and popular women writers of the Shōwa era, Enchi also won the Noma Literary Prize for her novel The Waiting Years. Her works were renowned for incorporating elements of eroticism, realism, and fantasy.
Kanehara Hitomi is a Japanese novelist whose most popular work Hebi ni piasu earned her the prestigious Akutagawa Prize and Shōsetsu Subaru Literary Prize, apart from selling more than a million copies in Japan alone. Renowned for incorporating elements like violence, eroticism, and self-harm into her works, Kanehara's novels have been translated into over 12 languages worldwide.
Sawako Ariyoshi was a Japanese writer best remembered for discussing social issues through her work. Widely regarded as one of the most famous female writers in Japan, Ariyoshi was honored with several prestigious awards like the Fujin Kōron Readers’ Award and Art Selection Minister of Education Award. Her novel, The Doctor's Wife, established her as an excellent postwar Japanese writer.
Shungicu Uchida is a Japanese manga artist, essayist, actress, and singer. She is also known by the pen name Shungicu Uchida. She had a difficult childhood marked by abuse and neglect and dropped out of school as a teenager. She worked many odd jobs before being able to establish herself as a manga artist.
Risa Wataya is a Japanese novelist whose short novel Keritai senaka earned her the prestigious Akutagawa Prize. Many of her works have been translated into several languages including English, Italian, French, and German. Over the course of her career, Risa Wataya has won many awards like the Kenzaburo Oe Prize.
Ineko Sata was a Japanese writer best remembered for her association with the Proletarian Literature Movement. She is also often linked to the feminist movement as she was a fierce supporter of women's rights in Japan. Over the course of her illustrious career, Ineko Sata won many prestigious awards like the Women's Literature Award, Noma Literary Prize, and Asahi Prize.
Sue Sumii was a Japanese writer and social reformer. She openly spoke up for victims of discrimination in Japanese society, especially the Burakumin. A professionally qualified teacher, she took to writing to express her views on social issues. As a writer, she is most remembered for her novel, Hashi no nai kawa ("The River with No Bridge").
