Kyoko Mizuki (水木 杏子) /Keiko Nagita (名木田 恵子) Biography Date of Birth: November 28, 1949 Birthplace: Tokyo, Japan Nationality: Japanese Other Pen Names: Ayako Kazu (加津 綾子 Kazu Ayako), Akane Kouda (香田 あかね Kouda Akane) Occupation: novelist, manga writer, poet, essayist, lyricist Writing period: 1968 - present Genres: romance, fantasy, juvenile Education: graduated from Bunkagakuin College Official website: http://nagitakeiko.com/index.html Old website: http://www.k-nagi.com/ (no longer active) Personal: married, has one daughter, enjoys taking summer vacation at their cottage at Prince Edward Island; owns a collection of heart-shaped objects on display at Aoitoru Bunko's site Awards: In 1977, she was awarded the Kodansha Manga Award for Best Shōjo Manga for Candy Candy with Yumiko Igarashi. In 2007, she won the Japan Juvenile Writers Association Prize for her novel Rainette, Kin Iro no Ringo (Rainette - The Golden Apples), a love story about a Japanese girl and a Belarusian boy exposed to radiation from the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. After the death of her father when she was 12 years old, Mizuki began writing about an imaginary family "The Andrews" to ease her loneliness. She stated, "I feel the Andrews family have watched over me affectionately. They are the origin of my storywriting." In her teen years, she worked as an actress at the Shiki Theater Company and during her eleventh grade, she was awarded a prize in a short story contest by a young girl's magazine, Jogakusei no Tomo. It was at the age of 19 that Mizuki decided to become a full-time writer after publishing her first short story, "Yomigaeri, Soshite Natsu wa" in a magazine. A year later, she self-published her own collection of poems called "Kaeru". Then five years after, Sanrio Company, Ltd. published her poetical works, "Omoide wa Utawanai". In the 1970's and 1980's, she wrote mostly short stories and romantic manga tales for Shojou (teen girl) magazines under several pen names. In her personal essays, she stated that when she was 21 years old, she wrote Candy Candy to heal her sorrow after her mother passed away. When she started writing the manga Candy Candy for Nakayoshi magazine in 1975, she drew ideas from her original manuscript, which was later published as a Candy Candy Novel in 1978. The original manuscript spanned 2000 pages, of which 1400 pages were changed and edited for publication. The novel was republished by BOOK-ing, Inc. in 2003 after a successful petition from the international fans to renew it was made through Fukkan.com. Mizuki decided to write the the last chapter of Candy Candy at a hotel-chateau in France called the Domaine De Beauvois. She revealed that she "wanted to say goodbye to Candice in a beautiful place," and added, "If possible, I wanted to go to the U.K. When I was in the room, tears welled up in my eyes because a picture of a fox-hunting was hung in the wall. Fox-hunting--it took Anthony's life. When I remember Candice, autumn days at the beautiful hotel came to my mind. The hotel was like the villa of the Ardlay family." Although quite popular in Japan as a writer of juvenille love stories, Mizuki is best known internationally as the author of the manga Candy Candy, mainly in countries where the comics were sold and the anime series had aired. Due to the lack of publication of her works in different languages, her popularity is not as widespread. The international fans who recognize her as the author of Candy Candy have expressed great interest that some of her stories be translated in their own native language. One of these works is the Candy Candy Novel. Trials & Lawsuits: The copyright of Candy Candy had been disputed between the author, Kyoko Mizuki and the illustrator, Yumiko Igarashi since 1997. A general summary of the lawsuits and the outcome of the trials can be read here. List of works: Mangas and other Story Scripts (as Kyoko Mizuki or Keiko Nagita) Sanremo ni Kanpai サンレモにかんぱい (as Keiko Nagita, art by Waki Yamato, 1970) Brandenburg no Asa ブランデンブルグの朝 (as Keiko Nagita, art by Waki Yamato, 1970) Teenagers Around the World Series 世界のティーンシリーズ, art by Plural Artists, 1970 Le Grand Anne Gou wa Yuku ル・グラン・アンヌ号はゆく (as Keiko Nagita, art by Waki Yamato, 1970) Greenhill Monogatari グリーンヒル物語 (as Keiko Nagita, art by Yasuko Aoike,1970-1971) The Blue Sky of Lorient (Lorient no Aoi Sora) ロリアンの青い空 (as Keiko Nagita, art by Yoko Shima, 1974-1975) Candy Candy キャンディ・キャンディ (as Kyoko Mizuki, art by Yumiko Igarashi, 1975-1979) The Sword of Etruria (Etruria no Ken) エトルリアの剣 (as Keiko Nagita, art by Kyoko Fumizuki, 1975) Miriam Blue no Mizuumi ミリアムブルーの湖 (as Keiko Nagita, art by Yasuko Aoike, 1975) Hoshi eno Kaidan 星への階段 (as Akane Kouda, art by Akemi Matsuzaki, 1975) Byakuya no Nightingale 白夜のナイチンゲール (as Keiko Nagita, art by Yoko Shima, 1976-1977) Bara no Ki 薔薇の樹 (as Kyoko Mizuki, art by Chikako Kikukawa, 1978) Premier Muguet プルミエ・ミュゲ (as Kyoko Mizuki, art by Yoko Hanabusa, 1979-1981) Kirara Star Fortelling the Future (Kirara Boshi no Daiyogen) きらら星の大予言 (as Kyoko Mizuki, art by Yū Asagiri, 1980-1981) Sunday's Child サンデイズチャイルド(as Kyoko Mizuki, art by Tsubasa Nunoura, 1979-1981) Tim Tim Circus ティム・ティム・サーカス (as Kyoko Mizuki, art by Yumiko Igarashi, 1981-1982) Lira Crossed the 100 Years 100年のライラ (art by Mimura Akino, 1990) Loreley ローレライ (as Kyoko Mizuki, art by Kaya Tachibana, 2008-2009), story currently on hiatus after the 4th volume was printed in Romantic Princess (ロマ×プリRoma x Puri) Novels  (as Keiki Nagita) Candy Candy (novel) キャンディ・キャンディ, 1978 with manga illustrations, then in 1990 as 3 paperback books with manga illustrations; republished as an unillustrated hardcover in September, 2003, then in August, 2004 Umi ni Otiru Yuki 海におちる雪, 1980 Night Game ナイトゲ－ム, 1985 Moonlight Express ム－ンライト・エクスプレス, 1986, republished 2004 Ecchi and the Anpan Thief Series エッチとなぞの怪盗アンパン, 1987 Fuko and the Dreamy Ghost Series (Fūko to Yūrei series) ふ－ことユ－レイ (art by Yumi Kayama, 1988-2002) Marin Lives in Marine Time (Umizikan no Marin) 海時間のマリン, 1992 A Red Berry Dehisced (Akai Mi Haziketa) 赤い実はじけた, 1999 (printed in Japanese Primary School Textbook for 6th grade (Mitsumura Tosho Publishing Co.,Ltd.) A Fragment of the Stars (Hoshi no Kakera) 星のかけら, 2000-2001 Jacob's Ladder (Tenshi no Hashigo) 天使のはしご, 2002-2003 A Vampire's Love Story ヴァンパイア・ラブストーリー, 2003-2005 Twilight Sky in a Glass (Koppu no Naka no Yuuzora) コップのなかの夕空, 2004-2005 Air, 2003 Rainette, the Golden Apples (Rainette, Kin Iro no Ringo) レネット―金色の林檎, 2006 Ballerina Jikenbo series バレリーナ事件簿, 2006-2008 Birthday Club series バースディクラブ (art by Yu Azuki, 2006--present) Poems (as Keiko Nagita) Kaeru 還る, 1969 I Never Sing Memories (Omoide wa Utawanai) 思い出は歌わない, 1974 Otanjoubi ni お誕生日に (art by Yoko Sano, 1975) Sunday of Amanda アマンダの日曜日, 1976, photographs by Nishikawa Osamu Adventure of Sugarbowl シュガーボールの冒険, 1977, photographs by Nishikawa Osamu Fifty フィフティ, 2004 Essays (as Keiko Nagita) Mouitido Utatte もういちど歌って, 1978 Nagita Keiko Hitoritabi 名木田恵子ひとり旅, 1980 Anne's Island, Letters from the Wind (Anne no Shima, Kazedayori) アンの島・風だより, 1993 collaboration with Terry Kamikawa, a personal friend of the author who runs the Blue Winds Tea Room in New London, P.E.I, Canada. The author owns a cottage at the Prince Edward Island. Islander's Story, the People of the Island of Anne Shirley (Islander Monogatari, Anne no Sima no Hitobito) アイランダ－物語　アンの島の人々, 1997 Picture books (as Keiko Nagita) Kodansha Ohimesama Ehon4 Ningyohime 講談社おひめさま絵本4 にんぎょひめ (art by Makoto Takahashi, 1971) Nemutai Kirin ねむたいキリン (art by Keiji Nakamura, 1979) Monmonku wa Yasasii モンモンクはやさしい (art by Makoto Obo, 1979) Shampoo Ōji no Bouken シャンプー王子のぼうけん (art by Makoto Kubota, 2004) Shampoo Ōji to Kitanai Kotoba シャンプー王子ときたないことば (art by Makoto Kubota, 2005), adapted into anime television series in October 2007 Shampoo Ōji to Daiakutou シャンプー王子と大あくとう (art by Makoto Kubota, 2006), adapted into anime television series in October 2007 Lyrics (as Keiko Nagita) Candy Candy キャンディ・キャンディ (composer: Takeo Watanabe, performer: Mitsuko Horie) Ashita ga Suki あしたがすき (composer: Takeo Watanabe, performer: Mitsuko Horie) Futari kiri no Lullaby ふたりきりのララバイ (composer: Juichi Sase, performer: Ruo Megimi) Tazunebito futagoza 尋ね人ふたご座 (composer: Juichi Sase, performer: Ruo Megimi) Ame no Suizokukan 雨の水族館 (composer: Satsuya Iwasawa, performer: Ruo Megimi) Shabondama Love しゃぼんだまラブ (composer: Masami Koizumi, performer: Ruo Megimi) Shiriau Maekara Zutto Suki 知りあう前からずっと好き (composer: Toru Okada, performer: Yoko Ishida) Shizuku wa Anata no Sign しずくはあなたのサイン (composer: Toru Okada, performer: Mitsuko Horie) Uwasa Shitteruwa 噂知ってるわ (composer and performer: Miyuki Yokoyama) Shampoo Ōji no Bouken シャンプー王子の冒険 (composer: Hironobu Kageyama, performer: Ikuko) Shampoo Ōji no Komoriuta シャンプー王子の子守唄 (composer: Hironobu Kageyama, performer: Mayu Miyauchi) References: Itomaru's Candy Candy Rebirth, Candy Candy Wikipedia