our,astoryofhiswonanawardfromaliterarymagazine,ahefiveyearsJunpeiwasnominatedforthecovetedAkutagarizefourtimes,butheuallywonit.Heremaiheeternallypromisingdidate.Atypicalopinionfromajudgeontheprizeitteewouldsay,"Forsuchayoungauthor,thisiswritinghquality,withremarkableexamplesofbothplotandpsychologialysis.Buttheauthorhasateoletseakeoverfromtimetotime,andtheworklacksbothfreshnessandicsweep."

    Takatsukiwouldlaughwhenhereadsuchopinions."Theseguysareoutoftheirminds.Whatthehellisicsweep?Realpeopledontusewordslikethat.Todayssukiyakiwaslagiicsweep.Everhearanybodysayanythinglikethat?"

    Junpeipublishedtwovolumesofshortstoriesbeforeheturhirty:"HorseintheRain"and"Grapes.""HorseintheRain"soldtenthousandcopies,"Grapes"twelvethousand.Thesewerenotbadfiguresforshort-storycolles,acctohiseditor.Thereviewsweregenerallyfavorable,butnonegavehisworkpassionatesupport.MostofJuorieswereaboutyoungpeopleinsituationsofuedlove.Hisstylewaslyrical,theplotsratherold-fashioned.Readersofhisgeionwerelookingforamoreiivestyleandgrittierplots.Thiswastheageofvideogamesandrapmusic,afterall.Junpeiseditedhimtotryanovel.Ifheneverwroteanythingbutshortstories,hewouldjustkeepdealingwiththesamematerialoverandain.Writinganovelcouldopenupwholenewworldsforawriter.Asapracticalmatter,too,tractedfarmoreattentionthanstories.Writingonlyshortstorieswasahardwaytomakealiving.

    ButJunpeiwasabornshort-storywriter.Hewouldshuthimselfinhisroom,leteverythingelsego