Yoshio Aramaki (, Aramaki Yoshio, born 12 April 1933) is a Japanese science fiction and mystery writer, critic and art collector. His original given name was Kunio Aramaki (, Aramaki Kunio). He has changed his name to Yoshimasa Aramaki ().Nihon Gensō Sakka Jiten p.36 Aramaki is well known by his so-called "Meta-SF" works which are characterized by their speculative and fantastic themes and depictions.Nihon SF Ronsōshi ed. by Takayuki Tatsumi, pp. 160-161 He is also famous for his various series of "imaginary battle" novels and alternate history novels such as Konpeki no Kantai series. He is a member of the Japan Writers’ Association, and of the SFWJ (Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of Japan),(ja) SFWJ site, List of members retrieved 13 March 2018. and of the Contemporary Haiku Association. He was also a professor in the Seishū Women's University Seishū Joshi Daigaku () (now, Sapporo International University) from 1993 to 1997.(ja) 42nd Winners of Sapporo Arts Award, Sapporo city website retrieved, January 28, 2018.
Biography Overview Aramaki was born on 12 April 1933 in Otaru in Hokkaidō prefecture."Foreword: Apocrypha Now!" by Takayuki Tatsumi. He graduated from Hokkaidō Minami Sapporo high school.Junko Kasei (, 1933 - January 23?,1952) was a classmate. She was the model for Amamaki's heroine in his novel "Shiroki Hi Tabidteba Fushi". She also appears in several novels by Junichi Watanabe, who attended the school at the same time. Kasei died young when they were at the last grade of school in 1952. (ja) Panel: Talking of Origin of Aramak SF. etc. He graduated from Waseda University. He became an employee at a publishing company and worked in Tokyo. But he returned to Sapporo to take over his family business. Aramaki entered school again and graduated from the department of technology, civil engineering course, in the Hokkai Gakuen University Junior College Division (), and obtained an architect degree. He took office as a representative director in Hokken Shōji Co. Ltd ().
He joined the Hokkaidō science fiction club and contributed various stories and critiques to the magazine "CORE" from 1965 to 1967. In 1970, Aramaki presented a critique "Theory of Novels by Kunst" (, Jutsu no Shōsetsu-ron) in S-F Magazine in response to Kōichi Yamano Here, Aramaki analyzed the Robert Heinlein's works by using the concept of "fiction by Kunst","Kunst" (). Aramaki made use of Immanuel Kant's "Critical philosophy", especially "Kritik der Urteilskraft". "Kunst" is the term in this book. thereby he advocated the new possibilities of Japanese SF works in this critique. He also published his allegorical short story "Ōinaru Shōgo (The Great Noon)" () in the same publication.This story refers to Friedrich Nietzsche's Eternal return) He thus he debuted as a writer and a critic in the same publication.
Aramaki wrote novels New Wave science fiction and Surrealism. At the same time, he also wrote Space opera stories such as the "Big Wars" series and so on. His short story "Yawarakai Tokei" (, "Soft Clocks"), took its central motif from the picture by Salvador Dalí. It translated into English and appeared in the British SF magazine Interzone in 1989 to some acclaim.
His early speculative novelette "Shirakabe no Moji wa Yūhi ni Haeru" (, The Writings on the White Wall are Shined On By the Setting Sun) received the Seiun Award in 1972.(ja) List of Seiun Award His first full-length and the first volume of the"Shiraki series, Shiroki Hi Tabidateba Fushi (, Departing on the White Day, That Is, Immortality), was a runner-up for the Izumi Kyōka Prize for Literature.
Aramaki wrote many "Denki-Roman stories" (, Legendary Roman story) in the 1980s and 1990s. He also wrote many "imaginary battle / alternate history" stories from the middle 1980s to ca. 2000. They are "Yōsai series" (, Fortress series) and "Fleet series" which contains "Konpeki no Kantai series (Deep Blue Fleet)" and "Kyokujitsu no Kantai series (Fleet of the Rising Sun)". He published the critique "Discovery of Simulation Novels" (, Shimyureeshon shōsestu no hakken) in 1994.
After 2000, he published the books of the Corridor of Super Strings - Atlantis Big Wars series and other work.
In November 2014, he commenced publication of the Teihon Aramaki Yoshio Meta-SF Zenshū ( (Aramaki Yoshio Complete and Standard Collection of Meta-SF Works). The publication of this collection was completed in July 2015. The Collection is made up of seven main volumes and one extra. In July 2017, Aramaki published the last volume of his meta-SF series, Shiraki series Mohaya Uchū wa Meikyū no Kagami no yōni (, "Now the Cosmos is Like the Mirrors of Labyrinth".
Aramaki was the owner of the Sapporo Tokeidai gallery ().The gallery was closed on December 24, 2016. (ja) Tokeidai gallery site, December 24, 2016 (Internet Archive) He is known as a collector of the paintings of the artists in Hokkaidō. Many paintings in the collection were donated to the Sapporo Arts Forest Museum ().Meet Arts (ja) Aramaki Yoshio collection: 87 paintings.
Early career Aramaki has stated the origin of his surreal and "speculative" emotions had their root in his birthplace, Otaru.(ja) Panel: Talking of Origin of Aramaki SF on the Aramaki official site. retrieved, March 22, 2018. The circumstances in the young days might form his basis of imaginations. The land of Hokkaidō and his early experiences are recurrent themes in his later works.
Aramaki went to the metropolis Tokyo and studied psychology in Waseda University from 1954 to 1957.Arammaki has said he had experienced the effects of LSD as a student test subject in this period. This experience was expressed in a novelette. (ja) Panel: Talking of Origin of Aramaki SF He worked several years in a publishing company in Tokyo. Aramaki had the ambition to be a professional writer in those days. But he did not stay in Tokyo. When he faced the violent and chaotic movement against the renewal of the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security Between the United States and Japan in 1960, he was disappointed at the ideals of the Socialist revolution and abandoned his ambition. Aramaki left Tokyo and returned to Hokkaidō to take over his family business.
After returned to Sapporo, Aramaki joined a SF club and operated its coterie magazine CORE from 1965 to 1967. In this magazine, he contributed many critiques and stories. One, "Shimi" appeared in the first issue of CORE magazine, and which formed an early vision of his debut story "Ōinaru Shōgo". Then he wrote and published the critical essays on Arthur C. Clarke's Childhood's End, Philip K. Dick's The Man in the High Castle and Yasutaka Tsutsui's Tōkaidō War Tōkaidō Sensō (), by Yasutaka Tsutsui
Aramaki joined Takumi Shibano's fan magazine Uchūjin. He contributed various critiques and stories to it. Aramaki contributed the series of critical essays on American science fiction, in which Aramaki tried to understand America and its culture, which had defeated Japan in the Pacific War. These essays would lead to the later Fleet series such as Konpeki no Kantai. Aramaki also published his short story "The Breakwater to Time (Toki no Bōhatei)" Toki no Bōhatei ()", which is a prototype of "The Great Noon (Ōinaru Shōgo)". He published the counterargument against Yamano's criticism. It was the beginning of the so-called "Yamano-Aramaki debate" Nihon SF Ronsōshi 『日本SF論争史』 pp. 139-186.
Debate between Aramaki and Yamano In the late 1960s, New Wave science fiction works such as those by Ballard and Dick and of the philosophically inclined unrelated work of Stanislaw Lem had begun to get noticed by Japanese science fiction readers and writers. Kōichi Yamano' published his critical article "Nihon SF no Genten to Shikō" (, Japanese SF: Its Originality and Orientation) Science Fiction Studies #62 retrieved March 7, 2018 in S-F Magazine in 1969. Yamano described existing Japanese as imitations of American SF. With no original Japanese SF works having been written, he suggested a new movement towards it.
Aramaki, in opposition to this Yamano's criticism, contributed his opinions to the fan magazine Uchūjin. Aramaki was also searching for new possibilities of Japanese SF. In 1969, Aramaki and Yamano debated. Yamano advocated the New SF in Japan. He began publishing his Quarterly NW-SF Magazine (, Kikan NW-SF) in 1970. On the other hand, Aramaki published his critical article "Jutsu no Shōsetsu-ron" () in S-F Magazine in 1970. Aramaki took his own course of speculative and surreal fiction. Aramaki started publishing his unique metafictional works.
Early metafictional stories in S-F Magazine After the debut as a writer in 1970, Aramaki went forth with his published his "metafiction" novelettes in S-F Magazine from 1970 to around 1973.(ja) National Diet Library - Digital collection: S-F magazine 1970's (TOC) For details see bibliography below.
Aramaki's first novel "Shiroki Hi tabidateba Fushi" (the first book of the Shiraki series) was published in April 1972. His early masterpiece Shinsei-dai ("The Sacred Era") was published in May 1978, a short story version of it having appeared in S-F Magazine in 1970.
Space operas and work in other genres Aramaki tried to explore story themes in a variety of genres and styles. In 1975, he published Kūhaku no Jūjika ("Vacant Cross") an occult novel set in contemporary Japan. This is the first book of the Kūhaku series. "Tennyo no Misshitsu" in 1977 is a locked room mystery. Ōgon Mayu no Nemuri (1976) is also set in current day Japan, like Kūhaku series, the stage is contemporary Japan. This is the first book of the Kimmeria Nanatsu no Hihō ("The Seven Secret Treasures of Kimmeria") series.
Aramaki wrote the space opera stories. Kami naru Eien no Kaiki in 1978. It was the first book of the Big Wars series. The stories in this series are more hard science fiction.
In 1980, he published Megami-tachi no Gogo ("Afternoon of Goddesses"), a collection of novelettes. Each story features a young woman protagonist.
Meanwhile, Aramaki had graduated from the department of engineering, and was an engineer and an architect.
"Imaginary Battle" and alternative history works Aramaki published "Niseko Yōsai 1986 part 1 - Rishiri-Rebun Tokkō-hen (ニセコ要塞1986 - 利尻・礼文特攻篇 Niseko Fortress 1986). This is the first book of twenty volume Yōsai (Fortress) series (. The last book of this series Fugaku Yōsai 3, the Apocalypse Program () was published in December 2001.
While writing the series, Aramaki started to publish the new alternative history series, "Kantai Series" ( Fleet Series). The first volume was "Konpeki no Kantai 1". In 1992, Aramaki started publishing the Kyokujitsu no Kantai Series in addition. Sixty-there volumes were published from 1990 to 2000.(ja) Total Works by Aramaki Yoshio, In genre retrieved 14 March 2018. These convey an alternative version of World War II.
The Kantai Series as adapted into several console games, manga, and anime. The anime series were especially well-known. More than five million copies were sold.Thinking the Opposite: An Interview with Yoshio Aramaki by Mitsutaka Oide (available at the Dalkey Archive Press, University of Illinois).
Nippon 2007 and criticism activities In August 2007, Nippon 2007, the first World SF Convention in Asia, took place at Yokohama. A panel on steampunk and Alternate history took place with Fumio Takano, Masaaki Shindo, Haruaki Utsukibara, Tadashi Nagase,Takano Fumio (:ja:高野史緒), Shindo Masaaki (:ja:新戸雅章), Utsukibara Haruaki (:ja:宇月原晴明), Nagase Tadashi (:ja:永瀬唯). and Aramaki were panelist.Nippon 2007: Program contents, Participants retrieved 14 March 2018. Aramaki also became a panelist in the "New wave/ Speculative fiction" panel.