Hikaru Natsumi

Hikaru Natsumi
Born1973
DiedNovember 4, 2002 (aged 29)
NationalityJapanese
Occupation(s)Writer, sex worker

Hikaru Natsumi (菜摘ひかる, Natsumi Hikaru, 1973 – November 4, 2002) was a Japanese writer and sex worker. She is best known for her blog The Sexual Adventures of Hikaru Natsumi (菜摘ひかるの性的冒険), which was published as a book in 1998.

Biography

Early life and career

Natsumi was born in 1973 in the Kantō region of Japan.[1] While in high school, she contributed writing and manga to manga magazines specializing in adult comics that were edited by Yoshiaki Shioyama [ja].[2] After graduating high school, Natsumi began working as a clerk at a clothing store.[1] She later transitioned to the water trade,[1] alternately working as an erotic masseuse, at image clubs, and in soaplands.[3] She additionally worked as a nude model for erotic books and adult films, though after being arrested for indecent exposure after stripping nude on a street in Shinjuku for a photo shoot in 1996, she retired from modeling.[3]

In the mid-1990s, Natsumi began publishing a blog about her experiences as a sex worker titled The Sexual Adventures of Hikaru Natsumi (菜摘ひかるの性的冒険). The blog was later published as a book by the Japanese publishing house Yosensha in 1998;[4] its success prompted Natsumi to become a full-time author of novels and manga. "Vulgarity Drifting Diary", an English-language column by Natsumi, was published in the American manga magazine Pulp.[5]

Personal life and death

In her writing, Natsumi referenced having once been married to an unnamed husband whom she divorced.[1] She reported having a troubled relationship with her parents, particularly her father.[6]

On November 4, 2002, Natsumi died at the age of 29.[1] The cause of death was not released, beyond that she had been in poor health since mid-2002 and experienced a "sudden change in health".[7] A private funeral was held.[8] In February 2003, a commemorative issue of the literary magazine Bungei was published in Natsumi's memory. Among the contributors to the issue were Rika Kayama [ja], Yukari Fujimoto, Amari Hayashi [ja], and Naito Yamada [ja], the lattermost of whom regularly collaborated with Natsumi as the illustrator on her manga works.[9]

Works

  • The Sexual Adventures of Hikaru Natsumi (菜摘ひかるの性的冒険), Yosensha, 1998;[4] republished by Kobunsha in 2000[10]
  • Ikebukuro Image Club Diary (池袋イメクラ日記), Futami Shobo, 1998[11]
  • Love is Flesh-Colored (恋は肉色), Kobunsha, 2000[12]
  • If You Look Up (仰げば尊し), Akita Shoten, 2000[13]
  • Hikaru Natsumi: I Want to be a Turtle (菜摘ひかるの私はカメになりたい), Kadokawa Shoten, 2001[14]
  • Ecchi Principle (えっち主義), Kadokawa Shoten, 2002[15]
  • Dependent Princess (依存姫) (Seikatsusha, 2002)[16]
  • "Body Therapy" (ボディ・テラピー) in As You Indulge (耽溺れるままに), multi-author anthology, Tokuma Shoten, 2003[17]
  • Naughty Feelings (えっちな気持ち), Kadokawa Shoten, 2003[18]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Sawada, Ichiro (June 17, 2003). "TOKYO発 女のたたかいに共感 菜摘ひかる作品人気". Chunichi Shimbun. No. Evening Edition. p. 2.
  2. ^ Kayama 2003, p. 113.
  3. ^ a b Kayama 2003, p. 114.
  4. ^ a b "風俗嬢菜摘ひかるの性的冒険". National Diet Library (in Japanese). Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  5. ^ Arnold, Adam (June 2001). "PULP: The Other World of Manga". Animefringe. Retrieved January 8, 2020.
  6. ^ Kayama 2003, p. 117.
  7. ^ Kayama 2003, pp. 120–121.
  8. ^ Kayama 2003, p. 121.
  9. ^ "【追悼】 菜摘ひかる "今"を駆け抜けた作家が見たもの". Bungei. Kawade Shobō Shinsha. 42 (1): 109–141. February 1, 2003.
  10. ^ "風俗嬢菜摘ひかるの性的冒険". National Diet Library (in Japanese). Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  11. ^ "池袋イメクラ日記". National Diet Library (in Japanese). Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  12. ^ "恋は肉色". National Diet Library (in Japanese). Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  13. ^ "仰げば尊し". National Diet Library (in Japanese). Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  14. ^ "菜摘ひかるの私はカメになりたい". National Diet Library (in Japanese). Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  15. ^ "えっち主義". National Diet Library (in Japanese). Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  16. ^ "依存姫". National Diet Library (in Japanese). Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  17. ^ "耽溺れるままに". National Diet Library (in Japanese). Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  18. ^ "えっちな気持ち". National Diet Library (in Japanese). Retrieved June 3, 2021.

Bibliography

  • Kayama, Rika (February 1, 2003). "菜摘ひかるの可憐な"たたかい" 『書くこと』は『切り売り』ではない". Bungei (in Japanese). Kawade Shobō Shinsha. 42 (1): 110–121.

Further reading

External links