is a Japanese fiction writer. Born in

Hyōgo Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 () and a geographic area of . Hyōgo Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the east, Osaka Prefecture to th ...

, he lived in Kyoto until 2022, when he relocated to Tokyo.

Writing career

Omae made his debut in 2016 with the short story "Kanojo wo basutabu ni irete moyasu" (彼女をバスタブにいれて燃やす), which was ranked first place in an open call for stories organized by ''

Granta ''Granta'' is a literary magazine and publisher in the United Kingdom whose mission centres on its "belief in the power and urgency of the story, both in fiction and non-fiction, and the story's supreme ability to describe, illuminate and make ...

Japan'' with . His story "Yuki no ijō na taishitsu mata wa boku wa dore hodo okane ga hoshii ka" (ユキの異常な体質または僕はどれほどお金がほしいか) won the second Book Shorts Award and was subsequently made into a short film of the same name, given the English title "Ms. Strangedisposition or: How I Desire to Be Rich." For the story "Bunchō" (文鳥), he was awarded Grand Prize in the "at home AWARDs." Omae made his English-language debut with "Beam," translated by Emily Balistrieri for Electric Lit. Omae's work is known for being "gender-conscious" and often considers the effects of social alienation and the nature of masculinity. The titular novella of the fiction collection ''Nuigurumi to shaberu hito wa yasashii'' (ぬいぐるみとしゃべる人はやさしい) was adapted for film and released internationally under the title ''People Who Talk to Plushies Are Kind.'' In June 2023, the collection was published in an English translation by Emily Balistrieri under the title ''People Who Talk to Stuffed Animals Are Nice''.

Selected works

Story collections

*''Kaitengusa'' () Shoshikankanbou, 2017 *''Watashi to wani to imōto no heya'' () Shoshikankanbou, 2019 *''Nuigurumi to shaberu hito wa yasashii'' () Kawade Shobo Shinsha, 2020

Novels

*''Omoroi igai iran nen'' () Kawade Shobo Shinsha, 2021 *''Shindeiru watashi to, watashi mitai na hito tachi no koe'' () Kawade Shobo Shinsha, 2022 *''Kimi da kara sabisii'' () Bungeishunjū, 2022

Translations

*"Beam." Translated by Emily Balistrieri. ''Electric Lit''. September 2020. *"Bath Towel Visuals." Translated by Emily Balistrieri. ''The Southern Review''. Summer 2021. *''People Who Talk to Stuffed Animals Are Nice.'' Translated by Emily Balistrieri. HarperCollins. June 2023.

References

External links

''The Southern Review''
Contributors: Ao Omae
"Interview with Ao Omae"
Book Shorts (Japanese)

Mitsumura-Tosho (Japanese)
"Bunchō"
(full text) at home AWARD (Japanese) {{DEFAULTSORT:Omae, Ao 21st-century Japanese writers 1992 births Living people Writers from Hyōgo Prefecture