嶽本 野ばらDO YOUR OWN THING: `Lolita' novelist touches lonely hearts
The Asahi Shimbun / July 24
`It didn't mean I wanted to become a girl. Simply put, I wasn't interested in stuff for boys. I liked girlish things. Boyish things are sweaty, so I didn't like them.
....Welcome to the world of novelist Novala Takemoto.
It is within these walls-this fantasia-that Takemoto's ultra-feminine "Lolita'' novels are born. Indeed, the writer himself is a hero among the Lolita crowd, girls and women who favor lace and bonnets and ribbons and frills. ... Though Takemoto was nominated for the Yukio Mishima Literary Prize for "Emily'' and "Lolita'' in 2003 and 2004 respectively, it was "Shimotsuma Monogatari'' (Shimotsuma story) that made him a celebrity. A movie based on the book was a huge hit in Japan this year. It is scheduled for release as "Kamikaze Girls'' in seven countries including the United States, Italy and Spain.
Known as a novelist with the heart of an otome (maiden), Takemoto says the Lolita sense of beauty is the most important aspect of his writing and his life. In Japan the word ``Lolita'' conjures up images of girls decked out in outlandishly frilly garb, but he says it is as much a way of living as a fashion statement.
"Lolita is a form of aestheticism..."