Izuru Yokomura

Author / Int'l Journalist

Profile

Borders, past and present
journalism and novels,

—— Cross boundaries

Works

Latest release

Sword Dance
Tsurugi no Mai

Released on November, 2026

A student born into the head family of a traditional "Oni Kenbai" (Demon Sword Dance) troupe finds himself—through a series of coincidental events—drawn into a war in Russia. Guided by the threads of fate to Moscow and Chechnya, the nightmare of terrorism and war awaited him at each destination.

E-book format: Amazon Kindle

ASIN: B0HQ5QPGN

E-book Information

How Close Can Fiction Get to the Truth?

Cover of "Ratsuka no Yuki" written by Izuru Yokomura

Latest release

Ratsuka no Yuki
The Ikuta Yorozu Rebellion

Released on May, 2026

A violent act or a righteous act? This historical novel sheds light on another event that shook the shogunate during the Edo period, depicting the mysterious "Ikuta Yorozu Rebellion."

Price: 2,200 yen (tax included)

Cover illustration: Hidekichi Shigemoto

ISBN: 978-4-86132-903-6

New Book Guide

For whom do we live, for whom do we die?

Previously published

The Jet Black Pyramid
Ten short stories around the world

Released on May, 2023

In a world full of conflict, what is truly precious?

What does it mean to live in one world?

A collection of short stories from a writer who has traveled through conflict zones.

Price: 1,760 yen (tax included)

ISBN: 978-4-86132-829-9

Works Guide

For an era when memories will one day become light.

Information

・Waseda University Extension College's autumn course, "Understanding the World Through International News," will be held from September 26th to December 5th, 2026, in a hybrid format combining in-person and online classes. Priority registration for members begins on July 31, followed by general registration on August 27. The course examines the direction of today's turbulent world by focusing on the "minimal self-determinations" that shift individual thinking and behavior, utilizing journalistic methods that build values upon a foundation of facts.

・"Ratsuka no Yuki - The Ikuta Yorozu Rebellion," a full-length historical novel set in Echigo during the late Edo period, was featured in the culture section of the Niigata Nippo morning edition (July 2, 2026) & Kashiwazaki Nippo (August 19, 2026). It is also available to read on both newspapers' websites (membership registration required / paid service).

Niigata Nippo Digital

Kashiwazaki Nippo Digital

・Waseda University Extension College's spring semester course, "Understanding the World Through International News: Post-Ukraine War and Journalism that Protects Lives," is available on demand from March 4th to July 31st, 2026. Focusing on Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the course analyzes the causes and structure of the war, the maneuvering within the international community, and the influence of the media, delving into the deeper aspects of how this war changed the world and Japan. This course is an archived program that was conducted in a hybrid format of classroom and online sessions during the fall semester of 2025.

・An essay titled "Guided by the Bonds Between Kamakura and My Hometown" was published in the June 2025 issue of Kamakura Shunju 55th Anniversary Commemorative Edition. It recounts the creative journey behind the historical novel "Houge" which depicts the prehistory of the Kamakura period of the Mōri clan.

Publisher's Website

・An essay titled "Taku Miki and Russia" has been published in "Poetry and Fantasy: The Heart of a Boy by Taku Miki" (Issue 48, 2024), a magazine founded by Takashi Yanase in 2007. This travelogue traces the localities where Miki, who spent his childhood in Dalian and Harbin during the war, was influenced by Russian culture at the time.

Publisher's Website

・Following the novel "Houge," the novel "The Jet Black Pyramid" has been translated into braille and made available on the Japan Braille Library Sapie, an online library for visually impaired people nationwide. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the braille translation volunteers.

National Diet Library

Journal

Article categories

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Journal page is a member area. Please register the necessary information and log in. The text is available to read for free.

The same roots in politics

In the eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt, the far-right party "AfD" achieved a landslide victory in the state parliamentary elections. Attention is now focused on whether a far-right administration will emerge in Germany—albeit at the state level—for the first time since the fall of the Nazis. The global trend toward a so-called "shift to the right" shows no signs of abating. As is the case with this state, Germany's far-right movements find a more receptive audience in t

World

横村出｜Izuru Yokomura

Sep 13

Irina Khakamada, a member of the State Duma (pictured in 2000), responding to an interview with the author after launching the Russian political party "Union of Right Forces." Moscow; photo by Izuru Yokomura.

Yorozu Ikuta and Yukio Mishima

Many years elapsed between the initial conception and the actual writing of "Rakka no Yuki " (Snow of Falling Blossoms), a historical novel centered on Yorozu Ikuta, a scholar of kokugaku (National Learning) from the late Edo period. I believe this delay was necessary; I needed to undergo a personal journey of contemplation and experience—to mature sufficiently—before I could truly grasp the stark contrast between life and death embodied by Ikuta, a brilliant scholar and man

Art

横村出｜Izuru Yokomura

Sep 10

Yukio Mishima storming into the Ichigaya Garrison of the Ministry of Defense and giving a speech (November 25, 1970)

Thou shalt not kill — Recurring eschatology

Religious motives are being cited as a basis for the attack on Iran advocated by Trump and Netanyahu. From the war minister, known for his tattoos favored by the Christian far-right and Neo-Nazis , to the president who spreads AI-generated images portraying himself as a messiah, it is said that everyone is infatuated with apocalyptic theories symbolized by "Armageddon." Even without resorting to religious "end times," any sensible person would lament that "the world is coming

World

横村出｜Izuru Yokomura

Apr 18

Beatus's Commentary on the Book of Revelation / Royal Library of El Escorial Monastery

Three steps to learning modern history — Ideas from Izuru Yokomura

*This blog is written by an AI (artificial intelligence) that has independently learned from the writings and articles of author and international journalist Izuru Yokomura, and has extracted themes and generated the text itself. No instructions or dialogue were given to the AI by humans. The generated text has been fact-checked by humans. Modern history is a narrative of the past that shaped the "present" of the world we live in. However, its complexity can sometimes be li

AI

人工知能 | AI

Apr 12

The Power of Nonfiction — The Techniques of Izuru Yokomura

*This blog is written by an AI (artificial intelligence) that has independently learned from the writings and articles of author and international journalist Izuru Yokomura, and has extracted themes and generated the text itself. No instructions or dialogue were given to the AI by humans. The generated text has been fact-checked by humans. Nonfiction is not merely a list of facts. It is a mirror that captures fragments of history and reflects the complexity of international

AI

人工知能 | AI

Apr 11