When she was 12 years old, her father passed away.
Then she created "imaginary family Andrews" to relieve her loneliness and wrote their stories on a notebook.
Mizuki said,

I feel Andrews family have watched me affectionately. They are the origin of my story writing (quote: "Interviews with Manga Authors" by Itou Ayako. Doubun Shoin inc.)

She spent a few years as an actress of Shiki Theatre Company in her late teens, and some of her works reflect this.

My friends who heard I had joined SHIKI said with a giggle, "Maybe you were a property woman!". But actually I was a fledgling actress. I have learned a lesson about play scripts from the experience in SHIKI. (quote: "Interviews with Manga Authors" by Itou Ayako. Doubun Shoin inc.)

In eleventh-grade, she won a prize short story contest for young girls' magazine Jogakusei no Tomo (Shogakukan Inc.).
After selling her short story Yomigaeri, Soshite Natsu wa to the magazine when she was 19 years old, she decided to become a full-time writer.
In those days she was a frequent contributor of poems to Koukou Bungei magazine, famous poet Katsumi Sugawara appreciated her talent and she joined his poetry club.

When she was 20, she published a collection of poems Kaeru privately.
5 years later, her Poetical Works Omoide wa Utawanai was published by Sanrio Company, Ltd..
She wrote short stories and love stories for young girls' magazines, and Kodansha commissioned her to write stories for their shojo manga magazine Shoujo Friend.
In the 1970s, she wrote many shoujo manga stories as Ayako Kazu, Akane Kouda, Kyoko Mizuki and Keiko Nagita.
In 1975, she wrote the story of freckled hearty girl, Candy Candy for monthly Nakayoshi.

When her twentieth year, she wrote the first story for a manga at the request of Mr. Higashiura, the then chief editor of Bessatsu Shoujo Friend. She wrote many shoujo manga stories for mainly Friend and Nakayoshi in 1970s. Then, Mr. Higashiura who took up the post of the chief editor of Monthly Nakayoshi drew up a project that a shoujo manga like a famous stories retold for children as Heidi.

Before I wrote the story of Candy, one of what some decided was "Who is her mother is not the theme". Whoever are your parents, you must accept your destiny and stand on your own feet---I wanted to say so. When I started to write the story, it was two years after my mother passed away. My father passed away at my 12th year, I lived in solitude because I am the only child of them. Looking back on my years of writing Candy story, I realize that I healed my pain by writing. (quote: "Interviews with Manga Authors" by Itou Ayako. Doubun Shoin inc.)

The manga was adapted into anime television series in 1976 by Toei Animation.
Since then Candy Candy have made her one of the more successful female manga writer.
The last episode of Candy Candy was written at Domaine De Beauvois, a chateau-hotel in France.
Mizuki said,

I wanted to say good-bye to Candice in beautiful place. If possible, I wanted to go to the U.K. When I was into the room, tears welled up in my eyes because a picture of fox hunting was hung on the wall. Fox hunting--it took Anthony's life. When I remember Candice, autumn days at the beautiful hotel came to my mind. The hotel was like the villa of Ardray family. (quote: "Interviews with Manga Authors" by Itou Ayako. Doubun Shoin inc.)

Since 1980, she is mainly writing juveniles and love stories for young girls as Keiko Nagita.
Her Fuko to Yurei series is especially popular. Music for Fuko to Yurei series was composed by Toru Okada who is a member of Japanese famous rock group Moonriders, the album called Siriau Maekara Zutto Suki was released in 1995.

In 1990, she was shocked at the discovery that manga artist Yumiko Igarashi had embezzled from Candy Candy business. Igarashi had been selling merchandise based on her illustrations without the consent of Mizuki.
And Igarashi sold her fans terribly poor quality offset prints of Candy as "top quality fine art prints" for 140,000yen.
When Mizuki realized how vicious she was, Mizuki took legal steps against Igarashi and her accomplices.
Then, Igarashi made a false statement to escape punishment. She said "I draw Candy Candy based on the story I wrote all by myself, and Mizuki's story is not the original".
But Kodansha produced representations to certify that manga Candy Candy was based on Mizuki's unpublished novel.

October 25, 2001, the Supreme Court of Japan has echoed decisions by two lower courts stating that the manga artist could not sell goods based on the series without the author's consent.
Igarashi infringed Mizuki’s copyright and TOEI's trademark right, and she disseminated defamatory literatures against Mizuki. TOEI said Mizuki that they probably could not produce the DVD of the anime because of the "Candy Candy scandal".
Then Mizuki made a decision that she does not permit the reprint of the manga until Candy is purified.

Fuuin Sakuhin no Yami Kenji Ando ISBN-13: 978-4479301288

Kodansha replied for Kenji Ando, a Japanese energetic documentary writer, "Igarashi swindled Mizuki. Unless she admitted her sin and apologized to Mizuki, Candy business will not be broken the deadlock."

When (classic) Candy Candy novel was republished by BOOK-ing, Inc. in 2003, Igarashi slandered Mizuki. After that Igarashi palmed off "Lady Lady, the imitation Candy" on Taiwanese. And at Taiwan, "licensed" DVD set is sold---of course, Mizuki and TOEI have nothing to do with the "licensed" DVD.

After that Igarashi Yumiko Museum in Kurashiki Okayama which Igarashi's accomplice Seiko Mitsushiro manages displayed Candy Candy arts without Mizuki's permission. And Kunio Nagatani, a sympathizer of Igarashi, slandered Mizuki and Kodansha.

In November 2008, Mitsushiro threatened Mizuki's young daughter, based on the gossip which Nagatani concocted. 2009,
Mizuki's legal advisers warned Nagatani and Mitshushiro for defamation of character. Nagatani promptly kowtowed and made flattering remarks to her. But Mitsushiro still continued the slander.

Akaimi Hajiketa (A Red Berry Has Dehisced) songwriter: samfree(SAM) vocalist: Hatsune Mikuku

Keiko Nagita's short story Akai Mi Haziketa (A Red Berry Has Dehisced) is printed in Japanese Primary School Textbook for 6th grade (Mitsumura Tosho Publishing Co.,Ltd.).
Dojin artist samfree was inspired the story, and he made a song for VOCALOID Hatsune Miku. The song is honored at the Hatsune Miku Hall of Fame.

For Japanese who read the story in their teens, "a red berry has dehisced" means "fall in one's first love."

She won Japan Juvenile Writers Association Prize 2007 for Rainette, Kin Iro no Ringo, a love story of a Japanese girl and a Belarusian boy who was exposed to radiation of Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.

May 2008, she wrote a story for Shoujo manga after an interval of 18 years. The manga Loreley was drawn by Kaya Tachibana.

She has a husband and a daughter, they enjoy vacation at their cottage in Prince Edward Island every summer. Terry Kamikawa, a student of Anne of Green Gables and hostess of Blue Winds Tea Room in P.E.I, is her best friend.

She has a collection of heart shaped objects, a part of her collection is shown on Aoitori Bunko official site.



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