Ingrid J. Parker is a detective/mystery writer, best known for creating Sugawara Akitada

Sugawara Akitada

is a fictional character and a hero in a series of detective/mystery novels written by I. J. Parker, set in the Heian period of ancient Japan.-Introduction:The character lived in 11th century Japan, and came from a family of scholar-officials...

, who solved crimes in Heian era of ancient Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. She was born and raised in Germany.

She was the winner of Private Eye Writers of America Shamus Award for Best P.I. Short Story

Shamus Award

The Shamus Award is awarded by the Private Eye Writers of America for the best detective fiction genre novels and short stories of the year....

 in 2000, with Akitada's First Case, published in 1999.

She was, until retirement, Associate Professor of English and Foreign Languages at Norfolk State University

Norfolk State University

Norfolk State University is a four-year, state-supported, coed, liberal arts, historically black university located in Norfolk, Virginia. It is member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund and the Virginia High-Tech Partnership.-Academics:...

 in Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

. Writing detective mysteries set in ancient Japan was an incidental result of initial research into 11th century Japan out of professional interest in Japanese literature

Japanese literature

Early works of Japanese literature were heavily influenced by cultural contact with China and Chinese literature, often written in Classical Chinese. Indian literature also had an influence through the diffusion of Buddhism in Japan...

 of the era. She was also influenced by the Judge Dee

Judge Dee

Judge Dee is a semi-fictional character based on the historical figure Di Renjie , magistrate and statesman of the Tang court. The character first appeared in the 18th century Chinese detective novel Di Gong An...

 mystery series written by the noted orientalist

Oriental studies

Oriental studies is the academic field of study that embraces Near Eastern and Far Eastern societies and cultures, languages, peoples, history and archaeology; in recent years the subject has often been turned into the newer terms of Asian studies and Middle Eastern studies...

 and diplomat Robert van Gulik

Robert van Gulik

Robert Hans van Gulik was a highly educated orientalist, diplomat, musician , and writer, best known for the Judge Dee mysteries, the protagonist of which he borrowed from the 18th-century Chinese detective novel Dee Goong An.-Life:Robert van Gulik was the son of a medical officer in the Dutch...

.

Her first short story about Sugawara Akitada ("Instruments of Murder") was published in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine

Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine

Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine is a monthly digest size fiction magazine specializing in crime and detective fiction. AHMM is named for Alfred Hitchcock, the famed director of suspense films and television.-History:...

 in October 1997.

She has written several Sugawara Akitada novels, but the series' first publisher (St. Martin's Press

St. Martin's Press

St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in the Flatiron Building in New York City. Currently, St. Martin's Press is one of the United States' largest publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under eight imprints, which include St. Martin's Press , St...

) decided to change the order of publication of the novels instead of following internal chronology. She switched to Penguin

Penguin Group

The Penguin Group is a trade book publisher, the largest in the world , having overtaken Random House in 2009. The Penguin Group is the name of the incorporated division of parent Pearson PLC that oversees these publishing operations...

in 2004 with the agreement to publish the novels in internal chronological order, which is: (1) The Dragon Scroll, (2) Rashomon Gate, (3) Black Arrow, (4) Island of Exiles, (5) The Hell Screen, (6) The Convict's Sword.

Books published

• Rashomon Gate (July 2002, St. Martin's Minotaur, ISBN 978-0-312-28798-6)
• The Hell Screen (September 2003, St. Martin's Minotaur, ISBN 978-0-312-28795-5)
• The Dragon Scroll (July 2005, Penguin Books, ISBN 978-0-14-303532-9)
• Black Arrow (December 2006, Penguin Books, ISBN 978-0-14-303561-9)
• Island of Exiles (October 2007, Penguin Books, ISBN 978-0-14-311259-4)
• The Convict's Sword (July 2009, Penguin Books, ISBN 978-0-14-311579-3)
• The Fires of the Gods (December 2010, Severn House, ISBN 978-0-7278-6989-0)
• The Masuda Affair (March 2011, Severn House, ISBN 978-1-84751-266-6)