Keisuke Jinushi was tired of seeing social-networking snapshots of his friends with their girlfriends, at weddings or with their newborn children. He was single and felt like time was slipping away for him while everyone else was happily moving on with life. He wanted what they had, and to flaunt it on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. So, he decided to do something about it: He created an imaginary girlfriend.

The girlfriend gave him attention. She went on dates with him. She even fed him food. And to prove it, Jinushi went to unusual lengths to take selfies with her, which he posted on social-networkng services to show his friends. Everything was fake, but he succeeded in creating a whole new life for himself.

In his book "Moso Kanojo (Imaginary Girlfriend)," published last October by Tetsujinsya, Jinushi, 29, illustrates this dream world full of love, excitement and success on the top half of each page, while on the bottom half, he reveals the sad and lonely reality. The selfies occupy the top columns, while below a wider shot reveals, in detail, how he staged them.