Become Haruki Murakami

apart from talent, luck, choice, persistence, and the temperament of a long-distance runner, what is the reason why Murakami became Murakami?

he was born with an asceticism face, coupled with the acquired asceticism lifestyle, it is difficult to associate him with the decadent and dissolute novelist identity, of course, the latter is only the world's conjecture about writers and artists, and the former is Haruki Murakami, a novelist sought after by young writers and artists.

some people say that literary and artistic youth is a label that a person is unable to snatch rich resources in an materialistic world and huddles in his own spiritual world. Such a label can at least be used to show that he is rich in heart and independent in spirit.

Murakami, an asceticist, and an asceticist young man of literature and art have found something in common here, and this may be the only thing they have in common. Both Murakami's previous book "what am I talking about when I talk about running" and his latest book, "my profession is a novelist", show his image as a tough-willed and self-disciplined successful person. although this image continues to be shrouded in the harmless and indifferent temperament of Murakami.

Murakami's parents are teachers, and his mother, like most Japanese women, resigned at home after marriage. Murakami also married in his early 20s and led an ordinary youth's life. The only thing worth mentioning is that instead of joining a company after graduating from college and following the rules of promotion in the workplace, Murakami borrowed money and opened a bar everywhere, just to continue his life with books, music (especially jazz) and movies since high school.

under the strong social inertia system, he can respect himself leisurely and choose his favorite way of life, which may be the starting point of his achievement.

academic performance is only above the average level, but it is also enough to be admitted to Waseda University. When he started writing at the age of 29, his first novel won the Best New Artist Award for Group Portrait. For Murakami, the acquisition of what can be called "admission tickets" involves both talent and luck. It is neither meaningful nor necessary to discuss innate conditions that cannot be imitated or copied.

do not make yourself a victim of the examination system for entrance exams. From the very beginning, you can clearly distinguish what is learning that can benefit you for a lifetime, and what is the knowledge that will be returned to the teacher when you leave school.

since high school, he has persisted in reading original novels in English, letting stories feed him one after another, and music has developed good taste in his adolescence; these are the basis on which he was able to make the Apocalypse (you might as well write a novel) come true at the age of 29.

such a clear understanding is not enough to make him a famous novelist in the world. The most important thing is that he can be unmoved by the environment (in his adolescence, perhaps thanks to his parents' tolerance). Adhere to his own way of life, and this is the pattern throughout his life.

Haruki Murakami, who became a professional novelist, did not serve as a judge of the Literature Award, nor was he interviewed by the media. Even if he attached great importance to his readers, he never held such activities as book signing. He knew where his goal in life was, and he was only willing to devote his time there. In addition, in order to achieve this goal, design your own way of life-such as leaving Japan to go abroad when writing a novel, even if you have to pawn all your possessions. For example, for more than 30 years from the fifth year after starting to write a full-time novel, I ran an hour a day and took part in a marathon every year. and long-distance running also virtually developed the temperament needed to write a novel-patience, low speed and slow progress.

apart from talent, luck, choice, persistence, and the temperament of a long-distance runner, what is the reason why Murakami became Murakami? In my own opinion, he is constantly exploring inward.

at the beginning of writing a novel, as the only son of a Japanese middle-class family who had no experience of war (born in 1949), he lived a happy, mediocre life. He could not accumulate writing material with the help of the stimulation of the external environment as Hemingway did, but only by virtue of internal inspiration, if he wanted to get attention in the novel, he had to seek more originality in structure than innovation in content.

therefore, when he wrote the first book, listening to the Wind, he completely abandoned the first draft, while the first chapter of the second draft was written in English and then translated into Japanese. In English, due to the lack of ways of expression, he has to give up the difficult and complicated vocabulary and grammatical structure and complete the expression by combining common words in an economical way, which leads to the charm of the story itself. The translated Japanese works also show the original style of the author.

after getting a "ticket" from a professional novelist, Murakami not only adheres to his original style, but also his seriousness in writing for his ability to continue to refine his works. As his beloved Raymond Carver said:

Find a flattering black prom dress with slit for your upcoming events or dates. Large varieties of shapes and cuts for you to choose from.

if the story told is not the best one he can, then why write a novel? All we can take to the grave, in the final analysis, is the satisfaction of having done our duty and the evidence that we have done our best.

all Murakami's novels have been revised many times-which is why all great writers are great. After completing the first draft, we will make structural changes a week later, then the details, then the style, then listen to the opinions of a third party (the wife of Murakami), and then ask the wife to reread the revised parts. make further changes if necessary. After repetition, the official manuscript is handed over to the responsible editor for review, and proofs still need to be carried out again and again with the publishing house (refer to the recent hit Japanese TV series "proofreading Girl Yueko Kono"). In Japan in the 1980s, as in today's China, the more economic BubbleThe persistence of Murakami will be particularly valuable if he only pays attention to the efficiency that can bring money.

not only do your best before the work is written, but more importantly, respect time. In order to make the work stand the test of time, we must be friends with time: the gestation before writing; the deliberation after writing-Yin an word, twist off several roots.

for writers, the writing of novels is timed in years, and it is OK to complete a work, but it is almost impossible to finish 13 novels in a high producing area like Murakami without strict self-discipline and strong physical strength.

in my career as a novelist, Murakami almost confesses his writing method and his matching way of life, which he admits may not be a guide or introduction to those who aspire to be a novelist. He is only a "very ordinary person" with some aptitude for writing novels, but he is still shocked by the fact that he has been able to write as a professional novelist for 38 years (from 29 to 67).

because I have read almost all of Murakami's works and have the bad taste of understanding "the Hen that lays eggs". After reading Murakami's "autobiographical essay", the greatest gain is: anyone, as long as they stick to their preferences, not to mention 38 years, even 10 years, even if not as world-famous as Murakami, I believe they will achieve something, at least with a clear conscience, worthy of those past years.

how many people really know what they like? What do you really like? What can you pay for your preferences? In fact, everyone who does not want to let himself down must ask his own questions.