I read a really interesting interview with Haruki Murakami in last weekend’s edition of The Guardian. A very timely piece, possibly part of a build up to NaNoWriMo next month. I will be taking part and I think more people should have a go!
In the interview with Murakami, he talks about how he sometimes feels like he is living in a parallel world, and in the other world he never became a writer, and kept running a jazz cafe instead. He would have had quite a content life either way, especially as he is so easily pleased by cats (apparently)…
I get the feeling I could have lived a few other lives too, but I’m always glad I ended up in this one. It hasn’t gone smoothly, but it has been largely pain free, and I wouldn’t go back and change too many decisions (certainly one or two…).
By complete coincidence, I just finished reading his book Norwegian Wood, which I picked up recently in Ireland. It was totally different to what I expected, having previously read Hard-Boiled Wonderland And The End Of The World. I really enjoyed the storyline tho, and along with most of his readers find myself wondering how much of it is autobiographical.
Anyway, after a brief book-for-the-sake-of-a-book read of Crisis Four by Andy McNab (tacky, violent, entertaining), my next read is going to be On Writing by Stephen King. I have read it in the past but not all the way through, and being one of the most successful writers in the world, I can certainly take some of his advice.
The issue of what to try and write about next month is still on my mind, but I’m sure something will pop up. Also importantly, I am deciding where to try and write next month. Still being somewhat a homeless nomad, I am tempted to find a cheap location in europe and head there, possibly WWOOFing for the month to keep costs down, meet interesting people, and improve my fitness as a bonus. A preliminary browse has brought up some interesting options in Umbria and L’Aquila, Italy.
Equipped with my new laptop, which I have managed to install Ubuntu 11.04 on (a Linux operating system, alternative to windows or mac), the world is my writing desk. Firstly, I’m going to read The Guardian Masterclass ‘How To Write Fiction’, also free with last saturdays paper.
Arrivederci!
Peter Parkorr
SHOCK AND ORR 
Nice blog post. I am a big fan of Murakami and love how you never know what one of his books is going to do. For some reason, I really liked “Sputnik Sweetheart” – maybe because the story is a bit simpler (but just as mysterious) as his others.
Good luck and good writing.
Thanks Bill, maybe I will pick up Sputnik Sweetheart next. I like really surreal themes the most, with all the ‘is there a message here?’ that goes with it, similar to Philip K. Dick’s work!
Hmmm… People keep telling me to read Norwegian Wood…. is it worth spending a few hours of life on?
Yes, it’s a great read, lots of interesting characters and Murakami’s style is really enjoyable
Added a link to the interview with Murakami for those interested
Cheers, I’ll hunt a copy down.