No matter how clear things might become in the forest of story, there was never a clear-cut solution, as there was in math. The role of a story was, in the broadest terms, to transpose a problem into another form. Depending on the nature and the direction of the problem, a solution might be suggested in the narrative. Tengo would return to the real world with that solution in hand. It was like a piece of paper bearing the indecipherable text of a magic spell. It served no immediate practical purpose, but it contained a possibility.
Haruki MurakamiI'm not afraid to die. What I'm afraid of is having reality get the better of me, of having reality leave me behind.
Haruki MurakamiWhat if I’ve forgotten the most important thing? What if somewhere inside me there is a dark limbo where all the truly important memories are heaped and slowly turning into mud?...the thought fills me with an almost unbearable sorrow.
Haruki MurakamiWhat I'd like to be is a unique writer who's different from everybody else. I want to be a writer who tells stories unlike other writers'.
Haruki Murakami