Haruki Murakami

Haruki Murakami has been one of my favourite writers for a couple of years now. His books are incredibly surrealistic and wrestle with the quest of each of us to find that part of our souls which we have lost. They're almost shamanistic tales, really. I'm just finishing Kafka on the Shore now.

Murakami has written a short essay in the New York Times about how jazz played a role in helping him find his writing voice. It's pretty cool...

When I turned 29, all of a sudden out of nowhere I got this feeling that I wanted to write a novel — that I could do it. I couldn’t write anything that measured up to Dostoyevsky or Balzac, of course, but I told myself it didn’t matter. I didn’t have to become a literary giant. Still, I had no idea how to go about writing a novel or what to write about. I had absolutely no experience, after all, and no ready-made style at my disposal. I didn’t know anyone who could teach me how to do it, or even friends I could talk with about literature. My only thought at that point was how wonderful it would be if I could write like playing an instrument.

I had practiced the piano as a kid, and I could read enough music to pick out a simple melody, but I didn’t have the kind of technique it takes to become a professional musician. Inside my head, though, I did often feel as though something like my own music was swirling around in a rich, strong surge. I wondered if it might be possible for me to transfer that music into writing. That was how my style got started.