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I was invited to write a short story centered around the theme "Bed" for IVY, a literary magazine of Poland published by Elipsa SP Zoo and my short story "The Futon at Matsumoto Castle" will appear in their January issue. I will post it on my website when I get my copy! The Editor, Ms Karolina Szarawarska interviewed me and here is an excerpt of the interview which will also appear in IVY.... 1. You graduated in law, so from where comes your passion for writing? To be honest, I always had a passion for writing ever since I was a child. I started reading at the age of 4 and my first book was published when I was 15! I was paid $250 for that. a BIG sum for a kid back then!! But my parents were worried I was never going to make a good living from writing so they insisted I do a professional degree to fall back on and I chose law because it was the closest to writing! 2. Do you work as a lawyer and being a writer is something additional to
your main job? Yes I work as a legal consultant in real estate and wrting is additional but it is my real love!
3. How does your education influence your writing?
I think writing is something which is inborn in a person who either has a flair or talent or doesn't. Education helps to cultivate maybe a style and correct writing structure but the talent is inborn.
4. When did you start writing?
Wow, seems to me since I was very young, I was forever scribbling things on pieces of papers! And as I mentioned earlier, I had a first book when I was 15 years old!
5. Do you prefer describing some historical stories? "Butterfly in the
wind" is set in XIX century, and the story about a female kamikaze in the
second world war, just to exemplify...
Let's say I like to write about the lives of unique people, especially women and I do have a fascination for history and how it shapes society. Sometimes the world moves on and forget historical figures who made an impact on the world and sometimes, I like to make them come alive again, especially those that society would rather forget, like Awa Maru, Aum Shinrikyo or Japanese Rose!
6. Or do you try just to describe interesting people?
Well, yes, I like doing that too, there are lots of interesting people so I choose my subjects carefully. They are usually women who were misjudged, abused and rejected in history but today are honored and recognised like Okichi in "Butterfly in the Wind" or the eternal mystery of the woman kamikaze pilot in Japanese Rose and the great female writer of the Meiji Era Ichiyo Higuchi in "A Note from ichiyo" whose face today appears in Japan's 5,000 yen notes, the only female ever to have been accorded that honor! So it's not just interesting people but unique people with hidden stories that must be told!
7. Or do you try to raise some controversial matters because you are
against some stereotypes or divisions of Japanese culture, even if those
divisions were actual in the past years?
Yes, in a way, in particular I feel strongly about how women were side tracked and dismissed as unimportant in Japan especially in the Meiji edo eras, it was always the women who were short changed and blamed and if they wanted to seek recognition of their talent like Ichiyo Higuchi, they had to fight so hard to get anywhere.
8. What is, in your opinion, great in Japanese culture and other countries
should follow and what is not so great?
Well, I think one of the great things that helped build Japan from the destroyed ashes it was after the war to an economic power was this selflessness of the people of putting society and country above self and the ability for hard work and sacrifice. I have travelled far and wide and whenever I return to Japan I always notice and appreciate how safe and you know honest people are. Even if you leave your things outside or your front door unlocked, you never feel that your things are going to be missing when you get back.I also like the consideration for the comfort of other people,e.g. people in japan will not think of littering the streets etc not because they are forced by law against littering but its just inborn pride to keep their cities clean and if you are in a crowded train you don't talk loudly so your fellow passengers will not be disturbed, you know things like that. Of course there are things about Japan that could be much better, I mean for a country which is supposed to be so technologically advanced e.g. Japanese society can be amazingly traditional and old fashioned in their way of doing things! Also this fear of being different and always wanting to follow the crowd! Japanese society I feel is too "closed" and its difficult for foreigners to fully integrate into the local scoiety. I am considered to be a bit of an eccentric Japanese! This has good points because Japanese people are very tolerant of the idiosyncracies of nonconformist "gaijins" or foreigners so it helps to be mistakened for a gaijin at times because I can be forgiven for any transgressions!!!!
9. How does life in Japan look from your prespective? Would you like to
live in some other place?
Well, yes and no. I love Japan, the safety, the people's pride in their country and themselves and of course all the litle things like food, the onsens or hot springs which I would miss very much if I were away for any great length of time and travelling around Japan's beautiful mountains and enjoying the curious mix of the ultra modern, chic cosmopolitan life in big cities like Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya etc and the tranquil, totally zen calm of the villages in the deep interiors of Japan where some people have never even seen a foreigner! But for an eccentric Japanese like me and a writer, i also need to get away from the closeness of my country to, so to speak, break away to enjoy the beauty and culture of other countries but if I were away too long, i would still miss Japan. So my ideal in the future would be to spend some months a year in Japan and the rest abroad.
10. You are a journalist as well. Can you tell to which paper you're
writing and what about? Yes I did a course in journalism after law and I am currently asssociated with the Australian News Syndicate in Sydney as a freelance journalist. I don't work for any paper as free lance gives me the flexibility to write books and work in my other legal job. I did do a few pieces but concluded that journalism is not really for me because journalists are supposed to report neutral facts and can't get too emotional but I am an emotional writer so I am much better at writing books where I can be as emotional as is needed! 11. What do you do in your free time? I LOVE travelling because travelling opens my eyes to so many cultures, people and the happiness or woes and pain of people outside my own world and as a writer I really need to know! I also like simple things like playing with my dog and spoiling him silly! In fact I wrote a book about him "My Name is Eric" which some publishers found highly entertaining and its published in a few languages! I also love movies, funny sitcoms like, would you believe it, "Ugly Betty"? I like it because Ugly Betty rebelled against the stereotyping of having to be beautiful, sexy to succeed in tne fashion world and she made it! And as I grow older I am becoming more aware that I have less and less time to make a difference to someone's life so I am now taking a great interest in projects like "Adopt a child" etc...can you imagine, all I have to do is give up a pair of shoes a month and an impoverished child somewhere in the world can be helped!!!
12. What makes you happy?
I think I feel happy if I manage to produce a good book which doesnt happen all the time, I assure you! As I said as I grow older I have started to think less of myself and what I want and think more of how I can make a difference to really poor children and women and a trip to India really made me see how self indulgent we can all be. I hope I can do more for the "Adopt a child" program in the future and I think if I receive pictures and progress reports of "my child" that makes me happy.
Of course other less emotional pursuits like retail therapy, (which woman will ever say no to that??) and bonding with family and friends also make me happy. I have a long list but hey, I don't want to bore you with it! End of Interview! |
