<The first things Haruki Murakami did after becoming a full-time novelist>

<The first things Haruki Murakami did after becoming a full-time novelist>

1. What I was most happy about after becoming a full-time novelist was being able to go to bed early and wake up early.

2. There were a lot of days when I went to bed at dawn when I was working at the store. After closing the store at 12 o'clock, cleaning up, paying for the slip, chatting to calm down, and drinking a little, it quickly became around 3 a.m., and the morning was approaching.

3. The first thing my wife and I did when we left the store and started working as novelists was to change our lifestyle. I decided to get up at sunrise and go to bed as soon as it gets dark.

4. It was a natural life that everyone thought of and a serious human lifestyle. I stopped doing business with customers, so I decided to meet only those I wanted to meet from now on, and not those I didn't want to meet as much as possible.

5. It seemed that such a small luxury would be acceptable to us, at least for the time being.

6. In that way, my couple turned greatly from an open life for 7 years to a closed life. I think it's good that such an open life existed at some point in my life and for some period of time. Looking back now, I learned a lot of important things during that period.

7. It was like a comprehensive educational period of life for me, and a true school for me. But I couldn't continue that life until long. A school is a place where you have to go (unknowingly) and come out after you learn something.

8. In this way, a simple and regular life began, getting up before 5 a.m. and going to bed before 10 p.m. It depends on the person, but in my case, the best time to be active throughout the day is the early hours of the morning. I focus my energy on that time and finish all important tasks.

9. In the following hours, I work out, handle chores, or take care of things that don't require much concentration.

10. When the sun goes down, I relax and no longer work. I fall asleep as soon as possible by reading books, listening to music, or relaxing. I generally live my daily life in this pattern (after becoming a full-time novelist).

11. Thanks to that, I think I've been doing well (and consistently as a novelist) for about 20 years very efficiently.

12. However, if you live like this, the night life almost disappears, and interactions with people are certainly deteriorating. Some people get angry. This is because even if there is a recommendation to go somewhere or do something, they refuse everything.

13. In my opinion, priority is needed in life. In other words, it is important to order how to allocate time and energy. Until what age you have a system like that firmly established within you, your life loses focus and becomes a mess.

14. (After becoming a novelist) I prioritized establishing a stable life where I could devote myself to writing novels rather than intimate exchanges with people around me. This is because the most important human relationships in my life must be built between an unspecified number of readers rather than between someone specific.

15. Many readers will definitely welcome it if I stabilize my foundation, create an environment where I can immerse myself in writing, and complete even a little high-quality work. Isn't this my number one responsibility as a novelist?

16. (Like that) I have spent my life for what means most to myself.

- Haruki Murakami, "The Story I Want to Tell When I Talk About Running"