writer shares with readers what he thinks about being a novelist; his thoughts on the role of the novel in our society; his own origins as a writer; and his musings on the sparks of creativity that inspire other writers, artists, and musicians. Readers who have long wondered where the mysterious novelist gets his ideas and what inspires his strangely surreal worlds will be fascinated by this highly personal look at the craft of writing. 'The world's most popular cult novelist,' Guardian. 'A master storyteller,' Sunday Times. 'Murakami is like a magician who explains what he's doing as he performs the trick and still makes you believe he has supernatural powers,' New York Times Book Review.