村上春树和他的想象世界

Murakamis career as a writer began in classic Murakami style： Out of nowhere， in the most ordinary setting， a mystical truth suddenly descended upon him and changed his life forever.

Murakami， age 29， was sitting in the outfield at his local baseball stadium， drinking a beer， when an American batter hit a double. It was a normal-enough play， but as the ball flew through the air， an epiphany struck Murakami. He realized， suddenly， that he could write a novel. After the game， he went to a bookstore， bought a pen and some paper and over the next couple of months produced Hear the Wind Sing， a short， simple tale of a nameless 21-year-old narrator， his friend called Rat and a four-fingered woman. Nothing much happens， but the Murakami voice is there from the start： a strange mixture of ennui and exoticism.

Murakami submitted Hear the Wind Sing for a prestigious new writers prize and won. After another year and another novel， Murakami sold his jazz club in order to devote himself， full time， to writing.

For 30 years now， he has lived a monkishly regimented life， each facet of which has been precisely engineered to help him produce his work. He runs or swims long distances almost every day， eats a healthful diet， goes to bed around 9 p.m. and wakes up， without an alarm， around 4 a.m.， at which point he goes straight to his desk for five to six hours of concentrated writing.

“Concentration is one of the happiest things in my ife，” he said. “If you cannot concentrate， you are not so happy. Im not a fast thinker， but once I am interested in something， I am doing it for many years. I dont get bored.Im kind of a big kettle. It takes time to get boiled， but then Im always hot.”

Murakamis fiction has a special way of leaking into reality. He often hears from readers who have discovered his inventions in the real world： a restaurant or a shop that he thought he made up， they report， actually exists in Tokyo. After publishing 1Q84， Murakami received a letter from a family with the surname “Aomame”， a name so improbable he thought he invented it.

Murakami insists that， when hes not writing， he is an absolutely ordinary man. His creativity， he says， is a “blackbox” to which he has no conscious access. He tends to shy away from the media and is always surprised when a reader wants to shake his hand on the street. He says he much prefers to listen to other people talk. He is a member of a running club in Hawaii， by far the oldest in the group， he says. He runs， as he writes， every day. “Most of what I know about writing，” he has written， “Ive learned through running.” His running style is an extension of his personality： easy， steady， matter of fact. “I like to read books. I like to listen to music. I collect records and I like cats. I dont have any cats right now. But if I see a cat while running or taking a walk， Im happy，” he said.

村上春树的写作生涯是以经典的“村上式”风格开始的：在一个最普通不过的场景中，一个神秘的真理不知从哪里冒了出来，突然降临到他身上，从而永远地改变了他的人生。

那年村上29岁，正坐在当地棒球场的外场喝啤酒。突然，一位美籍击球员打出了一个二垒。这是非常普通的一击，但当棒球在空中划过之时，村上脑海里突然闪现出一道灵光。他突然意识到自己可以写小说。比赛结束后，他去了一家书店，买了笔和纸，在随后的几个月时间里写出了《且听风吟》。这是一部篇幅不长、叙事简略的故事。该故事写的是一位21岁的无名叙述者和他名叫“耗子”的朋友以及一位四个手指的女性的故事。尽管情节并不复杂，但“村上式”的风格从一开始就展露无遗：那种奇怪的、混合着倦怠和异国情调的味道。

村上以《且听风吟》角逐一个威望很高的新作家奖，并赢得这一奖项。一年后，村上的另一部小说问世，之后他便卖掉了自己的爵士乐俱乐部，以便将全部时间投入写作。

30年来，直到现在，他一直过着一种苦行僧般充满清规戒律的生活，生活的每个方面都经过精确的规划，以辅助他完成创作。他几乎每天都要进行长跑或者长距离游泳，饮食健康，每晚9点左右就上床睡觉，早上4点左右不需要闹钟就能自然醒来，然后径直走到书桌旁，伏案五六个小时，专心致志地写作。

“能够专心从事写作是我一生中最快乐的事之一，”村上说，“如果不能專心，你就不会如此快乐。我不是一个思维敏捷的人，但我一旦对什么有了兴趣，就能坚持多年不变。我不会感到厌倦。我有点像一只大水壶，需要多花点时间才能烧开，但烧开之后就会一直保持热度。”

村上的小说有一种特别的渗透现实的方法。他常常收到读者来信，说他们在现实世界里发现了他的创造物：一家饭店或者商店。他原本以为这是自己的创造，但读者却说它们真实地存在于东京。在《1Q84》出版之后，村上收到了一个姓“青豆”（《1Q84》中的女主角叫“青豆”）的家庭的来信。这个姓氏非常罕见，村上以为是自己虚构出来的。

村上坚持认为自己不写作时是个地地道道的普通人。他说他的创造力是个“黑匣子”，无法在有意识的状态下进入。他经常躲避媒体，当读者在大街上要和他握手时，他总是感到很意外。他说他更喜欢听别人说话。他是夏威夷一家跑步俱乐部成员，他说目前成员中数他年龄最大。正如每天都要写作一样，他每天也要跑步。他曾经写道：“我的大部分写作知识都是通过跑步学到的。”他的跑步风格就是他个性的延伸：放松、稳定、务实。“我喜欢读书，喜欢听音乐，我收藏唱片，也喜欢猫，我现在没养猫。但如果在跑步或者散步时看到猫，我会非常高兴，”村上说。