Haruki Murakami

I’m not a fan of organized religion. I think it’s a way of controlling people.

It’s not as if I’m trying to be mysterious. I’m just trying to be myself.

Writing novels is a lot like running a marathon. You have to be patient, disciplined, and persistent.

The most important thing is to be honest with yourself, and to write what you truly feel.

I don't believe in God. I believe in stories.

The world is full of strange and wonderful things, and it's the writer's job to find them.

I think that the most important thing is to have a good imagination.

The only way to deal with the darkness is to shine a light on it.

Music is very important to me. It's a way of getting into a certain mood.

I write for myself. I don't write for an audience.

The world is a complicated place, and it's the writer's job to simplify it.

I think that loneliness is a kind of freedom.

Sometimes fate is like a small sandstorm that keeps changing directions.

Every one of us is losing something precious to us. Lost opportunities, lost possibilities, feelings we can never get back again. That’s part of what it means to be alive.

Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional.

If you remember me, then I don't care if everyone else forgets.

And once the storm is over, you won’t remember how you made it through, how you managed to survive. You won’t even be sure, in fact, whether the storm is really over. But one thing is certain. When you come out of the storm, you won’t be the same person who walked in. That’s what this storm’s all about.

The world is a complex place, and it's the writer's job to make sense of it.

I think that dreams are a kind of reality.

The most important thing is to keep moving forward, no matter what.