What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Murakami: Inspiration and perspiration

Of course it was Thomas Edison who famously said that genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration - or something like that. Murakami, one of my favorite novelists, writes a book that shares his dual passions of writing and running (with focus on the latter). What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami is a candid memoir that shows how perspiration can be inspiration; running and writing goes side by side to drive the narrator to the success.

But the memoir is no Zen manual or inspirational memoir -- indeed there are no profound lines about reaching the finish line or stuff like that. The slim volume, like Murakami's novels, uses down-to-earth language, the same witty lines, and a very honest take on running, writing, and life in general. Here Murakami is not that masterful writer behind the scenes, putting dialogue on such unforgetable characters like Toru Watanabe of Norweigian Wood and Toru Okada. Instead, he is himself -- a shy person who gets apprehensive before a marathon, a writer who shares his , and someone truly

The determination of Murakami is impressive -- yet once again, instead of overthinking it, he doesn't search for meaning too much. He run because he simply wanted it; he just didn't seem to fit baseball and tennis. It is good that he applied the same passion and determination to writing. Thanks to that, we have the benefit of his books. This recent volume is one of them, and because of it I am inspired to run those miles as well!

Going back to Edison, inspiration and perspiration are those things that go hand in hand. Whether as athletes or artists, we need both. Whether 1% or 99%, the proportion doesn't matter. Ask Murakami and he probably will say the same thing. What matters is you do what you want and you follow through till the finish line.