[Walking Through the Creative Award Entries (3)] Essays that make you want to be friends with the author after reading

The Creative Award submission period is almost over!

One of the great things about this award is that you can freely read the works of the applicants.

Since these are all works written seriously with the goal of winning, they are all incredibly interesting. "Reading" such works is one of the real pleasures of this period.

That said, because there are so many submissions, some people might be at a loss as to which works to read first.

I would like to help readers find even a few wonderful works... with that in mind, I intend to introduce the works that I have actually read and been moved by.

Even if I have a connection with the author and that is how I came to know the work, I want to keep in mind the perspective of those who are reading this text right now when I introduce them.

📝 Works to be introduced this time

I will start introducing the works that caught my eye right away!
This time, I will introduce two essays by the same person.

(1) Three women around thirty tried their best to enjoy a small party

(2) The gears turned by social pleasantries

Author: Rii Ayano

🤫 In a word, the appeal of these works is...

"Essays that will definitely make you want to be friends with the author after reading them" is what they are.

💇‍♀️ Recommended for people like this

People who end up reading the columns in magazines at the hair salon

For example, even when you are handed a magazine at a hair salon, don't you find yourself reading the column section instead of looking at the fashion?

They are easy to read, but when you finish, you feel refreshed or gain a new perspective, and you feel glad you read them. I love magazine columns like that.

For those people, I recommend these essays.

People who find themselves chatting for a long time at a cafe

Have you ever found yourself chatting away at a cafe with someone you get along with, only to realize how much time has passed? I have (often).

You might have gone in at 1:00, but before you know it, it’s past 4:00 or 5:00, and you’ve been talking the whole time.

The topics range from love stories to books, work, and all sorts of other aimless chatter.

This essay really gives off that 'chatting at a cafe' vibe.

I also recommend this essay to those who used to love chatting but are now in an environment where they can't, perhaps due to raising children.

🩷 How you'll feel after reading

You'll want to be friends with the author right away.

Please read these two essays.

Three Women Around Thirty Try Enjoying a Small Party to the Fullest (hereafter: 'Party'), I’m sure you’ll all shout, 'I want to be invited too!'

Wondering what kind of essayist could turn everyday life into such a special time, I readThe Gears Turned by Social Niceties and was struck by her incredible sincerity in facing the things right in front of her. 'Gears' is a story that keeps you on the verge of tears, thinking, 'Not yet, not yet...' while your eyes well up.

Hearing about her past student days, when she was always giving her all to have fun... well, you just can't help but be interested. You become so curious about her that you can't help yourself.

It might be presumptuous, but I find myself thinking, I want to be friends with someone like this.

By reading her writing, I feel like I’ve already become her friend.

You'll end up reading all of the author's essays.

Why do you want to be friends with her?

I feel like the secret lies in Rii Ayano's 'writing style'.

Rii Ayano's writing style is incredibly pleasant. I wondered why it feels so good, and I think it’s because it’s 'true to life'.

She doesn't try too hard to impress, nor does she belittle herself.

I’m a woman too, so I understand that this balance is extremely difficult to achieve. But Rii's writing is always true to life. The honest desire that any girl has—to 'want to be cute'—is visible in her writing.

The person 'Rii' herself emerges from the writing style. That’s why, even if I can't see her face, I feel like she is right there.

For example, let me borrow the opening of "Party".

Ahhh, this is so good...

The cuteness overflows from the seemingly stiff writing style of "the author" and "is/does" (desu/masu vs. dearu).

It's as if a cute colleague in a crisp suit is whispering to me during lunch break, "Shall we wear dresses together sometime?", and it makes my heart skip a beat.

Once you finish reading, you will surely be thinking, "I want to read more of Rii Ayano's writing!"

Let's take a look at the creator page here.

One of the charms of Rii Ayano's essays is that "the titles are just too intriguing!" You end up clicking on the "intriguing titles".

It's just my personal theory, but I think titles that make you want to click them are right in the sweet spot between "I totally get that" and "Wait, what does that mean?"

I had heard of "hime-cut" somewhere, and it was in the back of my memory as a cute hairstyle, but I had a faint feeling that it would be hard to ask someone to give me a "hime-cut"... I clicked on this title without thinking.

Don't you find yourself thinking, "I totally get that," and wanting to talk more about this topic with Rii Ayano? I do.

Before I knew it, I was binge-reading essay after essay and giving them all my "likes" with all my might. That is the magic Rii Ayano's essays possess.

㊙️ Spoiler Corner: Let's talk after reading

From here on, this is a section that touches on the content, so I would love to talk with people who have read Rii Ayano's essays. If you haven't read them, please read Rii Ayano's essays first.

You don't even have to come back here (lol).

Decoding the charm of "Party"

I want to talk with people who have read "Three women around 30 tried to enjoy a small party with all their might," commonly known as "Party," about its charm.

(1) It's already fun from the preparation stage
This party, it's already started from the preparation stage, hasn't it!

The fun-looking participants, the decorations, and the delicious food.

For example, potato salad with "iburigakko" (smoked pickled radish). The author apparently really wanted to eat potato salad with iburigakko.

It also touches on the questions: Iburigakko in potato salad? And what even is iburigakko in the first place?

With the addition of "iburigakko," the potato salad, which was a side dish, becomes an unforgettable "supporting star." It's sure to become a favorite character.

By the way, do you add cream cheese? It must be absolutely delicious!

\Complete!/ ← How cute~~!!

And then there is Rii Ayano, who couldn't fit her luggage in her backpack after preparing so many things.

Going to a friend's house with a suitcase! You say? Even if the person herself felt like "this wasn't how it was supposed to go," I think it's nice because it feels special.

(2) A relationship where you both tease each other's seriousness

The friend's "Eh?" when seeing the suitcase, and Rii-san's "Why are you like that?" after buying glitter just for this day. And the fox mask (personally, it reminded me of The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask).

Teasing each other's seriousness. I love this kind of relationship.
It's endearing.

(3) Even adults can have "inexpensive fun"

I was moved by this one sentence.

When we were kids, hanging out with friends didn't cost any money at all, did it...? I feel like we used to go to the park or play by coming up with various things to do even when there was nothing there.

But when adults hang out, it always costs money, like going to cafes or out for drinks. Yet, even for such a fun party, it was just under 3,000 yen per person. It made me realize once again that with a little ingenuity, you can have fun without spending much money.

This part also reminded me of the "A very merry unbirthday to you!" from Alice in Wonderland, and my heart raced.

We should enjoy our daily lives. That's the feeling I got.

Decoding the charm of "Gears"

Let's unravel the charm of "The Gears Turned by Social Graces" (commonly known as "Gears").
If a friend who throws parties started talking like this, I would just cry right there. Thank you for writing this, Rii Ayano.

(1) The opening part, sinking deep into the heart

The opening begins with Rii Ayano reporting her entrance exam results to her teacher.

I read it again to write this review, and I almost cried.

This part really struck a chord with me. When I was a ronin student and the results didn't go well, I had a similar experience, so I understand. In truth, I wanted to cry out loud. Rii Ayano, who was surely thinking she had to become an adult because she was going to be a university student, said, "Well, the result is the result, so..." so bravely.

If I were in the teacher's position and someone said that to me, I would probably cry before she did. I would hug her and say, it's okay.

The teacher's words at that moment changed the author's future.

At the time, I couldn't fully accept it. I understand.
I would surely be the same. I feel like they are being considerate... The scene and state of mind become visible, and I feel as if I am re-experiencing that moment.

Now, entrance exams are just a passing point.
Even if you fail, the future continues properly... I've come to think that way. But it was different back then.

I thought whether or not I passed this university was everything in life, a crossroads that would determine my future. That is precisely why I feel the weight of this event and the weight of the teacher's words even more deeply.

(2) An encounter that begins with social graces
Thinking she couldn't be a ronin for two years, Rii Ayano intended to be a 'mask ronin.' A mask ronin is someone who attends university while preparing for entrance exams to another university. Therefore, the friends at the university she entered were 'temporary' existences.

Even so, Rii says "Let's get along" at a social gathering as a social grace, but this "social grace" becomes the seed of a great encounter.

A blonde girl talks to her at the gathering. The author is asked, "Are you interested in radio program production?" After hearing the explanation and receiving actual guidance, she begins to get interested.

This flow was written in the form of a truly "new encounter," and it was like watching a movie.

There, the teacher's words,"It's not about where you learn, but what you learn."came back to life. It struck my heart.

(3) A "journey" to re-edit one's own past

In this radio program production, students are responsible for everything from planning to broadcasting. "Student-like project proposals," street interviews, and acting as a personality as a listener for seniors... Rii Ayano accumulates many first-time experiences.

When she becomes a second-year student, she handles the radio planning and broadcasting herself!

Experiences like this truly become the nourishment of life, don't they?
Especially for those who have spent a long time in "classroom learning," such as studying for entrance exams or spending a year as a ronin, it feels like a new world is opening up.

The words"It's about what you learn, after all"also resonated in my heart.

I also think that it must have been much harder than what is written.
Interviews with other students, interviews with your mother...

Through those, I felt that Rii Ayano is "re-editing her own past."

I believe this is surely one of Rii Ayano's own "journeys."
When I realized that, I couldn't stop my tears either.

(4) And the content of the live broadcast

Although she was nervous during the 30 minutes of the live broadcast, she looks back on the professor's words and her own broadcast. It seems the professor said something like this during the debriefing session.

I thought the professor's words were surely her own unique words, born from the fact that Rii had sincerely faced her own past.

From these words, the image of Rii, who now writes unique and true-to-life essays, came to mind. Aren't her essays truly a collection of "the power to convey that only Rii can possess"?

I thought that was truly a "voice" that could only be conveyed by Rii, who has the courage to look back on the past and cherish the "present," no matter what fate she faces or where she is.

It's not that Rii specifically writes, "That's why it leads to my current essays..." She doesn't write it, but no, precisely because she doesn't write it, the reader understands.

The charm of Rii Ayano's works seen from the commonalities between "Party" and "Gears"

The two essays, "Party" and "Gears," have completely different tones.
The feeling after reading them is also the exact opposite.

And yet, for some reason, I find commonalities between them.
I think it's that Rii is sincerely facing the "present."

Amidst the frustration of university entrance exams, she happened to work on radio program production, and the live broadcast was done in such a state of nervousness that she lost her memory... and then time passed, and she enjoyed a party with her friends with all her might...

No matter what the subject is, she faces it head-on.
That's why she is so earnest, cute, and charming.
I don't think that's all there is to it. But I felt like I had discovered one aspect of it.

That is also apparent in her other activities. For example, Rii facing the difficulty of hiragana.

She tackles things that others might treat perfunctorily. It's not because she's virtuous, but because it's fun to do so.

I believe that attitude is what keeps attracting not just me, but many people.

In Conclusion: My Honest Impressions

I have never actually met Rii-san in person.

And yet, when I read her essays, I feel as if I have met her.

I think that is because Rii-san's essays are incredibly 'now' and 'life-sized'.She doesn't hide the version of herself that wants to be cute or polished. That is why it feels like sitting across from her at a cafe, talking for hours on end.

After reading two of her many essays thoroughly, I feel like I have caught a glimpse of why her writing is so captivating.

Thank you so much for letting me read them.