I started sharing my voice, prepared to be told, 'You're just a writer, don't get ahead of yourself.'

I have to admit, I was a strong-willed writer from the very beginning.

I want to be able to say, 'I wrote this!' about the articles I write, and I enjoy planning and interviewing precisely because I have my own experiences and thoughts to bring to the table. I'm also happy to do 'I tried it' style articles where I put my body on the line. If possible, I want credit for my work.

On the other hand, being a writer is also a behind-the-scenes job... or so it should be. However, I made my debut as a writer six years ago in a media environment where writers were encouraged to use their own character and push themselves to the forefront. Before I knew it, my face and name were in my very first article, and I was pitching projects driven by my own personal desires.

To begin with, I've wanted to be a voice actor since I was in middle school, so I have a strong desire for self-expression.

Voice acting is also a behind-the-scenes job, but my idol was Yukari Tamura, an idol voice actor who performs live at venues like the Yokohama Arena and Saitama Super Arena. So, I thought that if I became a voice actor, I wanted to do live shows and events just like Yukarin!

That said, there was a prevailing sentiment that both writers and voice actors were craftsmen, and that the best ones worked quietly in the background, so I didn't say it out loud.

I remember pretending to say things like, 'I want to be an acting-focused voice actor.' I felt that if I said from the start that I wanted to be an idol voice actor, I would be rejected at auditions.

In the writing world, there were people called 'reader-model writers' who used themselves as a product to write, but there was friction with the craftsman-style writers, and the community was quite restless at the time.

Perhaps because of that, I put on a face like a craftsman writer. But maybe, deep down, I actually wanted to be a reader-model writer.

The reason is that I am strong-willed.

Because of that, while I was writing articles as a writer, I never stopped sharing my own personal content.

At the time, everyone in the editorial department showed their faces, but not many people were writing heavily on their own personal Notes, so I might have been a bit of an outlier. However, the editor-in-chief, who also wrote on their own Note, would read mine quietly.

It is difficult to measure a writer's ability. I love novels, but I don't have an overwhelming vocabulary or expressive power, and compared to people who are naturally good at listening to others, I'm probably not exceptionally skilled at interviewing.

Even so, I have written over 1,000 Notes alongside my work. Because I wanted people to see my writing and hear my thoughts. I wanted to share behind-the-scenes stories from my interviews, and there were so many things I wanted to write about.

Because there were people who said they liked my clumsy writing or resonated with my thoughts, I believe I am able to work under my own name today.

Perhaps as a writer, I should be competing based on technical skill. However, I decided to build my career by putting myself out there, including my character and the life I have led.

Maybe that's why I always felt a sense of guilt. Always wondering when someone would point a finger at me.Saying, 'You're just a writer, don't get so ahead of yourself.'

Of course, I think I can write as well as the next person, but I just liked sharing things, and I'm nowhere near the level of a super writer.

But even so, I wanted to work under my own name.

And the world changes in the blink of an eye. Everything can be turned upside down.

The idol voice actors who were once mocked so much are now in the mainstream; in fact, it's now said that voice actors must be able to sing and dance.

With the emergence of AI, the debate over 'what makes a chosen writer' has erupted, and the question has shifted from what is written to who is writing it.

Ultimately, perhaps what I, with my strong desire for self-expression, have been doing all this time wasn't entirely wrong.

I couldn't have said this six years ago when I started sharing my work, but I probably survived because I stepped forward as a writer.

There were jobs that came my way because I took that step forward, and the number of people who needed me increased.

That is why I am sure it was good that I had a high desire for self-expression, and it was good that I started sharing my voice.

I finally said it.