Continued: The Dream I Want to Fulfill

One year ago, I wrote an article like this. It was an article about wanting to read the "What are you talking about?" stories of children, and wanting to create a world where that is possible.

I wrote it sincerely, hoping it would reach someone. It was not selected for the contest.

However, I believe that what is written with sincerity will always reach someone. I have continued to write, believing that all along.

Just because it wasn't selected for a contest, I don't think for a moment that the dream is over. That is because I believe a true dream is to keep writing and keep creating until it comes true.

I would like you to know a little about the process of how the world of "What are you talking about?" that we have depicted has resonated with reality over this past year.

・Someone who was asked to give a lecture at an elementary school based on the article I wrote spoke about "What are you talking about?"

・Creators who handle "What are you talking about?" gathered, and 99 of us created an e-book.

・In order to ensure that the place and right for anyone to create freely and enjoyably are not taken away, we crowdfunded "What are you talking about?", carried out trademark registration, and it became a registered trademark.

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商標登録って「#なんのはなしですか」―自由で楽しい表現を守るためのプロジェクトー

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・Someone appeared who wanted to perform a stage play based on "What are you talking about?"

・I appeared on a radio program that featured the entertainment of "What are you talking about?" and talked about it.

・Goods and shops were born, with each person expressing their own sense of "What are you talking about?"

・Articles written as "What are you talking about?" received a response and were even picked up by newspaper media.

・As more people became active, people emerged who spread "What are you talking about?" to the outside world in visible forms, such as through art exhibitions and articles.

・Products were born through collaborations with actual companies.

・Elementary school artists were born.

・We started producing ZINEs and selling them ourselves.

・We exhibited at ZINE festivals, choosing to make "What are you talking about?" into a visible form and deliver it ourselves.

There is no end to the list, but these are all things that people who cherish the single phrase 'What are you talking about?' have actually made happen while laughing.

I want to see the continuation of this dream.

Because I wasn't chosen for the contest last year, everything became a seed, and people other than me began to spontaneously turn what I draw into the 'expressions' they love.

Come to think of it, not being chosen was the beginning of everything.

I applied to the 2024 Creative Awards because I wanted people to know about the world of 'What are you talking about?' and I wanted to share it. I gave it my all and wrote it with sincerity, but it didn't reach them either.

Even then, the people around me spontaneously moved to make it interesting themselves. Since then, two years have passed. I have continued it in earnest, and it has taken this shape.

There are so many times when things I've written in earnest don't reach anyone, and I feel like I'm about to give up.

Even so, I continue. I truly, sincerely believe in the power this phrase holds. I have learned that no matter how much I write, even if it doesn't reach anyone, if it is genuine, it will keep moving.

If that's the case, I think I should just keep writing more. Even if I keep failing, even if I'm not chosen, I think it's fine to keep showing this absurd way of life, continuing to share the world I believe in.

Please invest in this dream, as I wish to expand this world.

I want to hold 'What are you talking about?' back-alley markets and workshops.

The expression has expanded to the point where that is possible.

I want to create a place and time where many creators can bring their 'What are you talking about?' expressions and talk together happily and freely.

If you ask me what specifically I can do,

There are a wide variety of expressions: illustrations, sales of works, coffee sales, tissue calligraphy certification, soba-making workshops, calligraphy, haiku, poetry, Zentangle workshops, astrology workshops, how to create videos, animations, and games using AI, people who can sing, how to write lyrics and compose music, voice acting, reading aloud, and radio broadcasting.

These are expressions that were born while playing with 'What are you talking about?'

And I want to give lectures explaining 'What are you talking about?' I want to convey the sight of children and adults who, though they don't know why, gather there and seriously enjoy the small joys and sorrows of daily life, and I want to explore a form that makes people want to participate in this expression and serves as an entrance to a new world of expression.

Play is by no means worthless.

I want to create a new genre. I have always wished for this.

To enable everyone to express even the most trivial things happily and freely.

I am seriously aiming for this mission. Even if I don't reach it this year, what I put out into the world, through my own setbacks, will surely take shape again this year.

I hope that you will not deny what is being born now, but instead enjoy it and help spread it with me.

I believe that freely expressing and enjoying the joys, angers, sorrows, and pleasures of the tiny, mundane things in everyday life makes life worth living, even if it seems trivial.

I want you not to overlook the fact that many people resonate with that.

No matter what I write, I am often not chosen and it doesn't reach anyone, but I have not given up on anything.

Even if I don't reach them, the people who act seriously because I write are the only ones who matter.

I want more people to know about this situation and this world. That is because it is the gateway to finding joy in expression.

I want to expand a world where people seriously think about 'what is interesting' in what is already there.

Seeking just a little bit of a smile in daily life might seem trivial, but I believe that an irreplaceable way of living exists there.

Big things often stand out, but I want you to lend your strength to my continued shouting about the small things.

As a result, I still feel that it would be the best if we could laugh and ask, 'What is this story about?'

I will write again and again. Even if it doesn't reach everyone, it reaches someone. I think that is a happy thing, but I still wish for it to reach even more people who don't know me yet.

What is this story about?