I created #100QuestionsForWriters and I'm going to answer them

"Why do I write so desperately?"

It's 2:00 AM, and the only sound is my husband's breathing. My smartphone glows in my hand as I tuck myself under the covers.
My eyelids slowly close, and I regain consciousness as the phone slips from my hand, but then my eyelids close again immediately.
The cursor on the small display doesn't move at all. I want to sleep. I have work tomorrow.
Even so, I want to write this novel. I want to finish it, even if it's at a snail's pace. But why?

*

I've created my first-ever doujinshi with three creators I admire whom I met on note: Noyagi-san, Sarano Nekono-san, and Yagiteki Tetsuya Kimura-san. It's amazing that I got to work with these three.

It's called "Midnight Inter".

Works created quietly in the middle of the night reach someone's palm, transcending time and place. That work becomes a light for someone, gently illuminating the dark night.
I believe that internet creation has that kind of power.

And "Midnight Inter" is "a literary doujinshi that's like a cultural festival for people who enjoy creating on the internet" (Editor-in-Chief Noyagi).

#MidnightInter We are looking for episodes about your creative journey, the kind you might encounter on the internet

"Midnight Inter" is a cultural festival.
I want it to be a festival where people can rediscover the joy of creation, where creators feel energized and think, 'Alright, let's do this!', and where readers feel excited, thinking, 'I've found another wonderful work!'

So, as a festival project, we are calling for your episodes about your creative journey!!

To participate in the festival, just post on note with the hashtag #MidnightInter👌
If you'd like, please tell us about the creative episodes that have stayed in your heart ☺️
I've provided the details in Noyagi-san's note below, so I'd be happy if you could read it.

I created #100QuestionsForWriters

So, I wanted to post my own creative episode for this festival, but I was very worried about what angle to take.
For me, creation is almost synonymous with living. The angles are infinite, and I didn't feel like I could choose just one.
But then, another part of me whispered, 'Hey, why don't you just write as much as you want?'
'That's true. In that case, maybe I'll do a Q&A format—that sounds fun!' I thought.

I created #100QuestionsForWriters!!

If there's anyone out there worrying, 'I think I'll participate in the Midnight Inter festival, but what should I write?', please feel free to try #100QuestionsForWriters ☺️
I'll be overjoyed if you answer all the questions, and if there's a question you feel like talking about, you're more than welcome to just expand on that one!

#MidnightInter and #100QuestionsForWriters tags, I will be eager to come and read them ✨
Of course, it's fine to enjoy the 100 questions regardless of the "Midnight Inter" festival.
Also, I've prepared PDF and Word files so you can see the list of questions.
Please feel free to download, copy, and paste them as you like!

...So, the introduction has become quite long, but here is the #100QuestionsForWriters Ponoko Ono edition!!

#100QuestionsForWriters

1. What kind of works do you write?

Essays or novels that feature delicious food

2. What kind of work do you like writing the most?

Novels where, no matter how much despair the protagonist faces, they are eventually enveloped in a faint light (whether I've managed to write that or not is another story)

3. What is the origin of your pen name?

Ono comes from the softness of the sound. 'Ponoko' is a combination of the name of my family's late beloved dog and 'kinoko' (mushroom—my hairstyle is a mushroom cut).

4. When did you start creating?

I started creating in a real sense in 2009. I updated my goo blog every day for about two years.

5. What inspired you to start creating?

Heartbreak and unemployment.

6. What are your memories of your first creative work?

I quit a job at a hotel on an island that I had joined as a new graduate after just over a year, and returned to my hometown feeling both self-loathing and relief. At that time, I was overwhelmed by Mt. Fuji as seen from the window of the Tokaido Shinkansen, and I impulsively spoke to a stranger sitting in the seat next to me.
When I wrote about this incident, which was trivial to others, on my blog, my ex-lover read it and praised me highly. I have forgotten his actual words, but they remain a charm for me even now.

7. Were you good at writing compositions when you were a child?

I was not. Book reports, in particular, were an ordeal because I didn't know how to write them.

8. What is the happiest moment when you are creating?

The moment I finish writing.

9. Is there anything you won't compromise on when writing?

Not intentionally trying to hurt anyone.
However, my words might unknowingly become a blade and stab someone. I want to always be conscious of that when I write.

10. What does 'writing' mean to you?

One of the things that keeps my life and the world connected. To write is to live.

11. What kind of writer do you want to be in the future?

A writer who makes someone think, 'I'll go back and read Ponoko's novels' when they are feeling down.

12. What do you do to polish your writing skills?

Reading novels by my favorite authors and reading everyone's notes.
Trying things I have no experience with.

13. What is a 'good piece of writing'?

That's a tough one.
I think writing that makes you unable to sit still after reading it, and makes you want to start something new, is amazing. Writing that moves you to action.

14. Do you like reading?

I can't really say this out loud, but I have intense waves of liking it and finding it a chore, so I might not be able to say I like it.
Ever since I was a child, I've had a strong feeling that it's exhausting to be moved by amazing works, not just books, and I feel like it's a complex of mine. I think myself that it's a wasteful way to live.

15. Who are your favorite authors?

Banana Yoshimoto, Haruki Murakami, Mieko Kawakami, Yoko Ogawa

16. What are your favorite books?

Banana Yoshimoto's 'Kitchen' and 'Dead-End Memories'
Mitsuyo Kakuta's 'Woman on the Other Shore'
Hiromi Kawakami's 'Strange Weather in Tokyo'
Michael Pollan's 'Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation'

17. What books do you read repeatedly?

Banana Yoshimoto's 'Kitchen' and 'Dead-End Memories'

18. What books do you want to read now?

Mimi Nagai's 'Sewing Machine and Goldfish'
I stopped reading halfway through because it was so intense, but I want to read it. However, it takes a lot of physical and mental energy.

19. Who or what has influenced your creative work?

Banana Yoshimoto, Haruki Murakami, Naomi Takayama, an old lover who wanted to be a novelist, everyone on Note, my parents, my husband, Naoshima, Nasu

20. What is a favorite sentence from someone else's work, such as a book or a note?

21. What do you tend to pay attention to when reading other people's work, such as books or notes?

Parts where the meaning and the sound resonate and flow pleasantly.

22. If you could take three books to a desert island, what would you choose?

Banana Yoshimoto's 'Kitchen', Michio Hoshino's 'Traveling Tree', Naomi Takayama's 'Cooking = Naomi Takayama'.

23. If you could say one thing to your 10-years-younger self, what would it be?

I'm saying this from the bottom of my heart that 'I am the happiest I've ever been right now,' so please keep living with peace of mind.

24. If you could ask your 10-years-older self one question, what would it be?

Did you finish the novel about the canned tomatoes?

25. What is a creative failure you can talk about now that you couldn't before?

There are countless failure stories, but the embarrassment still wins out, so I can't say them yet...

26. Do you do any creative work other than writing?

I love cafe hopping and taking pictures of sweets with my mirrorless camera.

27. If you were forbidden from writing, what would you do?

Cooking, singing at home.

28. If you were told you had one week to live, would you still create?

I'd like to write for about two hours a day...! Other than that, I want to laugh and cry with my husband. If I can still eat, I want to eat as much of my favorite food as possible.

29. Would you want to be a 'writer' again if you were reborn?

I would.

30. What is your strength as a writer?

People tell me I'm good at describing food. Also, I'm competitive and don't give up easily.

31. What is your weakness as a writer?

I lack a broad education. I believe that the more homages and references one can make, the richer the world of the work becomes, so... it's fatal for a writer.

32. What is your motto in creative writing?

This is also my motto in life: 'The best day to start is the day you decide to.'

33. If you had to name three charms of your work, what would they be?

They make you hungry.
They are soothing.
There are few typos or omissions (I hope...)

34. If you had to name one of your own works that you like, what would it be?

35. Which of your own works would you want people to read first?

36. What is your favorite sentence from your own work?

37. If you had to compare your work to a color, what would it be?

It might vary depending on the work, but I hope it would be a pale yellow, like the image of happiness when you are full.

38. Which of the five senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell) does your work lean toward?

Taste. I have a sense of weakness when it comes to hearing.

39. Does your work have a theme song?

Some of them do!
For example,"Vanilla Ice Cream of Reminiscence" is "Aliens" by Kirinji.

40. Are there any themes or motifs you find yourself writing about?

The preciousness of my husband, the deliciousness of food, and independence from my mother.

41. Are there any writing expressions you find yourself using often?

Oh, I totally get that. I get depressed by my own lack of vocabulary.
Recently, I noticed that I've been using the phrase "...so it's strange" one after another.
Even though I frequently search my past works to make sure I don't repeat expressions... it's embarrassing.

42. What kind of work do you want to write next?

I want to write a novel based on an accident that actually happened. Or rather, I am writing it, but it's not progressing very well.

43. If your work were to be published as a book, who would you want to write the blurb?

Banana Yoshimoto

44. If your work were to be adapted into a live-action film, who would you want to star in it?

The four actors from "Quartet"!!!

45. Do you keep a diary that only you read?

I only keep a record of my meals.

46. When do you feel like a "writer" in your daily life?

Even when something depressing happens, the moment I calmly think somewhere in my head, "I can use this as material for my writing..." (and sometimes even feel happy about it).

47. Do you write every day?

I write something or other.

48. Do you think about your creative work even when you're not writing?

Except when I have to focus entirely on my job, I'm almost always thinking about the work I'm currently writing.
However, I have a lot of distracting thoughts like "I have to write quickly," "What if I can't write?" or "What's the point of writing?"

49. Why do you continue to create?

Because I've discovered the pleasure of finishing a piece...!

50. How do you boost your motivation for creating?

I walk around the city alone, sit on a bench in a shopping mall or department store, and just zone out.

51. What is your reward for working hard on your creative projects?

Going to my favorite cafe alone

52. Have you ever wanted to quit creating?

I've wanted to quit out of sulkiness many times, but I never truly wanted to stop in my heart. What a troublesome person I am.

53. What do you do when you want to quit creating?

If a time comes when I truly want to quit in the future, that will be fine too. I want to trust my own choices. But first, it might be good to tell myself, 'Why not try taking a month off without writing anything?'

54. How do you get out of a slump when you want to write but can't write well?

Slumps are often caused by jealousy, so I take a little break from social media.

55. When do you most often come up with creative ideas?

When I'm shampooing my hair or cleaning the bathroom.

56. Are there times when you can't come up with creative ideas?

Of course there are, many times.

57. What do you do when you can't come up with creative ideas?

I keep writing down words that come to mind in a notepad, trying to find some kind of lead. However, when nothing comes to mind even then, I have a creative friend listen to me.

58. Can you work on multiple projects at the same time?

I can work on an essay and a novel at the same time, but multiple novels are impossible for me!

59. What do you use to write? PC? Smartphone?

I used to use my smartphone all the time because I felt it was closer to my heart, but lately I use my PC more. Perhaps the moderate distance and speed that allow me to view myself objectively are comfortable. However, I always do the final check on my smartphone. I think many of my followers read on their smartphones, so I check to see if it's hard to read from that perspective.

60. Are there any recommended tools or items for writing?

I think the typo and omission check accuracy of Google Docs is excellent...! I am also very indebted to the thesaurus.

61. When do you write most often?

On weekdays, before work and before bed. On weekends, while out or after dinner.

62. Where do you write most often?

The living room, in bed, on benches at shopping centers, on the train, etc.
Cafes are surprisingly not very relaxing for me.

63. What do you do to ensure you have time for writing?

Recently, I took the plunge and switched to shorter working hours!!
This might be a bit off-topic, but tweeting my #PonoPublicWordCount every day was a great way to force myself to write. It gave me the motivation of thinking, 'Everyone is cheering for me🔥,' and I made sure to secure writing time even if it was a struggle (though I'm currently taking a break from public word counts).

64. How do you flip the switch to start writing?

It's simple, but I just open Google Docs.
I don't have any cool rituals like smoking a cigarette or grinding coffee beans for a hand-drip brew.

65. How do you feel when you are writing?

It feels like I'm pointlessly wringing out a bone-dry rag because I just can't find the perfect expression.

66. Does it bother you if someone talks to you while you're writing?

I don't mind being talked to that much. My replies might be curt, though. I just hate it when people walk behind me.

67. What is your trick for maintaining focus while writing?

If I'm at home, I change into loose pajamas so nothing is constricting my body.

68. Do you listen to music or the radio while writing?

I can't listen to music I've chosen myself because it takes up all my concentration. I'm fine with the ambient noise of people or background music in a store.

69. Are there any foods or drinks you can't do without while writing?

If I have some delicious baked goods, I can do my best.

70. How do you take a break?

I eat delicious baked goods (I eat them whether I'm writing or not).

71. What do you pay attention to regarding your health?

Maybe morning radio calisthenics...
Also, I push myself until 2:30 AM!! If I go any later than that, I'll be dragging the fatigue for three days!!

72. Which work took the longest to complete?

Part of it is that I'm an incredibly slow writer, but it took me from the end of September 2021 to the end of January 2022...

73. Do you decide on the plot or structure before you start writing?

I usually decide it in my head.

74. Do you write in order from the beginning, or do you write your favorite scenes first?

I have an inflexible personality, so I can't write unless I go in order from the beginning.

75. When do you decide on the title?

At the end.

76. What are you conscious of when coming up with a title?

For essays, I'm conscious of the magic of combining things... like 'Husband x Nails' or 'Hiroshima Okonomiyaki Shop x Angel with an Osaka Dialect'...
For novels, I'm careful not to say too much. A sense of negative space.

77. What are you conscious of when writing the opening sentence?

Oh man, that's tough.
My boss at work taught me that 'the opening of an article should spoil a little bit, like a movie trailer,' and I keep that in mind for my private creative work as well.

78. What are you conscious of when writing the closing sentence?

The ending is something I really struggle with, isn't it?
I always end up wanting to sound cool, so I chant to myself, 'Just be as honest as you can~~'.

79. Are you particular about the distinction between kanji and hiragana?

I like to add a little extra 'gentleness' with hiragana. But if it leans too far in either direction, it becomes hard to read, so I check it with my own eyes to balance it out.

80. How many times do you revise?

Since 'writing' and 'revising' happen simultaneously, I don't really know the number of times...

81. What is the best thing about publishing your work online?

There are probably many things, but what comes to mind right now is meeting friends I want to keep hanging out with even when I'm an old lady.
Also, being able to create "Midnight Inter"!!

82. What are the downsides of publishing your work online?

Getting depressed because I end up comparing myself to others.

83. Do you have someone read your work before you publish it online?

I do not.

84. Do you care about the number of likes?

I do. I care especially when it's a piece I've poured my heart into.
But if I worry too much about what others think, my writing might just become bland and rounded off, so I want to cherish my own selfish edges and quirks.

85. What kind of people do you want to read your work?

There was a time when I was pessimistic and thought, "I have no reason to live." I want my past self to read it.
I would be happy if, after reading it, they thought, "Maybe I'll have some buttered toast." If you can eat, you can keep living.

86. What kind of writer are you often told you are?

Kind, warm.

87. Is there a big gap between how others evaluate you and how you evaluate yourself?

Cruelty makes up 60% of my heart, so I often think I'm far from being "kind" or "warm." I feel sorry as if I'm deceiving people...

88. Which of your works was better received than you imagined?

I updated my diary every day during Golden Week last year, and I was happy to hear people say, "I like this kind of thing too." As a slow writer, I tried writing with a sense of speed (I have since moved it back to drafts).

89. Do you do anything special to get more people to read your work?

I am particular about the title and cover image, which are the gateways to my work.
If I think, "My work is no good anyway..." it becomes a gloomy entrance, so I try to dress it up as best I can with the feeling of, "Look, look, look! Look at this wonderful work!"

90. Do you enter contests or public submissions?

I do. I want to submit a novel to a public call for entries within this year, but I wonder if I'll make it in time...

91. What words are you happy to hear from others?

When people tell me, 'I reread your work from time to time,' I'm so happy I could ascend to heaven. To think that someone would spend their precious time on my work over and over again...

92. What is a phrase that disappoints you when people say it?

If someone told me, 'That's a one-trick pony' or 'That's repetitive,' I'd panic, think, 'Oh no, they hit the nail on the head!' and disappear from social media for about a week.

93. Do you tell your family, friends, or people close to you that you write?

I only tell a very select few. By the way, whether or not I tell them doesn't really have much to do with how close or how much I trust them.

94. Is it embarrassing to have your family, friends, or people close to you read your work?

I definitely don't want my family to read it. For friends, it depends on the person.

95. Are you happy when your work is shared on Twitter or similar platforms?

I'm very happy, and it's so encouraging...!! Thank you all so much, always (tears).

96. Do you ever feel down when comparing yourself to other writers?

I dooooooo.

97. How do you cope when you feel down after comparing yourself to other writers?

Close Twitter and note, cry, and get a good night's sleep!

98. Do you want to actively interact with other writers?

I want to interact, but I'm the type who just watches from the shadows while feeling shy.

99. What is a work by a favorite writer that comes to mind right now?

It's this one by the esteemed Sasaina Sasa...! Sigh, I want to write sentences like this, but I can't. It's what I aspire to.

100. What is something you would like to ask other writers?

It's not directly related to writing, but I'd like to know what you want to eat at the very end of your life 🙏

Reflections on doing the #100QuestionsForWriters

Oh, it's finished...!
Creating 100 questions was quite a task, but answering them was ten times harder.
However, it was a good opportunity to reflect not only on my thoughts about creative work but also on my outlook on life. I realized that I am indeed stubborn, but I also have a generous side.

However, I wonder if anyone other than me will answer all 100 questions... I would love to read everyone's answers, so I'm waiting for them~~!

Oh, since I specialize in "writing," this was the "writer" version, but I would be happy if someone created #100QuestionsForIllustrators or #100QuestionsForPhotographers someday.

If you are participating in the #MidnightInter project mentioned at the beginning, please be sure to check out Noyagi-san's note as well.

And, and, I would be happy if you could pick up my first-ever doujinshi, "Midnight Inter," if you'd like.☺️
You can make a reservation from the link below.✨

My work includes my absolute favorite, "The Person Who Hides Their Face," and a newly written short story, "Yellow Messenger."

Well, putting myself aside, the works by Noyagi-san, Sara-san, and Yagi-san are truly wonderful!! During the editing process, I was so moved that I screamed many times. Thinking that you will soon be able to experience this excitement, I can't stop grinning.🤭

I feel that there are many wonderful encounters in internet creation that easily leap over people's imaginations.
I hope "Midnight Inter" becomes one of those encounters and continues to shine, even if just in a corner of your heart.