WHO am i?

Standing on the observation deck of the Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, I was looking at Tokyo’s evening cityscape and the rising full moon when someone asked me who I am. Just a stranger I met who wanted to chat in English about Japan, life, and interests. He asked me this in a very average way, but he wasn’t expecting an average answer.

My immediate response was “I’m a writer.”

“No, not a job. What do you just do? What makes you feel human?” Or something like that was his response.

I didn’t know how to tell him that writing and storytelling is just what I do, not my profession or my curated career path. I don’t have published novels or any submissions to magazines. I don’t have manuscripts for stories being sent to publishing houses or anything like that. I just like telling stories. I like capturing the ideas that flow behind my thoughts in the inky darkness behind my closed eyelids. I enjoy creating something from nothing.

I think about this conversation often. Each person has their own definition of what makes a “true” writer, but for me it’s the aching need to tell stories. Taking that fluttering ember of an idea and breathing life into it brings me joy. Writing is just one way for me to do that.

I may never become a best-selling author or leave behind a literary masterpiece that people will analyze for generations to come. That’s fine with me, a little disheartening, but fine. What matters most to me is that I took the time to write at all. If my writing resonates with readers at all, that in itself is a reward.

Thanks for stopping by,

Carley