Ask Haruki Murakami — Translation of the Question Form
The site for Haruki Murakami’s advice column is open until Jan. 31 and while it’s in Japanese, he’ll also take questions in English. Want to ask him something but don’t know Japanese? Don’t worry, I’ve translated the fields for you:
Go here to write your question: https://reg31.smp.ne.jp/regist/is?SMPFORM=thl-nikdp-d6cb7b3742b99baef77969bc3627fea3
The ten fields are:
1. Pen Name (anonymity is ok)
2. Gender: Left Bubble=Male, Right=Female
3. Age
4. Job
5. Question Category: This is multiple choice and there are 4 options: (1) There’s something I’d like to ask or discuss with Mr. Murakami (2) There’s something I’d like to say to Mr. Murakami (3) Place(s) I like or dislike (4) About cats or the Yakult Swallows [baseball team]
6. My Question/Comment (1200-character limit)
7. Email Address
8-9. I agree with House Rules and Privacy Policy (must be checked)
10. I’d like to receive emails about Murakami and his works in the future (warning, they’ll be in Japanese)
To send click on the big black button on the bottom.
If you have any other questions let me know!
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Taiwan, Japan, Spain, and I 
January 16, 2015 at 9:07 pm
[…] Сайтът е активен на японски, но въпроси ще се приемат и на английски, а отговорите им и превод на това как можете да изпратите въпрос можете да намерите тук […]
January 16, 2015 at 10:13 pm
yay! thanks for translating this
January 16, 2015 at 10:30 pm
Thank you!
January 17, 2015 at 2:34 am
First of all: I’m a huge fan. I teach literature in high school and we are currently studying The Wind-up Bird Chronicle. My students seem to like it. I have two questions: What was the writing process like and what do you consider most important in life?
January 17, 2015 at 2:34 am
Hey there. Greatly appreciated of you for translating! Best.
January 17, 2015 at 2:59 am
Hi, just thought that I would add to this. Once you click the black button you will be taken to a confirmation page where you can choose to send (black button on the left) or edit (black button on the right).
January 21, 2015 at 11:53 pm
Thanks Noah. That was a BIG help.
January 17, 2015 at 10:28 pm
Hey I love his book! :D It’s so nice of you to do this!!
January 17, 2015 at 10:59 pm
You are a gem of a person!
January 17, 2015 at 11:06 pm
Hi, in between reading non fiction history books, I love to read your stories as they take me away to another world where anything can happen. I have read them all and wish there were more. You have a very unique writing style and I love it! Thank you and keep writing.
January 17, 2015 at 11:31 pm
Thank you so much for translating. I’ve submitted my question. Will I get a reply in English or Japanese? And will it be on the website or via email. Any idea?
January 18, 2015 at 10:29 pm
I would imagine you’d get an email notification if he answers your question, and that it’d be in English! He is already answering questions, some J-E translations are here: https://mrmurakamisplace.wordpress.com/
Here’s the page adding updates in real time: http://www.welluneednt.com/archive/category/%E8%AA%AD%E8%80%85%E2%86%94%E6%9D%91%E4%B8%8A%E6%98%A5%E6%A8%B9
January 18, 2015 at 2:54 am
After I hit the big black button, two more appear – which do I pick? Left or Right?
January 18, 2015 at 9:06 pm
See comment above from Noah:
Noah Says:
January 17, 2015 at 2:59 am
Hi, just thought that I would add to this. Once you click the black button you will be taken to a confirmation page where you can choose to send (black button on the left) or edit (black button on the right).
January 18, 2015 at 5:27 pm
Hi everyone! As a fellow fan of Murakami’s work, I’ve taken it on as a personal project to translate as many of these letters as I can. You can follow along at: https://mrmurakamisplace.wordpress.com/
It’s totally unofficial–I have no affiliation with Mr. Murakami or the publishers–but I love his work, and I could use the practice for my translation skills. Enjoy!
January 18, 2015 at 9:13 pm
Hi Lawrence,
this is great, many thanks for your effort to translate it! It’s so interesting to read the questions of Murakami’s fans and his replies to it. Without your work I wouldn’t be able to do it, so it’s highly appreciated!
Best wishes from Germany
January 18, 2015 at 9:11 pm
Thanks so much for this translation – I already posted a question to the page. :)
January 19, 2015 at 7:49 am
[…] https://jsmyth.wordpress.com/2015/01/16/ask-haruki-murakami-translation-of-the-question-form/ […]
January 21, 2015 at 3:01 am
Reblogged this on Thea Brooke Bibliotherapy and commented:
I am very excited about Haruki Murakami becoming an ‘agony uncle’.
His site Mr Murakami’s Place is in Japanese, but this site talks you through submitting a question to him in another language. There’s also https://mrmurakamisplace.wordpress.com/ which translates Murakami’s responses into English
January 21, 2015 at 5:46 am
Thank you so much for the translation!
Would you be able to read the email response you receive when you ask a question? (I cannot read the kanji because my Japanese is subpar and I’m just curious, haha).
January 22, 2015 at 9:09 am
Top: Mr. Murakami’s Place
Word Bubble: “Thank you. We’ve received your message. Murakami Haruki”
January 21, 2015 at 5:46 am
Thanks so much for this!
January 21, 2015 at 7:33 pm
Thanks a bunch! :)
January 22, 2015 at 12:42 am
[…] the English-speaking Murakami also answers questions submitted in that language; just consult James Smyth’s translation of the question submission form if you want to go that […]
January 26, 2015 at 3:00 am
Thank You for doing this!:)
January 26, 2015 at 3:25 am
Hi,can you pls tell me if the replies to the questions are emailed or one has to go through the answers posted on the site.It’s quiet difficult to follow the forum as I don’t know the Japanese language.
January 26, 2015 at 8:17 pm
[…] Haruki Murakami postanowił wcielić się w postać „wujka dobra rada” i ku uciesze fanów umożliwił im zadawanie pytań na swojej stronie internetowej! Zanim poprosicie go o radę musicie wypełnić formularz. Całość jest w języku japońskim, ale James Smyth już go przetłumaczył i legendę znajdziecie tutaj. […]
February 7, 2015 at 3:44 am
Does anyone know a place where there are translations for all the questions? https://mrmurakamisplace.wordpress.com/ doesn’t work and has been closed. Would super appreciate it.
April 8, 2015 at 10:54 pm
I don’t believe in magic and superstition.I think that sooner or later it will be possible to find answers to those questions that are considered to be magical and result of superstition. My personal experience (perhaps common to many others) provides me with irrefutable arguments.I feel that there is some “force”, I do not know how to call it, I could simply define it as a “natural force”.Now I’ll explain. I noticed that this “natural force” plays (maybe I’m wrong, but I think so) against me.When it hears or sees, I don’t know how to define it, that I do or I want something, it always prevents me realizing it.Everything goes wrong, nothing suits me, nothing more goes right. For example, when I think of doing something correct, without mistakes, after it appears that I made mistakes, which it did not go well. I must say that, even with women, I do not manage well. This “force” feels, that I run after a woman, I love her, I do everything I can to be likeable, that she falls in love with me, but there is nothing to do. ..It has always been like that. However, when I try to forget her, not to think about her and I can almost do and feel it, this “force” makes sure that she approaches me. And actually she comes back, but at that time I want her no more, I ended up with her. But then, if I forgive her little by little, later, again, it’s the same story. But is it possible that there is no peaceful relationship without these extremes, a relationship of mutual sympathy?With respect to business, when I think I was wrong, not to have done things correctly, at the end it appears I did very well and that everything went well. What is this force?What does it do?How to understand what it wants?And who or what is????
April 12, 2015 at 3:49 am
Hello. Is Mr. Murakami still answering questions? I have been catastrophically late in discovering this.
May 3, 2015 at 4:48 pm
I hope he still is, cause I just sent him a message
July 8, 2015 at 9:26 pm
Is there a way we can read all his reponses now that the site has gone off?