Chapter 281: The Golden Turtle Son-in-Law

The applause this time lasted for a full two minutes before it subsided.

Because the content of this lecture made all the university students listening feel that they were not so far removed from writers and literature.

In Japanese society, the status of a writer is held very high—writers are rarely criticized for having affairs while alive, and great writers can even be printed on banknotes after they die.

Therefore, for some young people, becoming a published writer is a goal they deeply yearn for.

Even so, the number of people who can officially debut through new writer awards each year is very small, and one could even say it is one in a hundred.

It is precisely because of this difficulty that many family members, upon learning that their children want to become writers, will pour cold water on them and tell them to honestly go find a job.

Among the thousands of people listening to Akiwara Yuto’s lecture today, at least one-third are students from the Literature Force, and many of them have already faced repeated setbacks in their submissions.

So, regarding the future, most of them feel very lost, because if they cannot become writers, what is the use of what they are studying in university?

And Akiwara Yuto’s statement that "all creation is literature" undoubtedly gave them some comfort.

Even if they cannot debut as writers, everything they write can be considered a part of literature.

And upon hearing the continuous applause, Yoshikawa Yuichiro and several other veteran writers all revealed gratified smiles.

After the applause stopped, Akiwara Yuto waved his hand: "Today's content is finished, please students, ask some questions, and let us discuss them together."

The venue was silent for a moment, and then many hands were raised one after another.

At Akiwara Yuto’s signal, a staff member handed the microphone to a male student, who stood up and asked: "Mr. Akiwara, as a writer, how do you think one should debut?"

Akiwara Yuto replied: "Persistently participate in various new writer awards and continuously submit to major journals and magazines."

In the Japanese literary world, mystery literature and traditional literature remain the mainstream, and if one wants to get ahead in these two categories, winning a new writer award is the most reliable path.

When he first started at the Manga Publishing House and was not valued by Takei Kohei, a very important point was that he did not have any new writer awards.

And besides winning awards, one can only hope that the editors of journals and magazines will take a liking to one's submitted work.

But generally speaking, the feasibility of relying on such luck is relatively high.

The male student seemed a bit disappointed and asked again: "But I understand that all your works were self-published? Then can I debut through self-publishing?"

Akiwara Yuto sweated profusely; this was clearly a crooked path.

He was able to self-publish because he already had fame, the distribution channels opened by Anjiu Bookstore, and the ability to spend heavily on marketing and promotion.

If an ordinary person were to self-publish, it would basically be like throwing money into a puddle.

However, he could not point this out directly; he briefly explained the pros and cons, hoping the male student would understand for himself.

After he sat down, another female student stood up at his selection and asked: "Mr. Akiwara, what is the work you have written that you are most satisfied with?"

Hearing this question, Akiwara Yuto was speechless.

If he answered with one of his mystery literature works, he would likely offend the group of writers representing traditional literature at the venue, but conversely, the result would likely be the same.

He thought for a moment and said tactfully: "For me, the most satisfying work is always the next one."

The female student was a bit disappointed and continued to ask: "I also want to ask a personal question, do you have a partner now?"

Hearing this gossipy question, many people in the audience let out laughter.

Logically speaking, this kind of academic lecture should have a serious style, but firstly, Akiwara Yuto’s age is similar to everyone else’s, and secondly, he had just used humorous language to lecture.

So this female student did not respect tradition and asked a question that did not fit the "atmosphere."

However, to be honest, this question actually made many female students pay attention.

Japan is different from China; many girls' lifelong idea is to marry a good man and be a housewife.

And Akiwara Yuto fully met this standard.

Not only is he young, but his appearance is also slightly handsome, and he was even listed in the top ten of the writer rich list by some magazines.

He is definitely a prime candidate for a "golden turtle son-in-law."

Akiwara Yuto was a bit embarrassed, but still told the truth: "Not yet."

The female student said "thank you," then returned the microphone to the staff member, and at this time, bursts of laughter came from the audience.

After answering some questions one after another, this lecture finally came to an end.

After it ended, many students crowded around trying to get autographs, causing Akiwara Yuto to spend another 20 minutes signing for some of them.

An interlude occurred in the middle; when signing for a pretty girl, the other party specifically requested a handshake.

While shaking hands, this girl specifically scratched his palm.

Facing this action, Akiwara Yuto pretended not to notice, causing that girl to leave with some helplessness.

After all the students had left one after another, Kanno Takuo walked up and said enthusiastically to Akiwara Yuto: "Mr. Akiwara, your lecture was truly amazing."

He shook hands with Akiwara Yuto, "However, some viewpoints, such as that literature can be created by everyone, I don't think some of the old writers in the association will approve of."

These words of his were actually his own way of speaking, and the purpose of saying them was to pick at Akiwara Yuto.

After all, in the lecture, Akiwara Yuto believed that literature is not held in the hands of writers, but in the hands of everyone.

"Viewpoints can be borrowed and collide with each other, and what I just said was just my own thought as a new writer."

Akiwara Yuto did not respond to the other party's picking, but found an excuse to avoid the topic.

What is the definition of literature? Does what ordinary people write count as literature? What is the future of literature?

The academic world has too many standards and viewpoints; if he really had to debate them one by one, it would likely be troublesome until he died of old age.

So before the lecture started, he had already played the "new writer" card.

Kanno Takuo still wanted to have a good debate in front of other old writers of the association, hoping to make Akiwara Yuto "angry from embarrassment," but he didn't expect him to advance by retreating, so he was also speechless.

Just at this time, Yoshikawa Yuichiro and other old writers whom Akiwara Yuto did not recognize also walked onto the podium.

Yoshikawa Yuichiro looked at Akiwara Yuto with very appreciative eyes, and then put forward his own idea.

"Akiwara, the Classical Literature Association here hopes to invite you to serve as a director, can you accept?"

Hearing this proposal, Kanno Takuo revealed a look of envy, jealousy, and hatred, while Akiwara Yuto, standing on the side, also understood that he had passed their test and felt relieved in his heart.

However, Akiwara Yuto thought for a moment, but still gave the answer he had already thought of.

"Sorry, please forgive me for not being able to serve as a director of the association."