#1 It’s Unknown how the Story Ends, which Makes it Interesting for Both the Writer and Reader
ーQ．Kiki’s Delivery Service has fans of all ages. I think one reason for this widespread appeal is the visual of a 13-year-old witch and black cat riding on a broom with a radio hanging from the broomstick. Why did you depict Kiki as a girl flying through the sky?
Kadono: When I was in university, I came across a magazine at the US Embassy’s library which featured a photo of New York from what seemed like the perspective of a bird. That shot stuck with me. I think the visual of Kiki flying in the sky was inspired by that. It was 360 yen to a dollar when I entered Waseda University. Original copies of British and American literature were incredibly expensive and out of reach for students. But at that time, students could visit the US Embassy’s library as long as they showed their student ID.
The library had all the latest magazines, from fashion magazines like Harper’s BAZAAR to literary magazines like The New Yorker. Japan didn’t have those kinds of magazines back then, so I kept going back to peruse them. They were lovely. It was during that time that I came across the photo of New York, which was featured in the weekly photography magazine Life.
ーQ． The photo was taken from a bird’s-eye view?
Kadono: Yes. The photo was black and white, and it was beautiful. With a bird’s-eye view, your perspective changes, allowing you to see things that were once out of sight. This is where your imagination can take flight, and it’s where stories come to life. After that, I married and had a daughter. When she was in junior high, she drew a picture of a witch. The witch had a hooked nose and was riding a broom with a black cat on the back. A radio hung from the broomstick and blew out musical notes. When I saw that picture, I thought to myself, “If I can tell this witch’s story, I’ll be able to obtain that bird’s-eye view.”
ーQ．What do you mean by that?
Kadono: If you don’t approach a story about flying with the intention of flying yourself, you won’t be able to write it. I imagined how fun it would be to fly. My daughter was 12 at the time, so I created a witch character who was around the same age. Also, my daughter’s picture depicted a witch flying while listening to the radio, so I gave my character a radio. Before I knew it, I had already begun writing the story.
The drawing by Kadono’s daughter featuring humorous depictions of a witch.
ーQ． And that story became Kiki’s Delivery Service. Kiki is 13 in volume one and grows up as the story progresses. In the final volume, volume six, she is 35 and has children. Is this how you planned the story to pan out?
Kadono: I didn’t really have anything set in stone as I wrote. I kind of played it by ear, which made it interesting for both me, the writer, and readers. However, there was one thing I decided on before writing: Kiki would only have one magical power.
ーQ．Why did you make that decision?
Kadono: It might have been fun to give her various magical powers. But if I did that, she’d be able to solve all her problems, and that would have made it a bit boring, don’t you think? Only having one power forces her to tap into her creativity and adapt to situations where can’t use that power. This makes her stronger and the story more interesting. In volume two, Kiki learns a new power: the ability to cultivate an herb and use it to create a medicine for sneezing. Her only real magical power, though, is her ability to fly on a broom.
[#2] As She Developed the Story, Two Thoughts Inspired Kadono to Depict Kiki as a Mother
[#3] Witches are Beings who Connect the Seen to the Unseen
