Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu may have parted ways with Square Enix in 2004, but he's still very much involved with the franchise by touring with Distant Worlds: Music from Final Fantasy. In various interviews he's talked about wanting to be a pro wrestler and a mailman, but recently he announced that he's coming out with a storybook called Blik-0, a cute (and maybe a little dark) short story about a robot with human-like qualities. It's a project that he actually finished three years ago and, but he now plans to write more.
"It wasn't until quite recently before I decided to make it into a book," he said in an interview at Comic-Con last week. "I didn't have an idea of where to go with it. I was thinking of doing a fan giveaway."
For Uematsu, writing a novel is similar to writing lyrics, so it was a natural progression for him. He also has experience writing for Famitsu, the most widely read magazine in Japan. When he's not away touring with Distant Worlds, he keeps himself busy with composing and writing.
"One of the biggest differences between composing music and writing novels is that writing is like a half hobby--I don't have that pressure," he explained. "There's more freedom to express inner thoughts, whereas composing you have to be more professional about it. In that sense, it's more rewarding in a different way."
The e-book will be available on iTunes sometime in August and includes mood-setting music snippets and hand-drawn art shown here. His long-time manager, Hiroki Ogawa, is the artist for Blik-0, even though he claims he doesn't have much drawing experience and started taking classes after the project. The music, of course, was composed by Uematsu himself.
What keeps the veteran composer going is seeing his fans at his show. Distant Worlds has taken him around the globe and he says the thing that surprises him the most is that there are so many people out there that appreciate game music. Ultimately, it keeps him motivated so Distant Worlds will continue, as long as game music fans keep supporting him.
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