I didn’t attend my graduation ceremony when I finished university. I’m too lazy, and it was a waste of my time. By the time you graduate, you should be smart enough to know that your diploma is just a piece of paper. It’s just a social code of conduct.

And I wondered why His Majesty the King should waste his time on me. He should spend it doing something else that will have greater benefit for the country and the people.

The person who has had the greatest influence on me is my mother. She is open-minded about everything. She understood why I didn’t attend my graduation, while my friends’ mothers didn’t. They said one day I would regret not having pictures of the ceremony. But I don’t.

Sometimes we glorify books, making them out to be more important than they really are. You can learn about everything from books, but they can’t give you the type of life knowledge that you can get from other sources. Even some computer games can teach a lot to children. If we only read books, how can we know what is happening in the world?

At present, it seems like if you want to be smart, cool and clever, you have to read books. Suddenly somehow we have the feeling that we want to be a “book city.” But do Thai people really love to read that much? That’s the question we still have to answer.

I don’t see the significance—or the alarm over—the shift toward electronic media. It’s not that important. Whether you’re reading off paper or a computer screen, it’s the same, just a different format. What is important is the content, how we perceive it and how we put it to use.

The scientific method has gotten me to where I am now. I studied biochemical science and was molded by the scientific method, so I know how to reason.

I think some journalists lack core knowledge. They might know the method and the techniques and have a general understanding of subjects, but not in-depth knowledge in a particular field—whether it be music, science or law.

They say women only love to read “light” stories that are fictional or nonsensical. But that’s not true. When I worked on serious articles for Praew magazine, the feedback was very positive.

I have interviewed hundreds of people, memorable people like Pierce Brosnan and Brendon Fraser. But I was most impressed with Dr. Jettana Nakwatchara. He talked about the culture of criticism, which, in his opinion, is what is lacking
in Thailand.

Criticism is an integral part of the arts. Art should be criticized, and in turn we can criticize the criticism.

When I feel I have all the time in the world, that’s when I can write a short story. A magazine column might take 15 minutes, but for a short story I need to feel like I have an endless amount of time.

The short story A Woman Who Falls in Love with the Buddha considers the sadist and the masochist. What we learn is that the notion that a sadist is a bad guy who tortures his lover is a misconception. In fact the masochist needs pain in order to feel happy.

Sado-masochism isn’t an act of violence. It’s an expression of love. Like we kiss and hug, they punch and burn and slap each other.

When I write this kind of story, I’m never afraid of negative feedback. My book Gendersim, which is about homosexuality, was seen by some as divisive or “hardcore.” But it’s not. It just explains things in a straightforward manner like no one does in Thailand.

People do talk about sex and gender, but not in a theoretical way. The discussion is based on their own belief system. For example, from a moralist perspective, others who have a different understanding are wrong. Or you can’t do this or that because it is against a moral code. But, if we really want to understand sex and gender, we need to look at it from every angle possible.

Meditating for three days and then claiming that you are a religious person is not something that I want to do. Dharma is all around us: If we breathe in and feel blessed, breathe out and feel serene, that’s the way to practice Dharma.