Me: Mr. Shakespeare, thank you for granting me this opportunity to interview you. As an aspiring writer, I have always dreamed about interviewing you – you are my idol. Shakespeare: The pleasure is mine. I am honored to know that aspiring writers look up to me. Me: Alright sir, let us begin. I have always wondered where you draw your inspiration from to write your riveting and informative plays. What or who inspires you? Do you have a role model that you look up to? Shakespeare: Well, that is quite a several questions but I will try to answer them all. First, I write based on the occurrences of the day. I listen to what people are talking about on the streets and I dramatize it in a play. Besides, some of my plays are based on historical events that occurred in England (Mabillard). The politics of the court in England are specifically interesting and they inspire my writing. Now, about my role models, I love Geoffrey Chaucer and Plutarch. Specifically, Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales and Plutarch’s Parallel Lives are my favorites (Mabillard). I have learned a lot from these ancient writers. Me: Talking about your plays, Hamlet comes to mind. The play highlights the eternal deep-seated human conflict among other themes, which have been interpreted differently by various readers. However, the most outstanding issue in this play is the protagonist’s words “to be or not to be”, what exactly did you intend to achieve by using these words in the context of Hamlet? Shakespeare: Well, I assume you have watched the play and if you have not I would request that you do for you to understand the meaning of these words within their context. Me: Of course, I have watched them play, several times, I must admit. However, I want to hear from the horse’s mouth! Shakespeare: Well, this sentence is a reflection of my conflicts in life and I believe everyone has his or her struggles and unanswered questions. However, we are living at a time when society and our culture do not allow us to express our concerns. The reigns of Queen Elizabeth and King James I were characterized by tough rules that more than often lead to human suffering. Besides, I have questions about life and death – what is the point of existence? In the end, I realize that we tend to overthink, and thus, I am criticizing Hamlet for overthinking (Wilson 342). I know many scholars and readers have concluded that the soliloquy is about suicide, but that was not my intention (Wilson 132). Me: Thank you for clarifying this highly controversial issue among scholars and your readers. Moving on, as an aspiring writer, sometimes I feel demotivated and discouraged to continue writing, especially when people are not willing to support my work. Who are some of the individuals that supported your work as you started? And do you think someone can make become rich writing? Shakespeare: I feel you and I can certainly identify with your feelings of frustration and the ever-present thought of wanting to give up and quit writing altogether. It could be very disheartening when you have given everything, committing your heart, mind, and soul to produce what you think is a masterpiece only for the targeted audience to fail to appreciate your efforts. However, in my case, I mainly write for the theater and I think this aspect has given me a competitive advantage, as people are willing to pay and come to theaters and have some good time away from their busy lives. In addition, I am lucky to be supported by royal and