K-Book Trends -

Search word : "Audien", Search result : 149

[TREND / TOPIC]

How New Writers Are Discovered in Korea: Shinchunmunye, Literary Awards, and Newly Emerging Pathways

Topic How New Writers Are Discovered in Korea:Shinchunmunye, Literary Awards, and Newly Emerging Pathways 2025.03.10 At the award ceremony of shinchunmunye (annual spring literary contest), one of Korea’s representative systems for recognizing new writers, there is always a “congratulatory speech” delivered by the judges (mostly novelists, sometimes literary critics) to the winners. As a former literary reporter for a newspaper and then head of the Department of Culture, I have observed that every year, no matter who the judges are, there is always a certain message to the winners. Although you never can tell the future, I’m sure the same will also be true for next year’s shinchunmunye. The specific words vary by judge, but if I were to make it up, it would go something like this (which, of course, doesn’t even come close to the beautiful and moving words of the judges). “Congratulations, you are now a writer. You mu...

VOL.80 / 2025.03

[TREND / SPECIAL PROJECT]

Berlin: A Multicultural City that Loves Outsiders

Special Project [New Ways of Walking Through Cities ③] Berlin: A Multicultural City that Loves Outsiders 2025.03.10 Berlin was a city divided into East and West by the Berlin Wall during the Cold War. For Koreans, it is also a place they feel an emotional connection to as they share the same history of division. In 1989, the Berlin Wall finally collapsed and Germany was reunified; now, the East Side Gallery stands in its place as a memorial. Stretching a whopping 1,316 meters long, it is the world’s largest open-air gallery - 108 artists from 21 countries drew 105 paintings on the wall in 1990 with messages of peace, unity, and opposition to war. Once a symbol of the Cold War, the Berlin Wall has now become a symbol of hope and freedom, a new Berlin landmark and a must-see tourist attraction that has touched and inspired many people.Berlin is a city that draws young travelers from al...

VOL.80 / 2025.03

[TREND / EXPORT CASE]

A New Chapter in Korea-China Literary Exchange

Export Case A New Chapter in Korea-China Literary Exchange Folio Culture’s Korean Book Localization Strategy 2025.03.10 Folio Culture (Beijing) has consistently focused on introducing and localizing Korean books in the fields of humanities, social sciences, and literature. In recent years, we have successfully brought several Korean works to the Chinese market through precise topic selection, cultural adaptation, and innovative promotion strategies, sparking widespread discussions on the social media platform Xiaohongshu. Below, we share our experiences in four key areas: topic selection strategy, localization practices, promotion strategy, and future plans. Balancing Social Issues with Literary Value, Grounded in Shared East Asian Emotions, to Create a Dialogue Space for Chinese and Korean Youth Capturing Social Resonance Points in Korean Literature In recent years, Korean literature has shifted from grand narrati...

VOL.80 / 2025.03

[TREND / TOPIC]

“Book of the Year” Suggests the “Direction” of the Era

Topic “Book of the Year” Suggests the “Direction” of the Era 2024 Books of the Year in Korea 2025.02.17 2024 Books of the Year selected by different media outlets The act of recommending a book to another person may seem like a simple and easy thing to do, but it can also be a very complex and thought-provoking act, depending on how you think about it. A straightforward question, “Why this book to me?” is all it takes to understand this: sometimes a book given to a lover can be a declaration of love, a confession of one’s whole soul, or, a book given by a parent to a child who is moving out on his or her own as an adult is meant to be taken to heart as a life lesson. The act of recommending a book can also convey disdain or mockery. A person might suggest a childish or poorly written book to convey the message, “I consider you to be of this intellectual level,” or they might mock an expert by suggesting something like a basic introduction to...

VOL.79 / 2025.02

[TREND / EXPORT CASE]

Crafting Connections Through Korean Literature: Books Curated and Translated by BACA Publishing House

Export Case Crafting Connections Through Korean Literature:Books Curated and Translated by BACA Publishing House 2025.02.17 In 2016, Han Kang became the first Korean author to win the International Booker Prize for her novel The Vegetarian (Changbi Publishers). This triumph also marked a milestone for BACA, a young but feisty publishing house from Indonesia. In February 2017, just a month before celebrating its first birthday, BACA took a bold step by publishing The Vegetarian, followed by Human Acts (Changbi Publishers), another brilliant novel by Han Kang. Human Acts and The Vegetarian From that point on, BACA began to consistently publish K-books, initially focusing on literary fiction, including The Hole (Moonji Publishing) by Pyun Hye-young, The Hen Who Dreamed She Could Fly (SAKYEJUL PUBLISHING) and The Dog Who Dared to Dream (imazubooks) by Hwang Sun-mi, among others. The themes in contemporary Korean...

VOL.79 / 2025.02

[TREND / SPECIAL PROJECT]

A City of Endless Stories: New York

Special Project [New Ways of Walking Through Cities ①] A City of Endless Stories: New York 2025.01.06 Special Project in 2025 will be a new series that introduces readers to Korean books. Since K-Book Trends targets a global audience, we have been thinking about how to connect with readers in different countries. While we have introduced many cities in Korea, we wondered what it would be like to introduce readers to the cities where they live. That’s how the new series, “New Ways of Walking Through Cities,” began. We would like to feature Korean books that are set in cities outside of Korea and walk through those cities with our readers. As the first city, we chose New York, a city you might be living in, a city you might have traveled to, or a city you might be dreaming about.New York is like a giant heart that changes every moment. Its streets are always bustling with life, with people fr...

VOL.78 / 2025.01

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

Write the Story You Want to Read

Knowledge Write the Story You Want to Read Self-publishing platforms in Korea: The reasons for growth and the current state 2024.11.04 “If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” - Toni Morrison, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993 While there is no established academic definition, “self-publishing” refers to authors planning, editing, publishing, and distributing their own manuscripts without working through a publishing company. As opposed to “vanity publishing,” which involves paying an upfront fee to a publisher to produce and distribute a book, it is used almost interchangeably with “independent publishing” in Korea (some researchers and book critics use the two terms separately). The desire to document ...

VOL.76 / 2024.11

[TREND / TOPIC]

What Comes After Today’s Korean-Style Healing Novels?

Topic What Comes After Today’s Korean-Style Healing Novels? 2024.10.07 “While the so-called ‘Korean style healing novels’ are selling well these days, trends always change. This craze will be replaced with a new trend sooner or later.” Barbara J. Zitwer, a literary agent working across English-speaking countries, said so in a recent interview. Zitwer is an American who has been exporting Korean literature overseas for about 20 years and is often referred to as a “Korean literature ambassador.” She explains that the phenomenon of Korean-style healing novels being so popular not only in Korea, but also abroad, is something that may change at any time soon. “At first, everyone read pure literature,” she said, “and then the trend shifted to healing novels.” While it may seem that the popularity of Korean literature across all genres has grown on the surface, Zitwer says that international readers switched genres when they got tired of...

VOL.75 / 2024.10

[TREND / SPECIAL PROJECT]

Promoting Korean Art Through Books

Special Project [English Books in Korea ⑤] Promoting Korean Art Through Books English editions of Korean art books for foreigners 2024.10.07 Youlhwadang Publishers, the publisher I’m working for as an editor, has three ways of utilizing English when publishing books on Korean traditional culture and arts. At the most basic level, we include an English summary at the front of the book that summarizes the content of the Korean edition, with the intent of providing the most basic information for librarians in foreign libraries with no Korean skills to categorize the books. For art collections that are mainly image-based with relatively few texts, the full text is included in both Korean and English so that it can be distributed at home and abroad as a single edition. This is also useful for artists to use as a portfolio when performing abroad. Finally, the Korean and English editions can be planned as independent books, published simultaneous...

VOL.75 / 2024.10

[INFORMATION / K-BOOK MAP]

A Journey Through Time in Literature: The Literary Village of Kim You Jeong, Chuncheon

K-Book Map A Journey Through Time in Literature:The Literary Village of Kim You Jeong, Chuncheon 2026.08 Spring, Spring, The Camellias, and Gold-Mining Bean Field. Kim You-jeong's works, which almost every Korean reader has encountered at least once in school textbooks, continue to vividly convey the atmosphere of rural Korea and the warmth of its people. His delightful humor and empathetic perspective transcend language barriers, reaching global readers through translations, stage adaptations, and various cultural projects. The Literary Village of Kim You Jeong Located in Chuncheon, Gangwon State, The Literary Village of Kim You Jeong is a literary space built in the village where the author was born and raised. At the restored birthplace and exhibition halls, visitors can explore his life and literary world, while walkin...

VOL.97 / 2026.08

VOL.97/2026.08

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