It's a matter of overlapping the book concert with the Daehan Literary Award.
It would be a lie to say it doesn’t bother me at all.
Whether in a good or bad way, there’s no way to avoid the connection.
But what does that even mean?
It's funny that I have to be mindful of it.
What’s important to me is the theme of the book concert,
I’ve entered the final editing stage to meet the publication schedule.
It's quite classic for a contemporary novel.
I’ve tried to eliminate as many formal techniques as possible.
What matters is stable narration and description.
It’s about the genuine story of a madman’s life.
Heavy dialogue that showcases the genius’s talent.
In other words, it’s a novel where the ‘fundamentals’ are most important.
Because it has to show everything through just the ‘fundamentals,’ it’s a type of writing where the writer’s ability is most evident.
Suddenly, I recalled the days when I first started writing novels.
A time when I didn’t even know what technique or form was.
Those days when I just tried to write each word as accurately as possible.
It felt like that pure time had returned.
It was then that I was immersed in
Wooong— Wooong—
A pleasant phone call came in.
It was Director Jo In-hoo.
I picked up the phone immediately.
“Director!”
— Oh, writer! You’re picking up right away.
“Congratulations on winning the screenplay award at the Montaigne Film Festival. Are you back in Korea?”
— Haha… Isn’t it thanks to you, writer? I just got back yesterday and slept all day. Um… I’d like to meet you and properly thank you, when would be a good time?
I looked at my monitor.
It would be difficult until I finished editing
“Probably not until December.”
— Ah… I’ll be going abroad again by then. I have a seminar to attend. What should we do about this?
“Well, it can’t be helped. Either way, let’s make sure it’s before the new year…”
— Hmm. I’ll send you a small gift for now.
“Excuse me? Out of the blue?”
— You can’t refuse. Otherwise, people will say I have no conscience.
“Well, still…”
I’ve already received enough for providing the original work.
I’ll even receive running royalties, so more will come in the future.
— Then I’ll consider it a promise to meet later! I’ll contact you again.
With that, the call ended.
I found it a bit absurd, but soon stopped worrying.
He said it was a ‘small’ gift.
At most, it would be a set of Hanwoo beef.
Then I would have a great time grilling it with Ji-hoon.
That’s all I thought, but…
About fifteen days later, today.
When I finished editing
At the moment I put the last period.
“Wow… this is killing me.”
A groan escaped involuntarily.
Ji-hoon turned around.
“Did you finish it?”
“Just now. If you have time, could you send this to Shilla Literature by email?”
“Sure. I’ll send it right away.”
I collapsed onto the small sofa in my workspace.
My body felt heavy.
Ji-hoon quickly came to my seat and looked over the manuscript.
“If you send the manuscript now, when will the book come out? There’s only a month left until the book concert.”
Ji-hoon said, sounding a bit worried.
He’s been anxious about the book concert ever since it was mentioned.
I don’t really feel it, but…
Publishing schedules are notoriously chaotic.
But that wasn’t the case for
“As long as I send it on time, they said they’d run the publishing factory immediately. If we look at the proofs and print it, it should come out right before the end of the year.”
“Hm. That’s special treatment. So when’s the deadline?”
“Today.”
“…I’ll send it right away.”
Ji-hoon quickly sent the email.
Just then, the doorbell rang.
Ding dong— Ding dong—
“Is it the delivery? I’ll go check.”
“…Please do.”
I said, feeling like a stretched-out rice cake in the microwave.
Ji-hoon hurriedly went outside.
Then I heard his shout.
“Hyung! Come out for a moment!”
…What now?
With a bit of annoyance, I trudged outside.
What is that…?
Ji-hoon came in carrying a huge box.
“What’s that?”
“I don’t know. It’s super heavy. Director Jo In-hoo sent it to you.”
“Oh, right. He said he’d send a small gift. Let’s open it.”
Without much thought, we tore open the box.
Inside, there was a foldable bicycle.
“Why did he send a bicycle?”
“Whoa…! This is…!”
Ji-hoon took out his bicycle and unfolded it with all his might.
It had smaller wheels than other bicycles.
A simple yet classic structure.
The body was a brownish color.
I don’t know much about bicycles.
But this one… I could tell at a glance it was a luxury item.
Ji-hoon’s mouth dropped open as he said,
“Hyung… this is a British bicycle. It’s really expensive!”
“Oh, how much?”
“Three… four hundred?”
“Three or four hundred?!”
He sent this as a ‘small’ gift? Director Jo In-hu is no ordinary person.
I felt I should thank him first.
I called, but he didn’t pick up.
He said he was going abroad… Maybe he’s sleeping?
Ji-hoon kept saying “Wow— wow—” as he attached the saddle.
He looked at me with pleading eyes, asking if he could ride it.
“Let’s ride together. What’s the point of saving it?”
“Really? Is it really okay? This is worth as much as my dream car.”
“It’s fine, go ahead. But I’ll be the one to break it in.”
Since I finished the draft, I had that right.
I pulled the bicycle out like that.
I headed toward the bike path by the river, not far from home.
I rode along the riverside.
The scent of withering grass.
The chilly wind of early winter.
Every cell in my body awakened.
For weeks, the thought of
Maybe it was because I was simultaneously editing and translating into Japanese.
Or perhaps it was the pressure of having to hold a book concert.
It was an unusually laborious novel.
The bicycle glided smoothly.
The scenery of the world rushed past me.
I felt exhilarated.
It was as if my complicated mind was completely cleared.
In my head, I had to think about future plans…
New ideas, but light, settled down.
First, expansion into the German market.
The lack of communication from Germany was frustrating.
Sometimes I wanted to take the initiative myself.
But… they were likely aware of me as well.
Even if it’s frustrating, let’s wait a little longer.
Second, expansion into the American market.
There are ways to leverage success in Europe, but it would be better to devise a new strategy.
For my career as a writer.
I should start thinking about that soon.
“Hm….”
I pedaled harder.
Maybe it was because of the new bicycle.
I felt a vague sense that everything would go well.
After a few hours of riding, I returned.
My hair was disheveled, and I was hot.
But I felt good.
I should ride a lot before winter fully sets in.
By the way, there was another package at the front door.
An international parcel from Japan.
I recognized it right away.
When I opened the package, sure enough, it was:
With a purple background and silver logo.
It had a somewhat melancholic feeling.
It must have been designed to match the title's image.
This anthology included
It probably won’t be translated into Korean, but… I could include
I placed the book next to
I took a shower and had dinner with Ji-hoon.
The menu was Chinese.
Jjangmyeon, fried rice, and sweet and sour shrimp.