Poet Choi Yearn-hong receives 2017 Mincho Overseas Korean Literature Award

Choi Yearn-hong

Poet Choi Yearn-hong has been chosen as the recipient of the Mincho Overseas Korean Literature Award for his 2015 poetry book, “White Cotton-tailed Deer,” the committee of judges chaired by poet Shin Kyung-rim, announced last week.

Choi, a contributor to The Korea Times since his college days in the 1960s is a famed poet in the United States, with poems published in Korean and English. As a more experienced poet his writings have matured. Choi said most often, the best poems are produced by young poets. He, however, “rebukes” such a trend.

The award ceremony will be held in Calgary, Canada Nov. 2, where Mincho Lee Yoo-sik resides. He left Korea for advanced studies in Calgary in the 1960s with $200 in his pocket. He is the founding president of the Calgary Korean-Canadian Poets and Writers Group and leader of Korean-Canadian businessmen. He created the Mincho Literature Award to promote overseas Korean literature.