Grand Prize Winner: Leo-Thomas Brylowski

Leo-Thomas Brylowski

By Anna J. Park

Growing up in Montreal, Canada, Leo-Thomas Brylowski is fluent in both English and French as his mother-tongues.

During his undergraduate studies at the University of British Columbia (UBC), he spent two semesters at Seoul National University as an exchange student.

Brylowski is now on a fellowship program at the Literature Translation Institute of Korea's (LTIK) Translation Academy which he began last year.

He recalled Dr. Bruce Fulton, a renowned professor of Korean literature and translator of contemporary Korean fiction, as the most influential figure during his time at UBC who encouraged him to pursue studies in literary translation.

“I first began translating Korean literature into English as part of a Korean class taught by Dr. Fulton in my final year. Three years have since passed, but I remember it like it was yesterday. The first story we were asked to translate was Kim Dong-in's 'Gamja.'”

Brylowski translated novelist Lee Kiho's short story “Choe Mijin, Where Have You Gone?”; he was made aware of the author's works by a friend, and became hooked by Lee's literary world.

“I like the experimental side of Lee Kiho and how he manages to turn the mundane into something playful. I had a blast with this short story and I want to continue translating works by Lee Kiho if given the chance,” Brylowski said.

He said vividly delivering the original feel of the story into English was the challenging part of the translation: “Carrying the narrator's voice over into English without losing the feel of the original ― a bit of desperation mixed with some self-deprecation, all packaged in a slightly humorous tone.”

The translator said he believes good literary translations allow readers to fully connect with the writer, while translators themselves remain invisible.

“Good translations do not read as translated works ― the translator manages to make him or herself nearly invisible, allowing the reader to fully immerse in the story and connect with the writer. (…) In my opinion, a good literary translation shouldn't read like a literal translation, which is why the main evaluation criteria should not revolve entirely around accuracy and faithfulness, though a lot of people still seem to disagree on this point. A literary work isn't a legal document, and it requires a different and much more creative approach when translated.”