Korean writers head to US, aiming for wider readership

The Literature Translation Institute of Korea headquarters / Courtesy of Literature Translation Institute of Korea

Three Korean and two Korean American authors will gather in Los Angeles next week for a series of readings and discussions, part of a concerted effort to broaden the reach of Korean literature among American readers.

The program, “Korean Literature: The Language of Love and the Future,” runs from April 15 to 19 and is a collaboration between the Literature Translation Institute of Korea (LTI Korea) and the Korean Cultural Center Los Angeles. The initiative, which coincides with the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, represents a strategic move by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to ensure that the global fascination with Korean culture translates into a lasting presence on international bookshelves.

The participating writers include novelists Park Sang-young and Cheon Seon-ran, poet Lee Min-ha, Korean American novelist Crystal Hana Kim and poet Jennifer Kwon Dobbs.

The five will gather for a panel discussion titled “Voices of Love and the Future, Beyond Boundaries” on April 17, held in conjunction with the 11th Korean Culture Festival at California State University, San Bernardino.

Individual events are also scheduled.

A screening program will feature the film adaptation of Park's "Love in the Big City" and the musical “A Thousand Blues” based on Cheon's work of the same name.

A separate event at the Pio Pico branch of the Los Angeles Public Library, a cultural landmark in Koreatown, will feature Lee and literary critic Kang Dong-ho in a focused exploration of Korean poetry.

From April 18 to 19, LTI Korea and the Korean Cultural Center Los Angeles will operate a joint booth at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books at the University of Southern California. The booth will combine a Korean literature display with Korean culture programming. Author signings will also take place in cooperation with a local bookstore.

Now in its 31st year, the LA Times Festival of Books draws more than 150,000 visitors and over 500 publishers and cultural institutions annually.

"We hope this program gives local readers a more accessible entry point into Korean literature and broadens their understanding of it," said Chon Soo-yong, president of LTI Korea.

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.