Hamyang-born writer Seo Cheolwon publishes short story collection 'Hamyang Once Upon a Time'

Seven Short Stories Written Over 7 Years... Depicting an Idealized Hometown Through Temporal and Spatial Division

Artist Seo Cheol-won from Hamyang

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] Seo Cheol-won (55), a famous novelist from Hamyang, Gyeongnam, recently announced on the 10th that he has published a short story collection titled Hamyang, Once Upon a Time.

This collection compiles seven short stories, both published and unpublished, that Seo Cheol-won has written over more than seven years since his debut in 2013. The temporal settings of the stories range widely from the prehistoric era, through the Gaya period and Joseon dynasty, up to modern times, depicting various aspects of life.

The space of "Hamyang" set in each story serves as a narrative backdrop representing a stage of life continuing from the past. In particular, the "Hamyang" space intertwined with historical events reflects temporal and spatial images as a narrative work, telling realistic and factual stories. The overlapping structure of past and present sometimes offers readers an unexpected sense of unfamiliarity, providing enjoyment in reading.

Seo, who was born and raised in Yeonbatmeori, Hamyang-eup, graduated from the Department of Korean Literature at Jeonju University and earned a Ph.D. in Korean Literature from Jeonbuk National University, gaining attention in the literary world.

The new short story collection Hamyang, Once Upon a Time portrays a rapid succession of deep reflections on Seo’s hometown Hamyang and his utopia, where he felt the profound patterns of life.

Regarding the space called "Hamyang" appearing in this work, Seo said, "It is a utopian space of 'hometown' that has continued from a very distant past, and it shows the 'history of space' as a time image inevitably connected to anyone opening their life."

He added, "In the scenes of people once called Jongse, Kkalttae, and Soedol, an unknown shadow of dawn still lingers. 'Hamyang,' which has unfolded over a long time and arrived here, is your hometown and utopia that has never once left or deviated from space since ancient times long ago. Now, I ask you if you are ready to return."

Seo, who lectures at Jeonbuk National University, won the New Writer Literary Award from the quarterly Literary Research in 2013, the Grand Prize at the same year’s Korea Story Contest, the 8th Bulkkot Literary Award in 2016, the 12th Honbul Academic Award in 2017, the 9th Honbul Literary Award in 2019, and this year his work The Last Supper was selected as an "Excellent Book" in the literature category of the Sejong Books.

His major works include the 2015 novel Portrait of the King, the 2017 novel Hon, Baek, the 2018 academic research book Honbul, the Sensibility of Resistance and Decoloniality, and the 2019 novel The Last Supper.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.