Poet Lee Giri Wins Kim Su-young Literary Award... First Non-Debut New Writer

Poet Igiri [Photo by Minumsa]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] It was announced on the 16th by Minumsa that poet Lee Giri (26, photo) has been selected as this year’s Kim Soo-young Literary Award winner.

The winning work includes the poem "I Also Like That Smile" and 55 other poems.

Poet Lee Giri was born in 1994 in Seoul and graduated from the Creative Writing Department at Chugye University for the Arts. He has not yet officially debuted as a poet. This is the first time since the establishment of the Kim Soo-young Literary Award that a non-debuted writer has won.

This year, 191 applicants submitted about 10,000 poems for the Kim Soo-young Literary Award. The judging panel consisted of poets Kim Eon, Park Yeon-jun, and Yoo Gye-young.

The judges commented on the winning work, saying, "The courage to reveal and confront past wounds without hesitation stood out," and "The speaker’s emotions were captured plainly and accurately within specific scenes without exaggeration." They also added, "From the seemingly simple statements, one can feel the writer’s unique depth and emotional texture in viewing the world, which gives us faith in their future potential," and "This year’s Kim Soo-young Literary Award is especially meaningful as it is the first time a new writer who has not debuted has won."

Poet Lee Giri said in his acceptance speech, "Although I have passed through the moment I so longed for, I have not changed," and "I want to embrace our love just like the gaze of a certain middle school student who became beautiful when they first read poetry."

Lee Giri will receive a prize of 10 million won. A collection of his award-winning poems is also scheduled to be published within the year.

A total of six works made it to the final round this year. The most discussed works were "The Gatekeeper Who Closes the Door" and 53 other poems, "Close Distance" and 49 other poems, and "I Also Like That Smile" and 55 other poems. "The Gatekeeper Who Closes the Door" and 53 other poems stood out for their unique imagination and narration, "Close Distance" and 49 other poems were noted for their refined style within calm narration, and "I Also Like That Smile" and 55 other poems were praised for their impressive poems originating from intimate experiences. The final nominees were "Close Distance" and 49 other poems and "I Also Like That Smile" and 55 other poems.

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