Korean Literature as World Literature... Platform 'KLWAVE' and Webzine 'Neomeo'

Korean Literature Overseas Expansion Platform ‘KLWAVE’
Providing Korean Literary Works, Rights, and Translation Proposals
Diaspora Korean Literary Webzine ‘Neomeo’
Gathering Global Korean Literature in One Place

[Asia Economy Reporter Seomideum] “We aim not for the globalization of Korean literature, but for Korean literature as world literature.”

This was the aspiration expressed by Kwak Hyo-hwan, President of the Korean Literature Translation Institute, at the time of his inauguration last year. At the ‘KLWAVE’ and webzine ‘Neomeo’ unveiling press conference held at a restaurant near Gwanghwamun on the 14th, he once again emphasized this aspiration and expressed his pleasure in fulfilling two of the promises he made upon taking office.

One of the two promises is KLWAVE (Korean Literature WAVE). It is a global platform aimed at revitalizing the overseas expansion of Korean literature, embodying the ambition that Korean literature will create a new wave in world literature. It also carries the intention to include all Korean literature that can advance overseas, primarily in English.

KLWAVE is broadly divided into B2B and B2C. According to the Translation Institute, it comprehensively covers information on Korean literature desired by overseas clients such as foreign publishers and agencies. It provides information including work introductions, copyright details, and foreign language sample manuscripts. The Institute plans to gradually increase the number of partner publishers beyond the current 300 overseas publishers it collaborates with. For domestic new releases, if publishers provide information on about 10 to 20 titles annually, the Institute will translate and provide it in English. However, it does not provide new release sales figures that could indicate popularity to overseas publishers. President Park Hyo-hwan stated, “Although information could be obtained through the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s integrated publishing distribution network, it is still sensitive information and difficult to apply. However, since this is not a ‘completed’ but a ‘completion-oriented’ project, we will steadily improve its completeness.”

On the B2C side, information is included so that readers can understand the works, authors, and translators. According to the Institute, as of the service launch on the 14th, it offers information on 1,088 authors, 4,735 translated works, and 1,031 original works. Additionally, for classics without copyright issues, English e-books will be produced and made available for free. Initially, 30 English e-books will be released.

A diaspora Korean-language literature webzine called ‘Neomeo’ for writers worldwide who write in Korean will also be launched. Initially, it will focus on works written in ‘Hangul’ and accept submissions to be published as a quarterly magazine. To expand the author base, foreigners who have Korean sensibilities or whose themes relate to the diaspora will also be accepted as writers. Prize money for overseas publication contests is approximately 5 million KRW for short stories, 3 million KRW for poetry, and 3 million KRW for nonfiction.

Kwak Hyo-hwan, President of the Korean Literature Translation Institute, said, “The newly launched KLWAVE is a completion-oriented project that started based on a basic framework, information, and materials, containing the skeleton and core direction. We aim to reflect users’ feedback and continuously accumulate and develop content so that within a few years, it will aggregate comprehensive information on Korean literature translation, publishing, and exchange to form a vast forest. We expect much interest and suggestions for KLWAVE, which will be an important hub to help firmly establish Korean literature as world literature.”

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