[News Figures] Kim Ji-yeon, Winner of the Hyundai Literary Award, "A Writer Loved by Authors"

Novelist Kim Ji-yeon will receive the 70th Hyundai Literary Award for her novel 'Without a Loving Heart.' The judging panel praised Kim's work, stating that they "saw literary possibilities that Korean literature has not properly explored." Established in 1955 by Hyundai Munhak, the Hyundai Literary Award is given annually in the categories of novel and poetry. The eligible works are those published in literary magazines from December of the previous year to November of the current year.

[Photo by Hyundai Munhaksa]

Born in 1983 in Geoje, Gyeongnam, Kim Ji-yeon is in her seventh year since debut. She debuted in 2018 by winning the Munhakdongne New Writer Award with her work 'Jakjeonggi,' receiving a unanimous decision from seven judges. She has won the Munhakdongne Young Writer Award three times for her short stories 'Loving,' 'In the Park,' and 'Companion Debt.' Starting with her first book 'Red Hat' in 2019, she has written works such as 'Words Not in the Heart,' 'More Than a Novel: Summer 2022,' and 'Walking Together Novel.'

Kim is a favorite among writers. 'Words Not in the Heart' ranked second in the 'Novels of the Year Selected by 50 Novelists' hosted by Kyobo Book Centre that year. The following year, she received the Kim Man-jung Literary Award for New Writers. Kim said, "It may seem like nothing special happens, but I want to carefully tell the personal circumstances of the people living there."

According to an interview with Yes24, her favorite book is Elizabeth Strout's 'Olive, Again.' Like many novels, it depicts the lives of characters that do not flow happily and ultimately seem to fall apart, yet it strangely stays in the heart. She was praised for convincingly portraying the complex emotions of various characters. The work that inspired her writing process is Kim Yeon-su's 'The Life of a Novelist.' She felt the attitude of writing steadily without getting tired.

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