The Adventures of Aunt Mok-gyeong, Mok-gyeong, and Mu-gyeong, the Target Image… 007
Author's Note | A novel that reads like a diary, a novel that tries to be like a diary.
Commentary | Overturning with Soyoujeong's Adventure

Kim Mela, dream of me… 061
Author's Note | Pen, Feather, and Welcome
Commentary | Jeon Seung-min's Coffee Pory's Material World

Seong Hye-ryeong Mushroom Farm… 115
Author's Note | Let's start here.
Commentary | Jeon Cheong-rim's responsibility is stronger than the law.

Lee Seo-su, Young Geun-hee's March... 153
Author's Note | To Understand My Brother
Commentary | Kim Bo-kyung: Our Common March in the Age of Indulgence

Jeong Seon-im Yokata… 199
Author's Note | I'm glad I wrote a novel.
Commentary | Rewriting the History of Liberation Through the Time Differences of Park Seo-yang's Speech

Ham Yun-i's mother-of-pearl jewelry... 243
Author's Note | I ended up writing the name down.
Commentary | Lim Jeong-gyun's History of Taboo and the Rules of Escape

Hyunhojeong Pencil Sandwich… 291
Author's Note | Diary entry for April 20, 2021
Commentary | Ina Young's Smallest Taste

2023 14th Young Writer's Award
Judging process… 329
Review comments… 332

Im Sang's "The Adventures of Aunt Sand, Mokgyeong, and Mu-gyeong" is a story about the power of will to believe in oneself and move forward, and the power of solidarity to do things for you that you "could do but really don't want to do."
When her aunt, who had been treated like a loser despite taking on all the care work in the house, passes away, Mok-kyung, who was trying to deal with the situation, overhears a conversation between two writer sisters at a cafe about how to write novels.
Listening to their story, Mok-kyung recalls the hunting adventure she went on with her older sister, Mu-kyung, following her aunt when she was young.
This work, which arouses curiosity with its frame-like structure and gradually approaches the core of the story, boasts overwhelming momentum and won the grand prize with unanimous approval from the judges.
Kim Mela's "Dream of Me" depicts a situation where, after failing to commit suicide, 'I' chokes to death on a chocolate bar I ate in an attempt to live again, and must find someone to find my body and go to that person's dreams.
In the determination of 'I' to go to the dreams of my loved ones and make them happy instead of sad, we can find a subversive imagination that creates a happy ending without being overwhelmed by the death that has already occurred.


Seong Hye-ryeong's "Mushroom Farm" follows a chilling and suspenseful journey that begins when Jin-hwa, the victim of a cell phone identity theft scam, asks her high school friend, Ki-jin, for help.
The present of a young man who does not believe in overcoming or salvation, but only supports himself and lives, is revealed in a unique atmosphere.
Lee Seo-su's "Young Geun-hee's March" follows the process by which older sister Moon-hee comes to understand and embrace her younger sister Geun-hee, who quit her job to become a YouTuber.
The lives of young people who live bravely in this era, where displaying oneself is no longer considered special, are vividly depicted.
Jeong Seon-im's "Yokata" gives an elderly woman, who has lived her entire life inheriting the name and age of her deceased older sister, time to summarize her life in her own voice, thereby seriously questioning how personal narratives are reorganized and flattened by the demands of the times.


Ham Yun-i's "The Uses of Mother-of-Pearl Jewelry" unfolds the lives of women who have used mother-of-pearl jewelry for four generations, enabling teleportation.
The meaning of liberation and return is rewritten through the stories of women who decide on the use of mother-of-pearl inlay in a different way from the women of the previous generation.
Hyunho Jeong's "Pencil Sandwich" makes us think about the nobility and disgust of preparing a meal for someone and receiving that meal through a unique nightmare in which "I," who suffers from an eating disorder, has to chew and swallow a sandwich made of pencils.
The story of the women who have to feed and care for others leaves the reader breathless.

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This year's winners, finally decided after a heated debate, are as follows:
Kim Mela, “Dream of Me,” Seong Hye-ryeong, “Mushroom Farm,” Lee Mi-sang, “The Adventures of Aunt Morae, Mokgyeong, and Mugyeong,” Lee Seo-su, “Young Geun-hee’s March,” Jeong Seon-im, “Yokata,” Ham Yun-i, “The Purpose of Mother-of-Pearl,” Hyeon Ho-jeong, “Pencil Sandwich.”
The grand prize winner was selected as "The Adventures of Aunt Sand, Mok-gyeong, and Mu-gyeong," a warlike work that stimulates the reader's capacity.
Although it had already received widespread critical acclaim, the jury unanimously decided on the award because it boasted such an overwhelming momentum and presence that it was impossible to hesitate in selecting it for that reason alone.
We would like to express our gratitude and congratulations to all the award-winning authors.

Aside from the Young Writer Award winners Kim Mela and Lee Mi-sang, who are emerging as trustworthy writers, Seong Hye-ryeong, Lee Seo-su, Jeong Seon-im, Ham Yun-i, and Hyeon Ho-jeong are relatively new writers who are not well known to readers.
We hope you will enjoy these creative works, which unfold across generations and gender, history and representation, labor and society, reality and fantasy, and look forward to their next steps.
I am so happy to be able to present to our readers another year a bundle of stories filled with excitement and adventure.
I would like to discuss together the ways in which these works aim at their respective true intentions and the directions in which they take.
_In the 'review process'

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Im Sang, "The Adventures of Aunt Sand, Mok-gyeong, and Mu-gyeong" He makes everyone believe that he is on their side without taking anyone's side.
I feel like I've forgotten a bit, but isn't this what a novel is all about?
I've thought about whether I could possibly not choose this novel as my subject, but I've failed every time.
It wasn't chosen by the judges.
This novel chose me.
Shin Hyeong-cheol (literary critic)

“Something I can do, but really don’t want to do.
Something I don't want to do even if I have to beat myself to death.
It's actually so scary.
“Why is it that believing one can do something brings more shame to a person than believing one cannot do something?” (『Literature and Society』 Spring 2022 issue (『Double Writer Chorong』, Munhakdongne, 2022))

Kim Mela, "Dream of Me" Perhaps Kim Mela creates a bigger and deeper resonance with nonsensical words.
It would take a remarkable skill to turn the embarrassment of a sudden death into an exciting situation in the blink of an eye.
As you read on, you will naturally come to realize how narrow the world of so-called words is.
_Gu Hyo-seo (novelist)

I wanted to leave the existence of the country in empty parentheses.
Now I didn't want them to find me dead.
I didn't want to complete the story of my death and my life without any misunderstandings.
Instead, I wanted to go into the dreams of those connected to me and bring joy to them. (Creation and Criticism, Spring 2022 (Dream of Me, Munhakdongne, 2022))

Seong Hye-ryeong, "Mushroom Farm" Among the many strengths of this novel, what is particularly memorable is its coldly penetrating gaze that reveals that the "young woman" is not a single, unified entity.
Examining the social conditions that make characters similar and different from one another, and leaving the reader with new questions that arise.
I also think that is the role of literature.
_Jeong I-hyeon (novelist)

It wasn't us, it was you.
Kijin said.
Jinhwa looked at Kijin silently for a moment.
When I told you I had an unfair debt, you never once offered to help me.
Something's Wrong with You? (Epic July/August/September 2022)

Lee Seo-su, "Young Geun-hee's March" There are no relationships in this world as close as family, but there are also no relationships in which people do not know each other as much as family.
Moreover, I don't like to acknowledge the other person's new side, the wonderful side that I don't know about.
That's only possible if I destroy my long-held perspective that has been judging that person.
This novel is about that destruction.
_Kang Hwa-gil (novelist)

The book is beautiful, but my body is also beautiful.
The sentence is beautiful, but my heart is also beautiful.
A properly placed period is beautiful, but my inverted nipples are also beautiful.
There's nothing wrong with thinking this way.
Rather, it's strange that my sister tells me to hide it.
Why does Sister oppress our bodies? Is your body your colony? Why does Sister see our bodies only as objects of plunder? (『Axt』 January/February 2022 issue (『The word 'subject' is a bit off-putting, isn't it?』, Eunhaengnamu, 2022))

Jeong Seon-im, "Yokata" The ending, in which a ninety-six-year-old man mutters on the road, "I don't know where to go now," is thrilling, because the feeling of "not knowing" is clearly a sensation unique to the living.
The moment the reader senses that it is a cruel privilege of life to have to go somewhere alone, even if one does not know the way, the novel soars to another space like a light white bird.
Jeong I-hyeon (novelist)

When I said Yokata, I felt relieved.
It felt more fortunate than saying that Yokata was fortunate, and even if it wasn't fortunate, saying that it was Yokata made me feel relieved.
Perhaps I have been resigning myself to the days passing by without my will, and I have been soothing myself with the word “Yokata.”
That's how I could live today, and tomorrow again. (Epic, January/February/March 2022 issue (Cats Don't Disappear, Dasan Books, 2022))

Ham Yun-i, "The Uses of Mother-of-Pearl Lockers," tells the story of a female family member who, as an heirloom, passed down a terrifying object that would allow them to travel anywhere they wanted just by opening the door, built their lives by repeatedly leaving and returning to their home.
The women's secret to survival, that if you calculate your retreat, you will reach nowhere, shines like an old mother-of-pearl chest of drawers.
Oh Eun-kyo (literary critic)

I am left with only one fork in the road.
It was once the same path my mother had taken.
Go back, or go very far away. (The Forest Made by Gudo, Anon Books, 2022)

Hyunho Jeong, "Pencil Sandwich" The image of the pencil sandwich that completes the chronicle of the giant is bizarre, but there is something sad about it.
(…) These are the words he firmly says to his daughter while turning his head away from the dinner table.
“You have to eat something.” As I read the history of these women bound by this magical voice, I couldn’t help but hold my breath.
_Kang Hwa-gil (novelist)

How can one deny the intuition that says, "I have to eat." It's as impossible as holding back the blood from a wound.
Therefore, the attitude of meekly accepting the changed situation is the most necessary attitude when having a nightmare.
Struggle only increases the type and duration of torture one must endure.
Sleep originally meant rest.
This is not a time to fight and win or achieve something.
As death is. (Consonant and Vowel, Fall 2022)