I want to be a frog
Author's Note
Interview with author Kim Hwa-jin

“Don’t expect anything.
Don't be disappointed.
Don't try to get to know anyone.
“Don’t try to tell me about yourself.”
Even if there are days when you feel suffocated by boredom and depression, believe that you can jump again.

Kim Hwa-jin, who won the Today's Writer Award for "About Naju" and has been loved for her affectionate language that depicts the shape of the heart through works such as "Tokyo" and "The Dinosaur's Migration Path," has published "I Want to Be a Frog" as part of Wisdom House's short story series, Wipick.

Ga-eun, an office worker who is faced with the situation where “nothing I do is fun” and “the company where I worked for nine straight hours a day for nine years is the most boring” (p. 15), finds small comfort in a small frog doll placed on her office desk.
Days spent struggling with boredom, with nothing really good or really bad.
Ga-eun's boredom, which has become "familiar to me, to the company and to myself at the company" (p. 16), may be natural.
On the other hand, Ga-eun's friend Soo-kyung is like a "god of joy" (page 13).
Ga-eun is always curious about Soo-kyung's cheerful and happy appearance even after drinking a cup of latte.
"Why are you so good? Why do I always feel good when I see you? Why... can't I be like that?" (p. 30) How can I break the shackles of boredom, anger, and croissant that aren't solid, but are building up layer by layer? Is quitting the only answer? Will quitting make me happy?

Su-kyung, who returns after briefly looking into the future, shared joys and sorrows with Ga-eun for a year, but one day, Wan drifted away without telling her why, and Ga-eun decided not to expect or be disappointed anymore after Wan left.
Through the figures of three people, author Kim Hwa-jin talks about the vague and fragile bonds that human relationships create.
On the one hand, it affirms the power of relationships by holding on to the string of 'ambition' that can only be realized through such loose ties.
The novel speaks with Kim Hwa-jin's unique grammar, which transparently looks into the depths of emotions.
Even when life is dominated by boredom, depression, discontent, anger, and cynicism, there are things we must hold on to until the very end, so that we can rise again.

A special experience that allows you to breathe deeply into 'a single story'

Beginning in November 2022, Wisdom House will be introducing the most diverse and newest stories of Korean literature, one per week, through its short story serial project, "Weekly Fiction."
Over the past year, 50 stories have been loved by readers, including Gu Byeong-mo's "Shred," Jo Ye-eun's "Waiting for the High Tide," Ahn Dam's "The Girl Grows Alone," and Choi Jin-young's "Aurora."
The Wepick series publishes serialized novels in this way, and rather than the conventional method of binding together several short stories, it takes the unusual approach of composing a book with only one short story, giving readers the special experience of breathing deeply into each story.
Wepick is not bound by any criteria or distinctions such as material or format, and focuses solely on the completeness of a single story.
Through novels by a variety of authors, including novelists, non-fiction writers, poets, and youth literature writers, we break down genres and boundaries, expanding the possibilities and enjoyment of stories.

Following the 50 episodes of Season 1, Season 2 is filled with even more new writers and stories.
Season 2 will feature writers Kang Hwa-gil, Lim Seon-woo, Dan Yo, Jeong Bo-ra, Kim Bo-young, Lee Mi-sang, Kim Hwa-jin, Jeong I-hyeon, Lim Sol-ah, and Hwang Jeong-eun.
Additionally, Season 2 will include author interviews, telling a variety of stories both inside and outside of the works, further enriching the annual festival of 50 stories.

Introducing the Wepick Series

Wepick is a short story series from Wisdom House.
It offers a special experience of breathing deeply into ‘one story’.
I dream that this small piece will become a new piece that expands your world, that each small piece will come together to become your story, and that it will become a piece of literature that will be deeply engraved in your heart.