VOL.77/2024.12

Korean Authors

 

Writer Yoo Eun sil

 

2022.01.03

 

 

Please introduce yourself to our readers.

 

Hello, this is Yoo Eun sil, a chidren’s book writer. I am forty eight this year. It's been 23 years since I started writing books. It’s been 16 years since I published my first book.

 

What do you think children’s book writers are?

 

"They should be on the children’s side." I don’t think children’s book writers should be neutral. For example, there are writers that talk about the difficulties of parenting. They submit those books for competition. Being in a position to complain about the grievances of adults - I don't think it's children's literature.

 

 

 

How was your childhood?

 

I lived on the outskirts of Seoul in the 1980s, in Doksan-dong. There were small businesses between residential areas. That was my neighborhood. My friends' parents were workers at those factories, where work and life were fused. It was like an alley parenting community.
I took a social studies exam when I was in the first grade of elementary school. "Q. How is living with many factories in your neighborhood? 1. Very convenient, 2. Quiet and good air, 3. It's noisy and it's bad to live there" It was multiple-choice. What if there was a factory near your house? The answer was that it’s noisy and it’s bad to live there. But I picked "very convenient." I got that wrong. So I told my parents that. They said I know our neighborhood best. And they told me to hold onto the test until I was grown up. I really kept that test. With that story, the book I wrote in 2018 was My Doksan-dong (Moonji publishing co.,Ltd.).

 

Why did you start writing about the socially underprivileged?

 

I think literature is on the side of the weak. I look for the weak inside me. First, I'm not white, I am a woman, I grew up on the outskirts. And my father has been a disabled person in a wheelchair since I was a kid. The weakness in me was created by my environment. I think things like that intrigued me.

 

What is your search term?

 

"Happy-sad." This term didn't exist when I debuted. I'm a realist. Even if I’m a children’s book writer, my work is based on realism. If I just use this raw as it is, I think children will get hurt. Whenever I write any sad story, I use the cushion of humor.

 

 

What kind of writer would you like to be in the future?

 

The book SOON RYE HOUSE says this and I think it can be an answer to this question. I wish the SOON RYE HOUSE to become a place like Albergue for young pilgrims. A small town on the pilgrimage route in Santiago. If my writing could be remembered like Albergue where those with a tired mind and body can relax. I will be absolutely happy.

 

 

 

* The interview and video were produced as a part of the K-Book Online Marketing Support Project of the Publication Industry Promotion Agency of Korea (KPIPA).

 

 

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