Cheon Myeong-kwan

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Cheon Myeong-kwan
천명관
Born (1964-01-01) 1 January 1964 (age 60)
Yongin, South Korea
OccupationNovelist, Screenwriter
NationalitySouth Korean
In this Korean name, the family name is Cheon.

Cheon Myeong-kwan (Korean: 천명관; Hanja: 千明官,The romanization preferred by the author according to LTI Korea[1]) (born 1964) is a South Korean novelist, screenwriter and film director. His novel Modern Family was adapted into a film, Boomerang Family, in 2013.[2] The translation of his novel Whale was shortlisted for the 2023 International Booker Prize.

Life[edit]

Cheon was born in Yong-in South Korea in 1964.[3] He debuted in 2003 with the short story “Frank and I.” Before becoming a writer, he worked for a movie production company and also wrote the screenplays for films like Gun and Gun (1995, 총잡이)[4] and The Great Chef (1999, 북경반점).[5] Although he wrote numerous screenplays and prepared to star in a few films himself, production on these movies was suspended. Although it was a bitter time of failure, it was no doubt an important period of his training and discipline as a writer.

Cheon turned to writing fiction in an attempt to find another means of making money, spurred on by the words of his sibling who said that he should write novels instead of writing screenplays that would never be made into movies. The result was “Frank and I,” an absurd and hilarious story about the narrator’s unemployed husband who goes to Canada to meet his cousin Frank and ends up meeting Frank, a Los Angeles gang leader. With this short story, he won the Munhakdongne New Writer Award. Only a year later in 2004, he won the 10th Munhakdongne Novel Award for his first novel Whale (고래), which spins a wry epic tale about a country girl who transforms into an entrepreneur in the city. Modern Family (고령화 가족), featuring a motley crew of family members, is narrated by a middle-aged son who has been unemployed for the past 10 years ever since his debut film flopped. With these two works, he jump-started his writing career, receiving widespread attention from critics and readers alike as a unique and invigorating presence in the Korean literary scene.[6] My Uncle, Bruce Lee is a chronicle of an uncle as seen through his nephew’s eyes.

Works in English[edit]

Works[edit]

Novels:

  • My Uncle, Bruce Lee (2012)
  • Modern Family (2010)
  • Whale (2004)

Short stories:

  • Cheerful Maid Marisa (2006)
  • "Frank and I"[7]

Films:

Awards[edit]

  • The 10th Munhakdongne Novel Award (2004)
  • Munhakdongne New Writer Award (2003)[8]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Hyeyoung Kim. "Korean Literature Authors Name Authority Database - LTI Korea Library - LibGuides at Literature Translation Institute of Korea". Klti.libguides.com. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  2. ^ "Korean Literature Authors Name Authority Database". LTI Korea. Archived from the original on 12 January 2015. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  3. ^ Cheon, Myeong-Kwan (2015). Homecomeing. Asia Publishess. p. Sleevejacket. ISBN 979-11-5662115-7.
  4. ^ "Gun and Gun(Chongjab-i) (1995)". Kmdb.or.kr. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  5. ^ "The Great Chef (Buggyoungbanjeom) (1999)". Kmdb.or.kr. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  6. ^ "Authors DB". LTI Korea. Archived from the original on 12 January 2015. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  7. ^ Cheon, Myeong-Kwan; O’Rourke, Kevin (2012). "Frank and I". Azalea: Journal of Korean Literature & Culture. 5 (1): 151–171. doi:10.1353/aza.2012.0004. S2CID 82935983. Project MUSE 474441.
  8. ^ "천명관::Naver People Search". People.search.naver.com. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
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