The Seoul International Writers' Festival, which started on Sept. 12, allows people to consider the truth that is beyond what meets the eye. Shown is a news conference on Sept. 11 at the hotel Fraser Place Namdaemun in Seoul's Jung-gu District with (from left to right) Nam Seung-won, a member of the event's planning committee, Chinese author Yan Lianke, author Hyun Ki Young and committee member Nam Yeon-joon.

By Kim Seon Ah
Photos = Literature Translation Institute of Korea

This year's Seoul International Writers' Festival, which kicked off on Sept. 12, explores the truth beyond what meets the eye, with 29 domestic and foreign writers to discuss the essence and contemporary significance of literature.

The Literature Translation Institute (LTI) of Korea on Sept. 11 announced the opening of the 14th festival at a news conference held at the hotel Fraser Place Namdaemun in Seoul's Jung-gu District under the theme "Meets the Eye."

"A theme is unraveled by filling in empty parentheses with individual interpretations," LTI Korea President Chon Sooyoung said. "It contains the message of contemplating through literature the essence that is easy to miss amid overabundance of images and information."

"Literature is the power to ponder the invisible essence in our visual-centric modern society," added Nam Seung-won, a member of the festival's planning committee. "We planned for communication with other people and worlds through literary imagination."

Introducing the program lineup, fellow committee member Park Yeon-joon said, "In a meetup with authors, domestic and foreign writers are paired as duos to discuss their works in depth, and in another writers' chat, authors of various nationalities and generations freely discuss contemporary themes."

"We also prepared the program 'If I Could Write Only on My Cellphone,' which explores the literary perspectives of millennials and Gen Z," he added, referring to people born from the late 1990s to the early 2010s.

Hyun Ki Young, who is considered a master of modern Korean literature, and Chinese writer Yan Lianke will take part in the festival's opening discussion.

Writer Hyun Ki Young on Sept. 11 responds to questions at a news conference held at the hotel Fraser Place Namdaemun in Seoul's Jung-gu District.

"This festival, now in its 14th year, has played a major role in globally promoting domestic writers," Hyun said. "Literature is a platform to exchange our thoughts on what to write beyond national borders."

On this year's theme "Meets the Eye," he added, "Literature isn't all about the surface appearances of objects and humans but rather the pursuit of the inner self of life, events and people."

"Both Korea and China underwent rapid growth and gained material abundance, but cannot ignore the reality of diminishing humanity and rising dehumanization," he said. "Yan Lianke's literary works skillfully reflect this critical awareness through satire, humor and irony."

Chinese writer Yan Lianke (right) on Sept. 11 responds to questions at a news conference held at the hotel Fraser Place Namdaemun in Seoul's Jung-gu District.

"The Seoul International Writers' Festival can play a key role in the global expansion of Asian literature," he said. "I think Seoul's literature is ahead of that in China or Japan in East Asia."

"Most importantly, I'm honored to meet Hyun Ki Young."

"I belatedly congratulate Han Kang for winning the Nobel Prize in Literature. Her award is a source of pride for Asian as well as Korean literature," he added. "Korean cinema is the best in Asia, so I hope that Korean literature stands at the peak of Asian literature and lead the way."

Ending on Sept. 17, the festival is being held at the multipurpose cultural complex Ground Seoul in Seoul's Jongno-gu District with programs for visitors.

sofiakim218@korea.kr