Tears of novelist Choi In-ho

The late author Choi In-ho, who passed away on Sept. 25, 2013, had been forever a youth full of love for literature during his life. Even knowing that his days were numbered, whenever he came across an impressive novel written by a junior novelist, Choi read it carefully and visited the protege to encourage him. Acquaintances of Choi said his envy of young writers’ freshness was a driving force for him to stay like a youth. Choi was always friendly to young writers who visited his writing room at Yeobaek Publishing House in Hannam-dong, Yongsan District, Seoul.

I still remember the moment when Choi comforted a young writer who was complaining the pain of writing. “Although I’ve been writing for almost 50 years, whenever ideas are in the ebb, I want to be dead. At such times, I put down my pen and read masterpieces of great writers such as Maksim Gor`kii or Anton Chekhov to get my breath back.” Choi continued talks with serious look in his face while holding a pipe between the teeth. I still remember the young writer, who started career as a writer a few years ago, listening to the ‘youth author’ Choi In-ho.

‘In-ho passed away. Bastard. I cursed him when I lit incense in front of his portrait. He made such a big hole in my heart and passed away….’ (said Former Culture Minister Lee O-young.) The late author was especially close to the former culture minister Lee. Young In Museum of Literature directed by Kang In-sook, Geon-guk University honorary professor and Lee’s wife, opens a special exhibit in honor of Choi In-ho’s first death anniversary. Choi’s handwritten manuscripts of ‘Home of Stars,’ and ‘Business Ethics,’ idea memo, scraps, movie commercials and personal possessions are exhibited until Nov. 8.

At this exhibit, my eyes are on the copper plate engraved with a phrase ‘I want to die on the manuscript’ and his both palm shapes. While fighting against cancer, Choi cheerfully said, “Dudes, I shout every day that I’m alive.” He was famous for hard-to-read handwriting, but the short phrases that he left to his wife and children were written very clearly. Director Kang said, “The most impressive and touching things among his possessions are the desk with white tear marks that he cried during praying to the saint Mary on his last day and a thimble he wore to cover up a fallen-off finger nail.” I miss Choi in this autumn.