Only Poetry

One of the common misconceptions about Lee Byeong-ryul is that he must have had the privilege of inherited wealth. It is because people wonder how he can afford all the trips. It¡¯s understandable if we don¡¯t know him very well. Learning poetry at university, starting a literary career as a poet, working as a broadcast writer, and finally becoming one of the best and steadiest selling writers who counts over a million of copies, it seems unreal how smooth and shiny his career has been. Tidy hair and a soft voice made everyone in the room comfortable when we met him. ¡°When I was young, I had a lot of financial difficulties. But it is the difficult times that inspired me to write poems. I didn¡¯t have anything but poems until my work was recognized in the annual spring literary contest. My situation was more like an obstacle to my dream as a poet rather than an advantage like many people think. When I didn¡¯t know where my next meal was coming from, I had to face a tough choice between writing poems as my career or burying them deep in my heart.¡±

The beginning of his career wasn¡¯t as bright as it is now. It took a while to publish the first collection of his poems after his debut as a poet. He had the fear that no one would read the poetry he wrote with great effort. He got rejected by a publishing company and couldn¡¯t release his collection. There was a time people didn¡¯t care so much about poetry. However, he never gave up his love and passion for poetry, writing radio scripts as if he were writing a poem, and always writing poetry even when he was traveling. ¡°I utilized the power of anxiety when I wrote poems. The path I chose was different than other people who go to school and get normal jobs. I had my shares of efforts I needed to make and hard work I needed to do, and I did what I had to do. I had a belief that if I couldn¡¯t be a poet who could write good poems, I wouldn¡¯t be able to choose anything else in life. Poetry makes me who I am.¡±

His love for poems started in his mid-teens. He was more into writing poems than studying. ¡°I used to express a crush on my teacher in poems with all my heart. The teacher kept them all and she recently let me borrow them to read. I wasn¡¯t able to finish reading the poems written by that young boy, and I ended up returning them unfinished.¡± As is true for anybody, he also had his immature days. It was not about poverty nor childishness. It was about love for writing.

A Trip to Deprivation

His life is a journey. He has visited 120 countries so far. He usually revisits the places he loves several times like he did more than thirty times with Paris and Sapporo and twenty times with Venice. The conversations with his friends, rosy cheeks, and nostalgia are all fused in his writing. He is a sole traveler. ¡°My time alone makes me realize what deficiencies I have. It even tells me what I need to do in my life. This changes my writing and perspectives on my life. It gradually transforms my life. It can only be achieved by time alone. The hunger for solitary time and space is the reason why I had to go on journeys even when I couldn¡¯t afford it. Whenever I did, an unspoken promise of enlightenment always rewarded me.¡± His history with Paris is traced back to the age of 27. He had saved up money and said to his friends that he would travel to Europe for a little while, but never returned for two years. He describes this time as ¡°farming.¡±

¡°I endured discrimination. I faced anxiety. It was not the cultural difference that shocked me, but my own desires and despair that I clearly saw. Had I not lived by myself, not walked on my own, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to realize all that.¡± Something so strong and firm that has grown inside him since his trip to Paris has led him to continue his journey and write poems without getting exhausted.

Jump Inward, but Further

If there were no writings in the world, what would he be doing? ¡°Pictures in my travel books are casually taken, but if I took photography seriously, I would¡¯ve probably been more into the photography world. I love trying a lot of different things. That¡¯s why I keep on exploring the world, and writing poems. In the end, all of these things always lead me to observe people and contemplate on them.¡± His passion for people is what makes him a great writer. ¡°Writing has to have power to change people. Good writings should be able to change what happens inside people, the direction and quality of their life. Many people think the heart is there just to keep them alive. But I want my writing to reach the point that makes people¡¯s hearts dance.

He stares at people¡¯s minds, and does not hesitate to walk into them. But his visit is something genuine. His pen name that he gave himself is ¡°Buchae,¡± meaning a hand fan. ¡°If you ever made a fire with a hand fan, you will know that you can¡¯t just randomly move the fan but you have to blow gentle wind with your mouth. I want to be like that. I want to be that person and I want my writings to play the role that gently pushes people to see what they actually feel and desire.¡± What about those who dream of becoming a writer? He took his time to answer this sensitive question, probably because he didn¡¯t want to confuse anyone or plant false hope. ¡°Writing is difficult and being loved as a writer doesn¡¯t get any easier. Although I¡¯m fully aware that it is a tough path, and sometimes you can¡¯t even see hope, I still want to encourage you to start. We, writers, can¡¯t live without writing. That is why we write.¡±

Without Satisfaction nor Stopping

Contrary to the laid-back smiles he has shown throughout the conversation, he always keeps a distance from the word ¡°happiness¡± or ¡°success.¡± His poem ¡°I Don¡¯t Want Happiness¡± is a good example where he set himself apart from happiness. ¡°Undesirable outcomes are definitely not comfortable. People suffer, think, and reflect because of what they couldn¡¯t accomplish or what they don¡¯t have. Regrets we live with can¡¯t be described as happiness.¡± Knowing him, and his path, these words don¡¯t mean he is a pessimist or nihilist; he simply refuses to conclude or define his life in the name of success or happiness. His life is more dynamic than that, meeting new people and moving hearts as he drifts.

¡°It is certainly true that I grow more when I¡¯m in love. But it makes me wonder if it is the feeling of love that seizes me or if I just want to see myself become a better person through love. To be honest and more accurate, I¡¯m kind of a person who uses love than purely loves.¡± He always walks alone and we never know where his life is taking him. For now, though, we promised to see each other again on the road in another country.

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• Lee Byung-ryul Profile

   2018
  The recipient of the 6th Discovery Literary Award
   2017
  Published the poems ¡°The Sea Is Well¡±
   2016
  Co-author of the dialogue book ¡°Jump Inward, Further¡±
   2015
  Published the prose book ¡°The Person Next to Me¡±
   2013
  Published the poems ¡°Snowman Inn¡±
   2012
  Published the prose book ¡°The Wind Blows, I Like You¡±
  Co-author of the prose book ¡°Hi, Friendly Person¡±
   2010
  Published the poems ¡°Radiant¡±
  Revised the prose book ¡°Attracted¡± (first edition in 2005)
   2006
  Published the poems ¡°The Privacy of the Wind¡±
  The recipient of the 11th Modern Poetry Award
   2003
  Published the poems ¡°You Want to Go Somewhere¡±
   1996 to 2006
  Writer of the radio broadcast MBC FM4U, FM Music City
   1995
  Debut at Korea Daily Annual Spring Literary Contest
   1988
  Graduated from Creative Writing Department of Seoul Arts University