Online novels rake in W50m a day

As paperbacks move over to make room for e-books, what’s become popular to readers in Korea is the serialized romance novels published online.Last year’s hit TV drama “Moonlight Drawn by Clouds” was first a weekly web novel before it was made into a TV show.Celebrity actor Park Bo-gum aside, it was clear to industry insiders from the beginning the show would be a success, based on the staggering 50 million accumulated views the original novel had garnered. An illustration for the original "Moonl

Jan. 11, 2017

[Weekender] The rules of drinking alone

All lawyer Kim Eun-hye, 29, wanted was to be alone with a glass of wine after a draining day of consulting with clients, wading through legal paperwork, sitting through a tense office dinner and losing a case. Instead of heading home to an empty fridge, Kim decided to drop by Goya, a quiet bar near her house in Yeonnam-dong.“I guess I come here when I feel like having a nice drink, but don’t have the energy to engage in forced conversation with people who can’t offer good advice,” she said, orde

Jan. 6, 2017

[Weekender] ‘Honsul,’ the art of savoring the tipsy self

With a pensive gaze, Park Si-in sips an old fashioned, a whiskey-based cocktail, at a dim, jazzy bistro nestled in a gentrified alley in Seoul. “I don’t think about anything,” she says. “I come here to empty and organize my thoughts. I need it, regularly and personally. Drinking alone is actually enjoyable.” Beside her, Kang Dong-wan, a university student majoring in graphic design, chatters with a bartender. “The bar acts as a sort of a mental hospital, a healing space,” explains Kang, in an in

Jan. 6, 2017

[Weekender] Table for one, please

One of the newest cultural trends sweeping the nation is all about the art of being alone. 　From eating, drinking, shopping and living solo, this new trend seems to defy the once cultural norm of “togetherness.”　With the phenomena of “honsul” and “honbap” -- meaning to “drink alone” and “eat alone,” respectively -- there no longer appears to be social stigmas attached to requesting a table for one. Nor is there a corresponding gasp of dismay or pity for one going to a bar solo and enjoying a coc

Jan. 6, 2017

London museum says goodbye to ‘Dippy’ the dinosaur

LONDON (AFP) -- The towering replica skeleton of “Dippy” the dinosaur, a star attraction at London’s Natural History Museum for more than 100 years, made its final appearance Wednesday before being dismantled.The 292-bone plaster cast of a fossilized diplodocus has for decades greeted visitors in the museum’s iconic entrance hall, but is now being replaced by the skeleton of a blue whale.More than 90 million people have seen “Dippy” since it was presented to the museum by industrialist Andrew Ca

Jan. 6, 2017

With tourists scarce, Egypt struggles to maintain heritage

CAIRO (AFP) -- With a shaky economy following years of unrest and a huge drop in tourists, Egypt is struggling to preserve its fabled archaeological heritage. From Alexandria on the Mediterranean to the Great Pyramid of Giza -- the last of the Seven Wonders of the World -- and Aswan to the south, the North African country is home to impressive ancient monuments.For years, the sites were able to rely on a steady stream of ticket sales to finance their upkeep.But since Egypt’s 2011 revolution, the

Jan. 4, 2017

[Foreigners Who Loved Korea] Father Na, friend of the people of Seogwipo

In Korea’s turbulent path toward independence and nation building, there were foreign nationals who stood steadfastly by the Korean people, although their contributions have been largely overshadowed by those of Korean patriots. The Korea Herald, in partnership with the Independence Hall of Korea, is publishing a series of articles shedding light on these foreigners, their life and legacies here. This is the 23rd installment. -- Ed.Thomas Ryan was born in Crossmolina, a town in County Mayo on th

Jan. 3, 2017

‘Universal appeal is integral to literature promotion’

“The Vegetarian,” a three-part novella by Korean author Han Kang, had all the key elements of success.Flush with literary subtlety, critique and insight, the novel, published in 2007, brought to light the culture of violence toward vegetarians and minorities through the perspective of Yeong-hye, a homemaker whose decision to become a non-meat eater entraps her in a cycle of vice and misery. The novel took nearly 10 years to catch the attention of readers worldwide, before it finally won the Man

Dec. 29, 2016

Fan-based Comic World convention gains global traction

BUSAN (Yonhap) -- Comics and cartoon strips used to be the domain of professionals. Today, fans have also taken up the sketchpad, flocking to fan-made art conventions with their favorite series as the template. Some of the most popular forms of fan art include illustrations and fanfics, or fan-written stories, of characters from comics, games and animation films. “Cosplay,” or dressing up as characters from those comics and games, is another widely followed way of enjoying a series. Among the mo

Dec. 27, 2016

Seoul’s royal palaces welcome record number of visitors

Seoul’s royal palaces enjoyed an unprecedented rise in popularity this year, the Cultural Heritage Administration said.A record number of 10.1 million visitors tread past the gates of Seoul’s four major palaces -– Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung and Deoksugung -– as of November, according to CHA, a government agency charged with preserving and promoting Korean cultural heritage. Nighttime strolls in Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung were popular, the statistics showed. A total of 532

Dec. 26, 2016

[Photo news] Preserving Pompeii

PRESERVING ANCIENT RUINS From left, Massimo Osanna, Italian Culture Minister Dario Franceschini and Italian Premier Paolo Gentiloni visit the archeological excavations of Pompeii on occasion of the reopening of part of the House of the Vettii and the securing of the entire Regio VI area, carried out as part of the Great Pompeii Project, in Pompei, Italy, Saturday. The Great Pompeii Project funded by the European Commission is aimed at safeguarding the unique UNESCO World Heritage site. (EPA-Yonh

Dec. 25, 2016

World-famous diamond inspires new and bloody history

NEW DELHI (AFP) -- Many precious stones have a blood-soaked history, but a new book reveals the world‘s most famous diamond, the Koh-i-Noor, surpasses them all, with a litany of horrors that rivals “Game of Thrones.”The Koh-i-Noor (“Mountain of Light”), now part of the British Crown Jewels, has witnessed the birth and fall of empires across the Indian subcontinent, and remains the subject of a bitter ownership battle between Britain and India.“It is an unbelievably violent story. ... Almost ever

Dec. 25, 2016

The unlikely saviors of Libya’s Roman remains

LEPTIS MAGNA, Libye (AFP) -- Ali Hribish stands by the Arch of Septimius Severus which dominates Libya’s ancient city of Leptis Magna, brandishing letters of thanks for his efforts to protect the site. The former electricity company employee in his 50s has become the Roman city’s unlikely savior, protecting it from looting and vandalism as chaos rocks the country following the 2011 downfall of dictator Moamer Kadhafi. Despite having no background in archaeology, Hribish gathered a band of fighte

Dec. 22, 2016