Chapter 116
Chapter 116
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: Once Again, Writer
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"I've read all the works published by Author Woo Ji-hyun on behalf of our publishing house. Fortunately, they were all available as e-books, making it easy to find them. Korea has such a variety of platforms, too."
"Thank you for making the purchase."
"Oh, ho ho ho."
Chae Nam-hee covered her mouth with her hand and laughed at the perfectly timed expression of gratitude.
It was because he seemed surprisingly humble, especially given his elevated status.
This was the complete opposite of what she'd expected from an eccentric.
She'd seen so many young people who tasted early success become unbearably arrogant, so when Chae Nam-hee first laid eyes on Woo Ji-hyun, she'd been inwardly quite shocked.
'Not only is he not some arrogant lone wolf type, but he's even better than I imagined.'
Chae Nam-hee glanced over Woo Ji-hyun's calm, composed face as he sat there.
She thought his looks weren't bad at all, surprisingly.
He wasn't some strikingly handsome guy, but he didn't have an ugly face either.
Especially since he looked nothing like the stereotypical image people had of authors—it was a full 180 degrees different—so Chae Nam-hee figured showing his face publicly wouldn't be a bad idea.
'Of course, it's ultimately up to him.'
There were plenty of reclusive author types out there, so she had no intention of pushing it.
But if he did decide to go public, Manbai Publishing could do a lot for him.
And that would lead straight to sales.
"So, have you made your decision?"
"We've made ours on our end. The only issue left is the author's decision."
As she conveyed Feng Wei-yan's intentions, Chae Nam-hee looked at Jo Jin-gu.
His eyes lit up in response.
He could glimpse Manbai Publishing's mindset from this answer.
"From what I understand, Manbai Publishing is positively inclined toward publishing Author Woo Ji-hyun's books. Is that correct?"
"Yes. If possible, we'd like to publish translated versions of Author Woo Ji-hyun's martial arts novels in Taiwan. He's already built some recognition with the success of God of Martial Arts, Return, and we think the works themselves are solid. Especially the length—long volume counts really appeal to us."
"That makes sense."
Jo Jin-gu nodded.
What people called second-generation martial arts, or new martial arts novels, tended to run much longer than the old-school ones that wrapped up in three or four volumes.
These new ones started at five volumes at the shortest and could stretch to ten or more.
The problem was that when translated into Chinese characters, even these long novels shrank to about a third of their length.
Even minimizing the reduction, they'd still lose more than half, which was why Korean publishers had tried overseas expansion in the past only to give up.
They hadn't done well even breaking into China, the supposed home turf.
'But Author Woo Ji-hyun, who succeeded with God of Martial Arts, Return, is different.'
Jo Jin-gu stroked his chin.
This wasn't starting from absolute scratch; he already had some name recognition, so Jo Jin-gu saw real potential for success.
Manbai Publishing must have thought the same, which was why they'd come back to Korea.
"Of course, we're not just planning to buy the rights and publish as is. If we go ahead, we intend to pursue a premium strategy."
"By premium strategy, do you mean hardcover editions?"
"The idea was floated, but we decided hardcovers are premature for now. No need to push too hard from the start. Instead, we'll differentiate from standard novels. Not for rental shops, but for bookstores."
"A premium and differentiated approach, then."
"Yes. Oh, and that doesn't mean we won't do e-books. Thinking about the future, e-books are the market, naturally."
Jo Jin-gu and Feng Wei-yan weren't the only ones exchanging words briskly; Yeom Tae-seong and Chae Nam-hee were just as busy.
They had to ensure no misunderstandings arose during interpretation.
Meanwhile, Woo Ji-hyun sat quietly, just listening.
There was no room for him to interject on the business side.
"We're already doing illustrations on our end. Though only for e-books and paid serializations, of course."
"Already?"
Feng Wei-yan and Chae Nam-hee both looked stunned to hear that headquarters' hard-won solution was already in play.
At their reactions, Jo Jin-gu smiled and pulled up Woo Ji-hyun's work on Kakao Page via his smartphone.
"Take a look."
"Whoa."
"The quality is impressive."
The interspersed illustrations and their colorful, dynamic polish left Feng Wei-yan and Chae Nam-hee in awe.
It was higher quality than what they'd planned.
At the same time, Feng Wei-yan's mind started racing.
"These are special illustrations from our webtoon team."
"Ah, the God of Martial Arts, Return webtoon team?"
"That's right."
"No wonder the art style looked familiar."
"Shall we talk rights again, then?"
Jo Jin-gu's smile deepened.
He felt like the knife's handle had shifted a bit closer to him right now.
"Sounds good."
"The most important thing for us is the contract terms, of course."
"Right."
Feng Wei-yan and Chae Nam-hee's gazes turned to Woo Ji-hyun, who had been sitting silently until now.
But he didn't open his mouth.
He was leaving it all to Jo Jin-gu, just listening quietly.
"So, we'd like to hear what Manbai Publishing has in mind."
"We came prepared. Of course, this is just a draft contract. Feel free to revise as needed—that's the first thing to note."
"Got it. I'll keep that in mind."
Jo Jin-gu read through the contract with a careful gaze.
There was one in Korean and one in Chinese characters; he reviewed both simultaneously with Yeom Tae-seong.
He didn't forget to explain it all step by step to Woo Ji-hyun.
"Take your time. We're not expecting a deal today. Though we'd be thrilled if it happens by end of day."
"Hahaha. I'll read it over and get back to you."
"Sure."
Feng Wei-yan and Jo Jin-gu exchanged smiles and words.
But their eyes stayed deadly serious.
Big money was on the line, so both approached it cautiously.
"Hmm."
Woo Ji-hyun nodded along seriously as Jo Jin-gu and Yeom Tae-seong gave their detailed rundown.
Overall, it wasn't much different from the God of Martial Arts, Return deal, but there were additions and changes here and there, so he paid close attention.
"I'd like a detailed explanation on this part and that one."
After some time, having gone through the contract, Jo Jin-gu pointed to his marked spots with a pen and looked at Feng Wei-yan.
She began explaining kindly, with her characteristic smile.
The atmosphere was generally positive.
'Full-on overseas expansion. Still hard to believe.'
Woo Ji-hyun watched it all with lingering wonder.
Even sitting at the negotiation table, it didn't quite feel real yet.
"Author Woo Ji-hyun."
"Yes."
"Any thoughts on visiting Taiwan sometime?"
"Taiwan?"
Woo Ji-hyun, who had been quietly sipping his iced Americano, gave Chae Nam-hee a slightly puzzled look.
The out-of-left-field comment caught him off guard.
"Yes. It's early days yet, but if the contract goes through and sales hit a certain benchmark, holding a fan signing could be a good idea."
"A fan signing?"
Woo Ji-hyun was surprised again.
The words had lodged in his ear—something he'd never even considered.
At the same time, Elder’s recent words flashed in his mind.
"Yes. No firm plans yet, but personally, I think hosting a fan signing wouldn't be bad. It could double as a chance for you to gauge the local response."
"Taiwan, huh."
"Of course, no pressure. Just curious about your thoughts."
"But your Korean is really good. The Korean Wave must be something else."
"Ho ho! My mother's Korean, so I'm mixed. Had to pick up the language."
Woo Ji-hyun had subtly changed the subject, but Chae Nam-hee played along without comment.
She wasn't pushing anyway and figured he needed time to think.
"Ah, that explains your fluency."
"Thanks for the compliment."
Though chatting with Chae Nam-hee, Woo Ji-hyun mulled over her words in his head.
Taiwan proposing first instead of Korea wasn't a bad thing.
When else would he get another shot if not now?
'A fan signing...'
His heart thumped inexplicably as he silently repeated the four letters to himself, lost in thought.
* * *
One day in April, as couples everywhere swooned over spring blossoms, Woo Ji-hyun visited not a woman's place, but the home of a pitch-black man.
To be precise, an artist's studio.
Elder had insisted he come along for the special occasion.
"Yo, bro!"
"You're calling me on purpose, right? To lay the groundwork. Gotta have me show up so the scandal hits when the other singers arrive too."
"Writer as expected. You read the play perfectly. Must be habit from seeing the big picture."
"Isn't it weirder not to know?"
Woo Ji-hyun chuckled.
It was just too infuriating how he owned up to it immediately.
But Elder was brazen.
"Surprisingly, lots of folks are clueless. Or just don't care, I guess."
"Don't guys and girls hit on you and Bini all the time? Especially if you invite them to your studio—bet a couple women misread it that way."
"A couple? Try more."
"Ugh, gross."
Woo Ji-hyun grimaced at the swaggering shrug.
But Elder just laughed at his reaction.
Such responses were par for the course for a rap star like him.
"You hate to admit it, but you gotta. Reality, bro. And it's only up from here. Finally shook off that slump."
"Could just be your delusion."
"Nah. Check the tracks—you'll see. Lyrics are firing on all cylinders again. The slump that camped out in my head finally packed up."
Elder plopped onto the living room sofa with a confident grin.
Then he patted the spot next to him.
"Plenty of time before the music show, right?"
"What time? It's already started. Ten minutes and Bini's comeback stage drops."
"Yeah?"
"Sheesh. You don't even watch music shows?"
It was Bini's comeback stage—no one else's.
The title track was one Woo Ji-hyun had penned himself, debuting today, yet he looked utterly indifferent.
"I only watch TV when I'm eating. Can always check online anyway."
"Aren't you too detached as a lyricist? It's your song as the title track."
"Detached? I'm here in Seoul because I care. Forgot? I'm from Incheon."
"I'm a country bumpkin from Bucheon. So why not move to Seoul while you're at it? Your lease is up soon anyway, right? Once you get that album settlement, you could swing it."