Actor Cha In-pyo proves it's never too late to become a writer

Actor-turned-writer Cha In-pyo (Courtesy of the author)

Cha In-pyo, long beloved as an actor, is proving that it’s never too late to chase new dreams.

At 57, he has been named the winner of the Newcomer Award at the 14th Hwang Sun-won Literary Awards, honoring his transition from screen to page and his growing voice as a novelist.

“It is already more than I deserve that people read my novels, and now receiving an award fills me with a sense of apology and responsibility toward the many who walk the path of literature,” Cha wrote on Instagram after the announcement Monday.

The Hwang Sun-won Literary Award was established to honor the literary legacy of Hwang (1915-2000), one of Korea’s beloved modern writers and author of the classic short story "Sonagi" (Rain Shower).

“I do not see this award as praise for ‘writing well,’ but as encouragement to ‘write well from now on.’ I published my first novel at 42, and now, at 58 (by Korean age), I receive a Newcomer Award. Life feels like a long novel whose ending you can only know after reading until the very last page," Cha said.

His award-winning novel, "Mermaid Hunt" (2022), dives into human ambition and desire through the story of a quest to obtain mermaid oil said to grant a thousand years of life. Drawing on Korean geography, folklore and oral tradition, Cha creates a unique Korean-style fantasy that examines human nature at its rawest.

Cha made his literary debut with "Goodbye Hill" (2009), later revised and reissued as "Once We Look at the Same Star." The novel addresses the historical trauma of victims of the Japanese military's sexual slavery, euphemistically known as comfort women.

The book drew renewed attention last year when Cha was invited to speak at the inaugural Korean Literature Festival hosted by Oxford University’s Asian and Middle Eastern Studies department. It has been selected as required reading for Korean Studies courses.

Cha’s wife, actress Shin Ae-ra, celebrated the win online, posting a photo with him and wrote, “He disappeared every day with his backpack to write, only to come home hungry by 5 p.m. Now he’s won this award. He won a Best New Actor award just before turning 30, and now a Newcomer Writer Award just before 60. Dreams must never be given up on because you never know when they will come true.”

Other winners at the 14th Hwang Sun-won Literary Awards include novelist Joo Sue-ja ("Searching for the Haeryebon"), who received the Writer’s Award, and poet Kim Koo-seul, who won the Poet’s Award for "Island of Shadows."

This year’s awards ceremony will take place Sept. 12 at the Hwang Sun-won Sonagi Village in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi Province.