Writer Song Ji-hyun's short story "What One Does Better Than Anyone" has been selected for the grand prize of the 2026 Kim Seung-ok Literary Award.
Munhakdongne, the publisher that organizes the award, said on the 22nd that it reached the decision after reviewing seven works narrowed down from 141 short stories published between July last year and June this year.
The judges said the grand prize-winning "What One Does Better Than Anyone" "sheds light on women who sought survival in their own individual battles within a collapsed familism and a decayed patriarchy." They added that the work "neither removes hatred nor colors love, and does not package the various flawed personalities of women as sublime motherhood." The judges also said, "In an era when 'son-jeol' — a stock-market term for cutting losses to avoid greater damage — has become the spirit of the age, this is a work I want to read together with readers who imagine an alternative kind of relationship different from 'cutting losses.'"
Song made her literary debut through the Dong-A Ilbo New Year's literary contest in 2013 and has published the short story collections "For Instance, in the Manner of an Epilogue," "What We Eat in Summer" and "Kimjang," the novella "Shall I Take a Bit of a Detour Today," and the essay collection "Donghae Life." She has received the Hankook Ilbo Literary Award, the Heo Gyun Literary Writer Award and the Tomorrow's Korean Writer Award.
The Kim Seung-ok Literary Award was established in 2013 to mark the 50th anniversary of the literary debut of novelist Kim Seung-ok, author of "Record of a Journey to Mujin" and "Seoul, Winter 1964." Each year it selects the best short story published by writers with at least 10 years since their debut, with a grand prize of 50 million won ($36,000).
This year's excellence awards went to Park Seo-ryeon's "A Tale of Transformation," Seo Yu-mi's "New Year Concert," An Bo-yun's "Without Even a Curtain Call," Im Hyeon's "You Are My Story," Jung Yong-jun's "The Meter Reader" and Jung Yi-hyun's "Failure Story Crew." Each excellence award carries a prize of 5 million won ($3,600). The collection of winning works is scheduled to be published in October, and the awards ceremony will be held in Suncheon in November.
Munhakdongne also announced the winners of its 2026 Munhakdongne New Writer's Award. In poetry, Lee Su-hwan was selected for "The End and the Beginning" and four other poems; in fiction, Kim Dong-wook for "One and the One Within One"; and in criticism, Kwon Eun-mi for "With the Most Universal Sorrow, to You — On Ko Seon-gyeong."
