The Han River effect is heating up the publishing industry, which had been trembling in recession. Just five days after the news of Han Kang's Nobel Prize in Literature win was announced, over one million copies of her novels were sold. The Han Kang trickle-down effect is also intense. The daily sales volume of all novels surged more than tenfold. Customers who came to buy Han Kang's books picked up other novels placed nearby and headed to the checkout counter. Overall book sales also tripled.
A citizen is purchasing a book by Han Kang, a novelist who won the Nobel Prize in Literature, at Kyobo Bookstore Gwanghwamun Branch in Jongno-gu, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]
Overall Novel Sales Increase Tenfold, Book Sales Also Triple
According to the Integrated Publishing Distribution Network, daily book sales revenue in October ranged from 3 billion to 5.1 billion KRW before the Nobel Prize announcement. However, on the 10th, when the Nobel Prize was announced, sales rose to 6.3 billion KRW and soared to 9.3 billion KRW on the 11th. After a decline over the next two days, sales increased again to 6.9 billion KRW on the 14th. Sales in the novel category increased dramatically. On the 9th, novel sales were 16,483 copies, amounting to 240.36 million KRW, but on the 10th, they rose to 49,656 copies and 729.67 million KRW, and on the 11th, they exploded to 123,512 copies and 1.78458 billion KRW. Book sales had been declining every year, and the Korean publishing industry was on the brink of collapse. The overflow from Han Kang is acting as a life-giving water to the drought-stricken publishing industry.
Industry insiders said that since Han Kang's Nobel Prize in Literature win is an unprecedented event in Korean literary history, an unprecedented phenomenon is occurring in the publishing industry, and it is difficult to predict how far its ripple effects will reach. The fastest-selling Korean novel to surpass one million copies was Shin Kyung-sook's Please Look After Mom. It was published on November 10, 2008, and surpassed one million copies by early September the following year, taking a full 10 months. At that time, Please Look After Mom was a million-seller that came out eight years after Kim Hoon's The Song of the Sword, published in 2001.
According to major large bookstores, about one million copies of Han Kang's books were sold within five days after the Nobel Prize announcement. As of 4 p.m. on the 15th, Yes24 reported that 409,000 copies of Han Kang's books had been sold. Kyobo Bookstore and Aladin sold 333,000 and 230,000 copies respectively. Typically, authors receive 10% of book sales as royalties. Assuming the average price of a book is about 15,000 KRW, Han Kang earned about 1.5 billion KRW in just five days. Considering overseas sales, the amount could be several times higher.
One Million Copies Sold Within Five Days of Nobel Announcement... Han Kang Earns Over 1.5 Billion KRW in Korea Alone
Baek Won-geun, head of the Book and Society Research Institute, said that it is unusual for major bookstores to disclose the sales volume of specific books. Usually, publishers do not disclose book sales figures. Many authors do not want their book sales figures to be made public, and the distribution structure of books is complex, making it difficult for publishers to aggregate sales data.
Baek explained, "Publishers rarely disclose sales figures," adding, "When books sell hundreds of thousands of copies, commemorative editions are published, and sales figures become known." He further said, "It is almost the first time that Han Kang's novel sales figures are reported moment by moment like an auction race," and explained, "Because winning the Nobel Prize in Literature is an unprecedented event, unprecedented things are happening."
A Kyobo Bookstore official said that the disclosure of sales figures for each of Han Kang's books cannot be made without the publisher's consent, so they disclosed the total sales volume of Han Kang's books. The official also said that it is very unusual for Kyobo Bookstore to disclose book sales figures, explaining that this is because explosive sales are taking place.
Nationwide Shortage... Expecting 'Han Kang Kids' Like Park Se-ri and Kim Yuna
Han Kang's books are experiencing a nationwide shortage. It is difficult to find her books not only in large bookstores but also in used bookstores and independent bookstores. On the afternoon of the 15th, Cha Kyung-hee, head of the independent bookstore 'Goyo Seosa' in Haebangchon, Yongsan-gu, said that Han Kang's books sold out the day after the Nobel Prize announcement. On the 11th, a reader visited the bookstore and bought three books: I'm Not Leaving You, White, and Yellow Light Garden, and shortly after, another reader came and bought I'm Not Leaving You, leaving no stock. Cha Seung-hyun, head of another nearby independent bookstore 'Byulchaekburok,' also said that the few copies of Han Kang's books they had on the 11th were all sold out.
The book "The Boy is Coming" by Han Kang, a novelist who won the Nobel Prize in Literature, has arrived and is being displayed at Kyobo Bookstore Gwanghwamun branch in Jongno-gu, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]
Han Ki-ho, head of the Korea Publishing Marketing Research Institute, said, "Just as Park Se-ri kids and Kim Yuna kids emerged, 'Han Kang kids' may also emerge in the literary world." Han added, "Aspiring writers who thought 'I can't be a novelist' now have an opportunity to dream of becoming novelists," and said, "Literature, the mainstream of K-content, has been steadily growing overseas, and this time it has shown the true value of K-literature."
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