Bak Solmay was born in Gwangju, South Korea in 1985. She studied art management at Korea National University of Arts. She made her literary debut in 2008 when she won the Jaeum & Moeum New Writer’s Award in 2009. She also won the Moonji Literary Award and Kim Seungok Literary Award.
Park Solmay is known for experimenting with narrative conventions, such as shifting tenses and register for no apparent reason or interrupting the flow of narration with sudden dialogue or the inner thoughts of characters.
Park’s chaotic style is related to how she perceives reality. She is a writer who “explores a hopeless generation and futureless era.” Her works are a response to a society where young people cannot find jobs, are giving up their dreams of getting married, starting a family, owning a house, etc., and have no idea how to survive the so-called “Hell Joseon.”
Park voices the sense of futility felt by Korean youths today. Her characters are passive and never question their lack of agency in determining their reality. They despair over their inability to survive in this world no matter how hard they try and believe none of their actions are meaningful. This lethargy dominates Park’s works.
