Chapter 23: Chapter 23 - Elaborate And Thorough (1/2)
Translated by: ShawnSuh
Edited by: SootyOwl
Juho stared out of the window of the bus as the scenery rushed past him. Countless publis.h.i.+ng companies stood at its destination. Along with publis.h.i.+ng companies, there were also tens of print shops and large-scale book distribution companies, all making up one large publis.h.i.+ng district. On top of that, there were used bookstores and book cafes throughout.
He got off the bus before it arrived at its last stop. He wasn't planning on going to the publis.h.i.+ng company that day. Rather, he was on his way to a lunch meeting with his editor.
'It was definitely around here somewhere.'
After walking for some time, the sight of a familiar street met Juho's eyes. Just around the corner of that familiar street, there was a small Korean restaurant. In front it, Nam Kyung Park had come out to meet Juho, who was happy to see him.
”How you doin'?”
”You made it in one piece.”
Nam Kyung greeted Juho while pus.h.i.+ng his gla.s.ses up onto his nose. In his mid-thirties, he was a capable editor who was responsible for working with several big-name authors.
As the two went inside, they were met with other customers having their meals. They walked past them and went into a room with a sliding door. When the door closed, the sound of the outside world faded away. That was one of the reasons why Nam Kyung preferred that restaurant.
”I guess we won't have to worry about people eavesdropping on our conversation here.”
”Of course! For a restaurant, their walls are thick.”
Once Juho and Nam Kyung secured a spot, the waitress, who had come into the room with them, brought them a menu. After ordering a light meal, Nam Kyung asked Juho, ”So, how are things? Has your cover blown yet?”
It was a slightly playful question, and Juho answered with a smile, ”I don't even have to try. n.o.body suspects me.”
”Haha! I was looking forward to hearing some stories.”
”In that case, I do have a thing or two.”
”Like what?” Nam Kyung urged him.
He was quite friendly, but at the same time, he wasn't overbearing. It was a proof that Nam Kyung was a skilled editor. Maintaining a relations.h.i.+p with an author was an important part of his job description.When it came to interpersonal interaction, Nam Kyung was exceptional at keeping an appropriate distance. Feeling at home, Juho shared the stories of the things that happened at school.
”Kids are scary nowadays,” Nam Kyung said in response to Juho's story about the fight between the two girls. His eyes were filled with interest.
”How about you? Do you have anything?”
”You want to hear a story about working overtime?”
It was a roundabout way of saying that he didn't have a story. He added that working overtime as an editor was as normal as daily meals.
”I just came from proofreading a draft up until a moment ago.”
”You spend a lot of time doing it, don't you?”
”I can't stand misprints.”
Nam Kyung was strangely obsessed with misprints. There were always flaws in all books. There were times when the wrong word ended up getting used. There were times when a typo ended up in the final print. Although books went through tens of inspections, there was always something that had been overlooked. Nam Kyung was tormented whenever he found such oversights. For that reason, he spent more time and energy into proofreading. The recent trend among publis.h.i.+ng companies was to outsource the proofreading process. The editor's responsibility started at project planning and coordination. In other words, there was enormous workload. There was a limit to how much a single editor was capable of achieving. Yet, Nam Kyung would always say, ”I want to make books that are both elaborate and thorough.”
”Even then, there will always be misprints.”
People made mistakes, and books were made by people. It was inevitable to find misprints in a book. Everyone writhed in pain at first, but soon came to terms with the reality. However, Nam Kyung was adamant.
”That's why you keep proofreading until there are no more misprints.”
Juho felt secure as an author to be working with an editor like him.
”You work so hard.”
”I'm still single, thanks to my work,” Nam Kyung complained light-heartedly. Even for somebody whose dream was to make books both elaborate and thorough, working overtime was deeply undesirable.
”Your meal's ready.”
The sliding door opened, and the waitress put down her tray. Along with various side dishes, Juho's tofu soup and Nam Kyung's pollack stew had been placed on the table. An intoxicating smell wafted into Juho's nose, and the two picked up their spoons.
”This is great!”
”Right?!”
Juho exclaimed after taking his first bite, and Nam Kyung answered with a proud expression on his face. He seemed happy about bringing in another satisfied customer to his favorite restaurant.
As they ate quietly, Juho suddenly thought of something that Nam Kyung had said in the past.
”Wait! Now that I think about it, didn't you say you worked with Hyun Do Lim in the past?”
”Yes I have,” Nam Kyung reminisced as he shoved a big spoonful into his mouth. He remembered how nervous he was when he met the author for the first time. ”Why do you ask? Are you a fan?”
If he put it that way, then perhaps. He was incomparable as an author to Juho in terms of both experience and skill.
”I'm in the middle of transcribing one of his works. I just thought I should ask.”
”Transcribing?” Nam Kyung asked as if it were unexpected. Soon, he nodded as an expression of acceptance, but there was still suspicion in his face. ”Authors often transcribe as well. I see. You transcribing Hyun Do Lim's book...”
”What's with your expression though?”
Nam Kyung thought for a brief moment and said, ”I just had a thought that you and Hyun Do Lim might fall under a same category.”
”What do you mean?”
Nam Kyung started telling his story about the author, ”Mr. Lim is… How should I describe him? He is very delicate, yet broad-minded and friendly. But rough around the edges at the same time.”
”That description… You should be an author.”
”I know. All in all, he's a respectable figure.”
Juho knew that much. Reading his book had always aroused a sense of respect in him.
'What had Nam Kyung's meant by putting him and Mr. Lim into the same category? If he had meant it as an compliment, he would be incredibly overestimating.'