About Choi In-ho
Lived 1945 – 2013 (aged 67). Choi In-ho was a South Korean writer.
Choe Inho (; 17 October 1945 – 25 September 2013) was a South Korean writer.
Life Born in Seoul, Choe Inho graduated from the Department of English Literature at Yonsei University and debuted as a writer in 1967 with the short story “Patient Apprentice” (Gyeonseup Hwanja, ), which was selected as one of the winners of the New Spring Literary Contest sponsored by The Chosun Ilbo.
In 1987, when he was 43 years old, Choe converted to Catholicism, but nonetheless managed to extend his narrative range to include Buddhism in Road Without Road.
Choe also taught at Yonsei University and Catholic University of Korea. He died September 25, 2013, at age 68 (Korean age) from salivary gland cancer.
Work Choe Inho began writing in 1963 at age 17 and took to it naturally. This is clear in his own account of writing two stories, “The Boozer” (술꾼) (1970) and “A Stranger’s Room” (타인의 방) (1971), which earned him a reputation as one of the most controversial novelists of the 1970s. According to Choe, “The Boozer” was completed in only two hours, while “A Stranger’s Room” was written overnight for the first issue of Literature and Intelligence.
A handful of his early stories gained notice when they won competitions sponsored by local papers (The Hanguk Ilbo in 1963, the Chosun Ilbo in 1966) and the Sasanggye Magazine (1968). His early stories (Including "The Boozer," widely anthologized in English, which created general awareness of his career in 1970, though written earlier ) depicted harsh and satirical landscapes of the results of consumerism. Choe focused on the people caught in the middle of a rapidly industrializing Korea, presenting a satirical picture of burgeoning consumerism and the resultant dehumanization.
In the mid-1970s, Choe generalized his focus to that of alienation and wrote "Deep Blue Night," which told of the harsh and alienated "road trip" of two Koreans in California. It won the prestigious Yi Sang Literary Award in Korea in 1982. It was translated into English by Bruce Fulton and his wife Ju-Chan Fulton for the Literature Translation Institute of Korea and Jimoondang Publishing.
Among his works, The Merchant of Joseon (Sangdo, 상도) and Emperor of The Sea (Haeshin, 해신) were dramatized and aired by MBC and KBS in 2001 and 2004, respectively, which won popularity not only among Koreans but also viewers across the globe.
Awards Choe's "Deep Blue Night" won the prestigious Yi Sang Literary Award in Korea in 1982. Besides winning the Yi Sang Literary Award, Choe was also awarded the 1972 Contemporary Literature (Hyundae Munhak) Award.
Works in translation English "Deep Blue Night," Jimoondang Press (May 31, 2008) "Tower of Ants," Hollym International Corporation (December 31, 2004) "The Boozer," Land of Exile "Another Man's Room," Modern Korean Fiction an Anthology
German Koreanische Literatur Band 3 detail (한국문학 사화집 제3권 -전후 중단편선), Bouvier, translated by Ku Ki-Seong Schriftenreihe des Instituts für Koreanische Kultur. 1984/5 detail (<한>誌 (84.5월호) - 한국문학특집호), Institut für Koreanische Kultur Schriftenreihe des Instituts für Koreanische Kultur. 1984/7 detail (<한>誌 (84.7월호) - 한국문학특집호), Institut für Koreanische Kultur
Japanese 他人の部屋 detail (타인의 방), コールサック (Coal Sack)社 夢遊桃源図 detail (몽유도원도), コールサック (Coal Sack)社
Polish Maski detail (가면무도회), Nobilitas
French Une nuit bleue et profonde (깊고 푸른 밤), Actes Sud
Don’t just read it —
keep it.
Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.
- E-book
- Audio
- Video
Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free
Important facts
People in Choi In-ho's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Choi In-ho's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Choi In-ho?
South Korean writer (1945-2013)
When was Choi In-ho born?
Choi In-ho was born on 17 October 1945 in Seoul.
When did Choi In-ho die?
Choi In-ho died on 25 September 2013.
What was Choi In-ho's occupation?
Choi In-ho was a writer.
What nationality was Choi In-ho?
Choi In-ho was South Korean.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Choi In-ho. https://biography.guide/choi-in-ho/
MLA: "Choi In-ho." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/choi-in-ho/.
Chicago: "Choi In-ho." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/choi-in-ho/.
Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.
Page generated 2026-09-27 05:24 UTC