[Sportschosun Reporter Cho Min-jeong] Actor Nam Myeong-ryeol launched a pointed criticism at bestselling author Ki-joo Lee, who was indicted on charges of bulk-buying books, saying, "Writing without sincerity is trash."
Nam Myeong-ryeol recently uploaded the covers of Ki-joo Lee’s signature works, *The Temperature of Language* and *The Dignity of Words*, to his social media and posted a lengthy piece titled "Well, That’s Quite a Lot of Talking."
Nam Myeong-ryeol said he chose *The Temperature of Language* because it was a hot topic as a bestseller, then bought *The Dignity of Words* after being drawn to its title while it was displayed beside the first book. After reading both, however, he admitted, "I blamed myself for being lured in by the titles." He said the books were filled with heartwarming stories and moral lessons, but questioned the fact that most of them were presented as events that had happened around the author. Looking back on how many such incidents he had experienced among the people around him over the course of his life, he said he came to doubt the sincerity of the writing.
Nam Myeong-ryeol eventually condemned the books in strong terms, saying, "Writing without sincerity is trash." He added that he saw no reason to keep them and sold both at a used-bookstore, offering the pointed explanation that he received more than he would have for other books because they were popular. Nam Myeong-ryeol said he paid no further attention to Ki-joo Lee’s books. After the recent allegations of bulk buying emerged, he said he wondered whether the author in question was Ki-joo Lee. After confirming that it was indeed Lee, he sharpened his criticism, saying, "I commend myself for cutting ties with him early."
The Goyang Branch of the Uijeongbu District Prosecutors’ Office indicted Ki-joo Lee and a publisher representative without detention on the 9th for allegedly violating the Publishing Industry Promotion Act. Prosecutors believe that Lee conspired with the publisher representative to purchase approximately 1,600 copies of his essay collection *Words of Banality* from bookstores nationwide between March and July 2024, thereby influencing its bestseller ranking. The investigation found that the purchased copies accounted for about 14% of the book’s total sales during that period.
The publisher representative reportedly bought additional copies after employee shift changes or made purchases as a nonmember to conceal the fact that multiple copies of the same book had been purchased. Prosecutors also found indications that the books’ packaging was damaged to make the purchases appear to be defective copies.
*Words of Banality*, published in January 2024, ranked among the top overall bestsellers at major bookstores during the first half of that year. Prosecutors determined that bulk buying raised the book’s category rankings by roughly one place from their previous levels. The case came to light after the publisher representative, identified as having participated in the alleged offense, voluntarily reported it to the Publishing Distribution Review Committee.
Ki-joo Lee is a bestselling author who rose to prominence after *The Temperature of Language*, an essay collection about everyday words and relationships, sold more than 1.7 million copies. He has published numerous essay collections, including *The Dignity of Words*, *Things That Were Once Precious*, and *Words of Banality*. After news of the indictment broke, videos on his existing YouTube channel were taken down.
Meanwhile, Nam Myeong-ryeol made his debut in the 1985 play *Water Bird, Water Bird* and has worked across theater, film, and television, with theater as his main focus. In 2023, he also drew attention by publicly criticizing Son Suk-ku over his so-called "fake acting" remarks.
The full text of Nam Myeong-ryeol’s social media post follows.
Well, That’s Quite a Lot of Talking
I read two books by author Ki-joo Lee. I chose one, *The Temperature of Language*, because it was a hot topic as a bestselling book, and I bought another, *The Dignity of Words*, after being lured in by its title while it was displayed beside it. After reading both, I blamed myself for being lured in by the titles. The books contained all kinds of heartwarming stories and moral lessons. But it turned out that most of those stories were things that had happened around the author. I thought about it. After living for quite a few years, how many such heartwarming things have I experienced among the people around me? The conclusion was: not many. So I began to doubt the sincerity of the author’s writing. Writing without sincerity is trash. There was no reason to keep trash, so I went straight to an Aladdin used bookstore and sold the books. Perhaps because they were popular, they gave me more for them than for other books. After that, I never took an interest in author Ki-joo Lee’s books. When this case became known, I wondered, “Could it be Ki-joo Lee?” And it was. I commend myself for cutting ties with him early.
Cho Min-jeong, mj.cho@sportschosun.com
This article has been translated by GripLabs Mingo AI.
