When I first released my comics to the world nine years ago, I never imagined this day would come. “10 billion views. “I have no idea how many there are.” On the 7th, author Taejun Park spoke at the headquarters of Taejun Park Comics Company in Sinsa-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul.
The Naver webtoon ‘Lookism’, which he started serializing in 2014, surpassed 10 billion views at the end of last month. Among domestic webtoons, the only one with more views was ‘Only I Level Up’ (14.3 billion views, Kakao Webtoon), which translated a popular web novel into a webtoon. ‘Lookism’ is the first pure webtoon creation to exceed 10 billion views.
Although he has now become synonymous with successful webtoon writers, his path has never been smooth. During his childhood, he accompanied his mother to the warehouse where she worked every day. This was because there was no one to take care of her after her mother, who was responsible for her livelihood, went to work. He had to spend all day in a small room in a warehouse, and his only friends were comic books. When he finished watching a cartoon, he traced the picture and imagined what would happen next. His dream of becoming a cartoonist blossomed naturally.
I wanted to become a cartoonist right after graduating from high school, but my mother wanted me to go to college, so I entered Sangmyung University’s Department of Cartoon and Animation. Her mother took on her student loan debt. In the early 2000s, the published comics market was declining, and webtoons were just burgeoning. He had no confidence in making money as a cartoonist. ‘Let’s postpone our dreams for a while. Let’s make money first and then become a cartoonist.’ He dropped out of school after one year.
He started an online shopping mall business. In exchange for the low barrier to entry, he had to grind his body. He was absent day and night, day and night, and even on holidays, as he went to the Dongdaemun early morning market to pick up his clothes, package and deliver them, and even did the fitting model himself. He has been stabbed and scammed. He also appeared on television to promote the shopping mall. This is the 2009 cable channel Comedy TV ’s entertainment show ‘Ulzzang Generation.’ “I didn’t have any talent or talent, but I worked hard and did it for three years. There, I felt a lot of things as I watched people change when the cameras were on and off, and how they changed as they became famous.” These experiences later became the foundation for creative work.
I lived like that for 10 years intensely. In the meantime, the webtoon market has grown considerably. Naver Webtoon also has a ‘Challenge Comics’ section where amateur writers can upload comics. Just for fun, I thought I would upload some of the comics I had been uploading little by little to my shopping mall. “Rather than thinking about debuting, I was just curious about the reactions and comments about my comic.” The reaction was hot. It was continued as an official serialization a few months later. It was a debut at the age of 30.
‘Lookism’ tells the story of Park Hyeong-seok, a high school student who was bullied for his poor and unattractive appearance, and what happens when he gains a tall, handsome body. Even if the inside is the same, when the outside changes, the attitude of people around you changes 180 degrees. The author’s own experience is reflected here카지노사이트. “When I was in school, I didn’t have anything to show off. He came from a poor family, had a small physique, had short curly hair, wore thick glasses, and only drew cartoons in the corner. “I was bullied and felt sad.”
The opportunity for change came during my senior year of high school. In order to advance to college to major in comics, I enrolled in a vocational school to learn skills such as beauty and fashion. Then, you only need to go to the existing school one day a week. I left the vocational school early and went to an art academy to learn practical skills. “Surprisingly, my friends at vocational school treated me without prejudice. I also decorated my appearance. As my appearance changed, the attitudes of people around me changed. Even at the local supermarket.”
He said he later realized that it was a matter of self-esteem, not appearance. “I learned that I have to be confident in myself so that others will respect me. I wanted to convey through comics that the world can only change when I change
He has never missed a serial in the past nine years. He met his deadlines even when he contracted COVID-19. “I learned that while working at a shopping mall, you have to keep your promises. The same goes for comics. “You don’t know how fun and happy it is to make comics because you get an immediate response as much as you work hard.”
That is why he created Taejun Park Comics Company (corporate name: The Grimm Entertainment) in 2017. This is because I want to collaborate with other artists and present more works. There are more than 10 works in which he wrote or produced stories, including the recently serialized ‘Ulzzang Generation’. Last year, sales reached 15 billion won.
“Now I want to stop producing other works and do one more of my own. I am preparing to serialize a fantasy comic next year. There is a strong perception that Park Tae-jun is a writer who can only write school and violent stories. I think I have a long way to go than I have already walked. I want to quietly walk that path and be recognized as a better writer. “My dream is to be recognized globally in the future.”
. Now that the series has gone on for too long, the theme has been diluted a lot.”