The Strange Profession of Being a Novelist, Vol. 2

소설가 장강명의 본업분투 에세이 『소설가라는 이상한 직업』이 3년 만에 2권으로 돌아온다. 어느덧 작품활동만 15년이 넘은 중견 작가가 된 장강명은 소설 집필 기술부터 문학을 둘러싼 세계의 확장, 문학계와 출판계가 마주한 AI, 이 이상한 직업의 어둠과 빛까지 소상히 비춘다. 단행본 저술업자이자 소설가로서의 본질을 붙들며 이 시대를 살아가는 법을 이야기한다.

소설을 쓰는 사람뿐 아니라, 내리막길 위에서 자신의 의지로 달리고 있는 것인지 누가 밀고 있는 것인지 알 수 없는 상태로 넘어지지 않으려 애쓰는 우리의 모습도 또렷이 포착한다. 소설 쓰기 작업과 편집자와의 교정교열, 북토크와 문학의 IP 콘텐츠화, 창작자 지원사업과 생성형 AI의 시대를 맞이한 문학계의 혼란 속에서 ‘문학은 어떻게 해야 할까’가 아니라 ‘문학은 무엇을 해야 하는가’라는 질문을 붙든다.

밥벌이이면서도 동시에 의미를 찾고 싶었던 직업, 기꺼이 헌신하고 싶었던 문학이 변질된다면 장강명은 ‘무엇을 하지 않아야 하는지’를 붙들려 한다. ‘소설을 왜 쓰려 하는가’를 넘어 ‘소설을 쓰는 행위에서 얻어내려는 바가 무엇인가’를 묻고, 시장 트렌드와 독자층의 변화 속에서도 덜 휘둘리게 된 중견작가의 생각을 풀어낸다. ‘삶의 주도권’을 놓치지 않겠다는 다짐과 함께 소설가로 무사히 살아남고 책 읽는 사람들의 공동체가 건강하게 성장하기를 바란다.

Three years after the publication of his candid essay collection about the struggles of his profession, novelist Jang Kang-myoung returns with the second volume of 『The Strange Profession of Being a Novelist』. Now an established writer with more than 15 years of literary experience, Jang offers an in-depth look at everything from the craft of novel writing and the expanding world surrounding literature to the challenges artificial intelligence poses to the literary and publishing industries, as well as the darker and brighter sides of this unusual profession. Holding firmly to his identity as both a book author and a novelist, he reflects on what it means to navigate the modern world while remaining true to his craft.

The book captures not only the experiences of those who write novels but also the struggles of people who find themselves running downhill, desperately trying not to fall, uncertain whether they are moving forward of their own free will or being pushed along by forces beyond their control. Through discussions of the writing process, proofreading and editing with publishers, book talks, the adaptation of literary works into intellectual property-based content, creative support programs, and the confusion facing the literary world in the age of generative AI, Jang shifts the central question from “How should literature respond?” to “What should literature do?”

For Jang, writing has always been both a means of earning a living and a pursuit of deeper meaning, while literature has been something to which he willingly devoted himself. If the nature of that profession and the literature he cherishes begins to change for the worse, he seeks to hold on to a clear understanding of “what not to do.” Moving beyond the question of “Why do we write novels?”, he asks, “What do we hope to gain from the act of writing novels?” He shares the reflections of a seasoned novelist who has learned to be less swayed by market trends and changing readerships. With a firm determination not to surrender control over his own life, Jang expresses his hope to continue surviving and thriving as a novelist while seeing the community of readers grow in a healthy and meaningful way.