Private literary school yields 1st grads

The Buak Literary Institute, a private school run by novelist Lee Moon-Yul, has produced its first four graduates recently. Except for one of the five students who quit midway for personal reasons, the four finished the three-year course to be honored with the title of the first Buak Literary Institute graduates even though they did not receive formal diplomas.

Lee set up the institute, located in Ichon City, Kyonggi Province, at his own expense. Namely, it is a private education organ. Students are given lodging and boarding free of charge for three years during which they acquire knowledge in the fields of humanities such as literature and Chinese letters through individual studies and discussions.

In that the school produced its first graduates, it attained a satisfactory result, judging from the ability of each graduate.

Kim Tae-Soo, 28, the youngest of the four, entered the institute after he graduated from the department of Korean literature and language of Dankook University, and made a literary debut through ¡°Jungang (central) Literature,¡± a literary journal.

Lee Kyu-Hwa, 29, has yet to make a debut, but she is listed as a talented young lady with high potential.

With the ebbing interest of young people in literature, the number of applicants shows a decreasing trend, novelist Lee plans to recruit four-term students this year. He plans to select five through the review of the applicants¡¯ resumes and letters of introduction, and interviews by the end of this month

¡°I had selected students on the basis of their accumulated achievements in the humanities, so far, unfairly leaning on graduates from the prestigious universities,¡± Lee said. ¡°I am planning to place priority on the applicants¡¯ ability to express themselves and their literary talents.¡±

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