Jeong Ho-seung is the most widely read and loved poet in Korea today. His poems express the joys and sorrows of life in ways that are immediately accessible to people of all ages. Born in Hadong, South Gyeongsang Province, in 1950, Jeong Ho-seung grew up in Daegu. He graduated from the Korean Language and Literature Department of Kyung-Hee University in Seoul, where he also completed a Master's degree. He gained recognition as a poet when he won a Spring Literary Award from the Joseon Ilbo newspaper. In 1982, he won a similar award for a work of fiction, but his literary career has been focused on poetry. His first published poetry collection was Seulpeumi gippeumege (Sorrow to joy, 1979); this was followed by Seoului yesu (Seoul's Jesus, 1982); then came Saebyeok pyeonji (Dawn letter, 1987), Byeolteureun ttatteuthada (Stars are warm, 1990), Saranghadaga jugeobeoryeora (Love, then die, 1997), Oerounikka saramida (Human because lonely, 1998), Nunmuri namyeon gichareul tara (If tears flow, take a train, 1999), I jalbeun sigan dongan (During this short moment, 2004), Poong (Embrace, 2007), Bapgap (Earing My Keep), 2010, and Yeohaeng ( Journey, 2013). The present collection, Dangsineul chajaseo (Seeking You), was published in 2020. The storybooks for adults, Loving and Lonesome Jar: Poetic Fables, have been translated into English, German, Chinese, and Vietnamese; his poetry collections have been translated into Japanese, Spanish, Russian, Georgian, and Mongolian as well as English. The bilingual English-Korean collections are A Letter Not Sent and Though flowers fall, I have never forgotten you (Seoul Selection, 2016). He received the Seoul City Literary Award in 1989. He has also received the Jeong Ji-yong Literary Award, the Pyeonun Literary Award, the Sanghwa Poetry Award, and the Gongcho Literary Award.
