He made his official literary debut in the summer of 1980, with the publication of six works including "Mapo, At A Riverside Town" in Creation and Criticism.
[4] Kim's first poetry collection, A Song That Cannot be Erased, depicts the internal turmoil and strife of an intellectual who suffers under the dire political conditions and absence of free thinking in the Korea of the early 1980s.
The poetry of this era did not often offer a direct or mainstream depiction of contemporary social realities, but was rather an expression of sympathy and admiration for the minjung and their sorrow and resentment.
His serialized poetry collection, The Story of Yellow Jesus, surpasses the narrow scope of his early poems, and offers a personal and positive perspective on saving minjung.
The poems in this collection, through simple, concise diction free of the occasional monotony of prose, effectively reveal the worldview and character of the working class.