[4] Lee Ki-ho debuted when his short story “Birney” won the monthly Modern Literature New Writer's Contest in 1999.
Lee debuted in 1999 with “Bunny,” a short story that seems to reflect the rhythms of rap, as well as pansori, a traditional Korean ballad.
[6] Lee is inventive not only with form, but also with his characters, who are a humble and sordid lot: a small-time pimp who dropped out of high school after assaulting a teacher; a third-rate actor addicted to glue; a gang member who had grown up in an orphanage; and a character who ekes out a living by working at a local convenience store.
[7] These misfits, who seem to have jumped straight out of tabloids or entertainment programs, are distinctive and, at the same time, very real individuals who can be easily found on the fringes of society.
By ridiculing the lives of these vulgar yet common characters, Lee makes his readers laugh.