Gunsan Book Fair Opens Aug. 29, Embracing Comics and Independent Publishing

The Gunsan Book Fair 2026 is set to open on August 29, bringing together a diverse range of literary works including books, comics, and independent publications. The two-day event will be held at the Gunsan Cultural Center and the Mallangi Village Story Square.

This year's fair marks its largest scale to date, with participation from 204 teams comprising domestic and international creators, independent publishers, and local bookstores. The event aims to be more than just a book sale, offering a platform for creators, publishers, and readers to connect through various programs.

Attendees can look forward to author dialogues, zine exhibitions, and book design showcases. Special sessions will explore international publishing cultures and bookstore operations. Park Hae-cheon, author of 'Concrete Utopia,' will discuss Gunsan's modern history and urban decline, while novelist Kim Geum-hee and musician-author Yojo will hold a special talk on interpreting life's currents through shared sentences.

International participation includes Julie Onishi from Idea Books East Asia, who will discuss international artbook distribution, and Kenji Yamashita from Japan's Hohohoza bookstore, who will share insights into the Japanese bookstore scene and his management experience. A "Text Buffet" will allow visitors to select and take home up to 10 texts from 294 works across 10 categories, including publishing, writing, design, humanities, and natural ecology.

New this year is a dedicated program for independent comics, featuring the "Manhwadang" (Comic House) at Mallangi Village Story Square, showcasing works from 19 Korean and one Taiwanese team. The "Gunsan Village" section will highlight the region's publishing and reading culture through local bookstores and publishers. The fair also includes discussions among book fair organizers about their roles and future directions, as well as a pre-forum on architectural publishing.

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We have prepared a variety of platforms for creators and readers to communicate deeply. We hope this will be an opportunity to discover unique tastes and new stories through books.