The first look at the book!

In this vlog we show you our day. Live radio in the morning, going to a big book store for meetings and then going to see the first print of the My Korean Husband book for the Korean market!

We have been really busy getting this book ready, but I think my editor and designer have been even busier.

Those that have been following us for years will probably know that we signed a publishing deal quite a long time ago but there seemed to be so many delays. Although we signed with a big company, there was a lot of internal problems within the company. There was corruption and a CEO change and whole departments were changed so our little book just got lost in the middle. I was also not happy with the designer there who didn’t seem to care much about the book. The guy who originally signed us to the company was lovely and believed in the book but he also ended up leaving the company.

Fast forward a few years and a much smaller company decided to publish our comics. There were a few different ideas and changes but eventually it was decided to publish as a proper comic book. They salvaged the work that had already been done by the bigger company, overhauled it and picked out which comics they thought suitable for the Korean audience. I actually didn’t pick which comics went into this book as even though they are my comics. I don’t know which ones Koreans will respond better to as I’m not Korean. Not all humour translates well. The translations were also redone so hopefully it will be a lot funnier now.

It’s been such a long time waiting for this book to come out. Even when you know publishing takes a long time, it’s always a surprised at how much work goes into things. Although I do art, I could never do the type of design our new designer did. If I had self-published I would have either had to hire a designer and pay for them myself, or tried to do the design by myself, which would have been disastrous. My editor is also very meticulous and arranged the comics in a way that tells much more of a story, rather than it being just a bunch of repackaged comics from the blog. I’m so grateful to them for believing in this project.

Now finally the book will be in stores in Korea! It will be in selected Kyobo book stores and if it does well enough it will be put in other Kyobo stores too. We will let you know where you can buy it soon. In store book sales matter the most at the start so if you can physically go buy it, it does really help! If your local Kyobo doesn’t have it, ask them to get it! It will also be available online in Korea. For the international audience there will be some online stores that will sell internationally, so we’ll keep you updated on that.

As we mentioned in the video, we will be doing a book signing at the Times Square Kyobo in about 2 weeks! Please come and say hi! We haven’t done a meet up in a long time, and it will be harder later with my pregnancy progressing (and impossible with a new born), so now is a good time to come meet us!

You can also listen to us Wednesday mornings on tbs radio at 9:30, either on the radio if you are in Korea, or through an app. Or you can catch up later online.

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Exploring Korean markets and delicious street food!

We have shown Mangwon markets before in videos but we haven’t really been able to do it justice. This time we had Yoojin filming and Joel also got some good shots for us. I always find Korean open markets to be really fascinating and it’s a great way to see local culture. The street food places at the markets usually have somewhere to sit down inside which is more comfortable than standing and eating at the cart street food like in other places. I really like the tteokbokki there!

Local markets are a great place to do grocery shopping as the prices are a lot cheaper than the bigger stores. We generally buy our fruit and vegetables at the markets and only buy foreign items like cheese and butter at HomePlus or Emart. If you go to the markets in the evening the prices often drop even more.

Another reason to go to the markets is of course the food. There is great street food at the markets but also other small restaurants with great food and cheap prices. Since they are operating out of a small area and people can just take and eat as they walk, they can keep the prices down. Korean people eat out A LOT and these types of places allow people to do it regularly and cheaply.

If you are visiting Korea make sure you check out some markets as there are many around. Korean tourism often tries to push people to Gangnam or other modernized areas of Seoul but if you want a more authentic experience go to where the local people are shopping and socializing.

Mangwon markets also merges into the World Cup markets so it’s technically two markets in one. The Mangwon area is also an up and coming area with many small, quirky business and great food moving in. Once you are finished at the markets you can check out some of the great cafes in the area. Also the Han river is not too far away which is another important aspect of people’s lives in Seoul.

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YTN was filming us for a segment about YouTubers in Korea. Sara and Yoojin joined us as we explored the Mangwon markets. Since we had to film for YTN’s filming we made a vlog of the day.

As for the problems the US is causing Korea, here a recent opinion piece that explains some of it.

I then added, “A very androgynous guy!”

When you are so used to a different version of masculinity and androgyny in Kpop you can forget how different things are in Western media. I sometimes forget how androgynous G-Dragon can be.

My brother and sister are visiting Korea for a week which is why there have been less comics. We are in Seoul right now and doing lots of stuff! Things will be back to normal soon.

There may be more of these vlog style videos coming soon as we’ll be travelling with my brother and sister.

Awww so sweet.

In other news, we are super busy right now. The book is going to be released NEXT MONTH and we still have so much to do. Also my brother and sister are visiting for a week soon so we will be travelling around. There may be less comics and videos this month. Once this hectic time has finished we will go back to a normal schedule.

Wow…. I can’t wait…

(Quick comic again, busy with book stuff).

Mosquitoes don’t like me very much! They love my husband though and he will get a lot of bites. I’ve watched mosquitoes come near me before and they’ll hover above my skin for a few seconds and then often they’ll just fly away and move onto someone better tasting.