Star South Korean author apologises over plagiarism scandal as publisher stops printing her books

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Man Asian Literary Prize-winning author Shin Kyung-Sook denied she had read Patriotism but according to an interview published on Tuesday, later admitted the possibility of having plagiarised the material, saying she could no longer trust her memory. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Published: 4:00pm, 23 Jun 2015Updated: 6:32pm, 23 Jun 2015

An internationally celebrated South Korean novelist has apologised over a plagiarism scandal that has shocked her country and prompted a publisher to stop printing one of her books.

Man Asian Literary Prize-winning author Shin Kyung-Sook met with public fury after allegations surfaced last week that she had copied a piece by the famed late Japanese author Yukio Mishima.

Seoul literary critic Lee Eung-Jun wrote in an online essay published last week that Shin’s 1996 short story Legend included paragraphs lifted from Patriotism written by Mishima in 1960.

The allegation prompted a storm of controversy, with one civic activist calling for Seoul prosecutors to investigate Shin for fraud.

Shin, 52, has been the face of South Korean literature abroad since winning the prestigious Man Asian Literary Prize in 2012 for her international bestseller Please Look After Mom.

South Korean author Shin Kyung-Sook holds her book, "Please Look After Mom", and the Man Asian Literary Prize in Hong Kong in 2012. Photo: AFP

Last week Shin, who released a novel I'll Be Right There last year, denied she had read Patriotism but according to an interview published on Tuesday, later admitted the possibility of having plagiarised the material, saying she could no longer trust her memory.