Photo: LTI Korea / CC BY-SA 4.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Gu Byeong-mo made one of the more striking debuts in recent Korean fiction, winning a major prize in 2009 with Wizard Bakery. Born in Seoul in 1976 and educated at Kyung Hee University, she fascinates me because she refuses to stay in one lane, moving from young-adult fantasy to the bracing noir of The Old Woman with the Knife, whose elderly female assassin is a wonderfully audacious premise. That genre-hopping freedom is rare and, to me, the mark of real confidence. She sits in a productive stretch of her career, and I expect her to keep subverting expectations. She is a writer I happily make shelf space for.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Gu Byeong-mo
- Name (Japanese)
- ク・ビョンモ
- Reading
- く・びょんも
- Born
- January 1, 1976 (age 50)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Capricorn / Dragon
- Origin
- Seoul, South Korea
- Occupation
- novelist / writer
2. Background
- University
- Kyung Hee University
4. Personality
Motto
Private
5. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | Wizard Bakery | — | |
| Notable work | The Old Woman with the Knife | — | |
| Notable work | Agami | — | |
| Notable work | A Single Sentence | — |
6. Links
Frequently asked questions
When was Gu Byeong-mo born?
Born January 1, 1976 (age 50).
Where is Gu Byeong-mo from?
Gu Byeong-mo is from Seoul, South Korea.
What does Gu Byeong-mo do?
Gu Byeong-mo works as novelist, writer.
What is Gu Byeong-mo known for?
Notable works include Wizard Bakery, The Old Woman with the Knife, Agami.
Novelist — see all → · Writer — see all → · More people from South Korea →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.