Interviewee: jiminfication

Requested by: The Stay Gold Gazette Team

- Interview -

How long have you been writing for? And how did you begin your writing journey?

"I have been writing since 2017. I begun with my first proper fanfiction book then, called Roommate; a jimin story. It blew up overnight basically and the more I wrote, the more views came in— even my own classmates in school were reading it and it's fascinating to see them discuss it excitedly while I sit there pretending not to know, lmao.

My book was trending back then with the OG fanfics, like Mr Arrogant and Bad Boy In Luv. It felt weird to see Roommate there on trending, especially since I was a ff reader before I started writing lol

I eventually got found out by close friends when the story started to go exactly in the direction I told them I predicted to.... it was fun being a ninja writer tho ngl >_>

Now, even my past schoolmates I didn't tell this to, found out because I did the interview with my country's news channel and a tabloid......its lowkey awkward"

Which of your books is your favourite so far and why?

"Definitely a few favourites, like Cinderella's Contract and Body Talk. I felt that I put the most of my artistry and literary effort in them, even when they are both obviously very different concepts; one being a sports and high school focused setting, and the other being a high socialite setting.

But my most popular books are the ones I didn't give two farts about.....which are Rivals and Virgin Classroom. I literally don't plan anything and I'm as clueless as the readers on what's gonna happen in the next chapter, no kidding. I don't even check it before I click publish.

Cinderella's Contract because this book actually had a deep message and an open ending. It's based on The Great Gatsby— where it features an incredibly wealthy and perfect man that was obsessed with everything about a girl and his fascination with her. There's a lot of character development, actually. A brilliant romance about an imperfectly perfect man and his desire for a girl that's the complete opposite of him.

I like Body Talk in a sense that it wasn't just a romance novel, there's a lot of analogies about boxing as a sport, about martial arts and the terminologies. I do lots of research for this book. I don't want to just write a boxing story talking about a hot pro boxer just punching everyone and then having various romantic scenarios with the female lead. It just feels so.... PREDICTABLE. Character development is very important here and you can see the girl discover her potential in the ring and how Jungkook's romantic fascination with her grows intensely." 

What is your trick for coming up with a plot line and characters?

"I don't have one. They just pop up in my head and I naturally am able to let the scenarios and words flow out. Ideas are abundant in my mind all the time, fortunately.

For example, with my webtoon The Fan Exchange, I don't know why but my brain tells me that Jeon Skylar is viewed as a perfect idol by the public, but there's many eccentric sides to him that makes him look dumb.

For some reason, my brain maps the character out already and I just suddenly know that Skylar has habits such as forgetting to turn off the lights because he's easily distracted. But he'd fall over cable wires all the time after deciding he will just forever keep the lights off.... when scolded for his bad habit.

In summary, my brain tells me and I have a conversation with my brain cells and agree that it sounds about right."

If there was one thing that you wish you hadn't done on your writing journey, what would it be?

"Being really affected by hate comments and also trying to cater to the haters. I realised what I did was stupid because you can never satisfy them when their original motive is just to find shit about your book lol

After that, I started being more relaxed and wrote however I want, it's not like they own my brain cells anyway. Some people think you exist to write books for them but it doesn't work that way bruh... unless u can pay for my school, food and living expenses.

Imagine you have a hobby of gardening but then someone just comes up to you, demanding you plant certain plants in your yard every week, and you owe this to them because they used their eyeballs to look at your garden...."

What would your #1 advice be for people who are looking to improve their writing?

"Read your writing out loud with your mouth. If the flow seems really inconsistent and weird, it means that your writing is not flowing nicely. I tell this technique to people who can't identify why it's unpleasant to read their writing.

Flow and punctuation is incredibly important; because everyone reads with a voice in their head. You're reading this now too with narration from your brain."

Are you a writer by profession? Or is this something that you just love doing on the side?

"It's not my profession, but I do recognise I'm good enough at it to monetize my work. It won't provide a living to me, but some writing gigs can give me extra pocket money. I usually use the money the writing companies give me, to invest in my small business. That's where my real income comes from lol"

What message would you like to tell your readers right now?

"read my webtoon plz and i love u so so so so so much especially for those who supported me for years and from the beginning , if I can send u a chicken nugget I would :("

What is your criteria when publishing a new chapter for your readers to see?

"I stopped having criterias, if I know the chapter contents are good I'll publish it. If not, I'll rewrite the entire thing and recreate the scenario that's the most interesting.

To me, if the chapter doesn't have a hook moment / main theme / cliffhanger I wouldn't call it done. Maybe that's a criteria?

(im sorry don't beat me up lol I've received death threats from leaving chapters on cliffhangers)" 

If you were given the opportunity, would you publish your books into the real world? And what would that mean for you?

"The funny thing is, I did. I have privately published Cinderella's Contract for friends and some selected readers.

A few publishing companies reached out to publish my stories on paperback but I never everrrrrr had time to finish a manuscript to send them , much less complete a book to even publish it in the first place lmao , so I rejected in the end."

If you are in a slump with writing, what do you often choose to do?

"I don't do anything. I'm the type that can't force a writing drive just by putting on some music or watching shows. I disappear for 120 years and come back suddenly with a brain explosion, as my readers probably know very well.

Someone even told me in the DMs that I'm like blackpink. Meaning I'm a ghost but when I do come back I come with my 24 meter bulletproof glitter tank and a red carpet." 

Where do you usually get your inspiration from?

"It's always random shit.

I just think of a hacker story while applying coupon codes for my food delivery, if that's not other dimension brain activity idk what is"

Are there any writers on this platform that inspire you?

"Surprisingly, most stories that inspire me are usually from webtoon creators.

On another note, can anyone recommend me good webtoons or manga, I'm runnin out here :("

Fan: taeleVisionkkk

If English isn't their first language, what do you suggest a writer do in order to improve their writing? 

"You actually don't need incredible English skills to write. I'm also not great at english. For creative writing, it is important to have the fundamentals such as correct grammar and punctuation, purely as basics so your writing is even legible. However, that's not the main point of what makes a good writer— just the basics.

Instead of focusing on the accuracy of your English, try breaking away from that a little and learn how to narrate a story in an interesting and immersive manner.

We all use the same English language, but there's always snippets of the writer's style in the way they present their words to describe the scene. Don't use too bombastic of vocabulary; there's no need to decorate with words that's irrelevant to use. But you also shouldn't use too simple of words to the point of moronic levels. Keep the necessary words decorated but the others simple.

Balance is the key."

Fan: Vivzielock_studios

Do you have a special story that you haven't published yet? (Like a favorite idea for a story and still in the process of figuring it out)

"Yes, definitely. I have LOADS. I have many story ideas and no time.

For example, Code Zero, a hacker story. The Game Plan, a con-artist and criminal of good intentions story.

1) Badboy Genre: an aspiring cosmetologist girl gives the quiet boy in her class a makeover to pursue his singing dreams. She discovered that the boy's true identity is a famous cover singer, who never was able to show his face because he wasn't confident. He needs her help as he navigates a audition survival show, and at the same time the girl is trying to make a name for herself in beauty and makeup. The boy and girl then lead double lives, the other life being much more glamorous behind the camera. It's titled "Badboy Genre" because the sweet boy plays as a bad guy character concept whenever he's on camera. None of their peers know about their double identities.

2) Double You: A girl who moved to Australia alone to pursue her culinary dream career loses everything in a day— the restaurant she works at closes down permanently. As hardwork and passion didn't save her dream, she becomes financially tight and decides to accept an offer to be an on-call body double of a famous Korean celebrity. When arriving however, she soon realises that she's entangled right in the middle of an elaborate marketing plot— the female celebrity she's impersonating is dating the hottest actor in Korea, or so the public is told. She navigates the actor's romantic fascination of her as she also struggles to keep her job as a double. 

(please don't steal these ideas, they are literally copyrighted as intellectual property because I intended to use them as manuscripts for a paperback book under a company. Unless u want to be sued, please don't lol)"

Are there any stories that are strictly for yourself? Like a leisure for yourself purely to enjoy?

"I would say only some of them. One More Day and 4pm is written as stories more on a personal level; they depict the rawest part of my mental illness. You can say they are an expression of literary artwork from my dark experiences."

Fan: Silkykookies

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk ?

"Idk why but my readers always make fun of me for using weird words to describe something. I would write "a gentle jail" artistically and someone would just go "wtf is that no jails are gentle" 

BRUV THATS NOT WHAT I MEAN

 I meant, the feeling that the female lead is describing is the feeling of being trapped, but the captor is sweetly gentle and it's a voluntary descend into his clutches and control. THERE. that's what it means"

Fan: PoisonApple137

When you write your books, do you like to make the whole plot first as a fanfiction or a regular one and then add the names after?

"I like to make them fanfictions first, it's easier because I don't need to design the male lead and character."

Fan: cant_argue_with_that

When wanting to write a new book, which characteristic comes to your mind first, the title, or the plot? like do you create a beautiful title first and then make a suitable plot for it, or is it the opposite?

"It can come both ways at times. It depends. Sometimes I decide on a catchy title and what kind of story would be the perfect narrative for that title. The other times it's just the plot and the title comes after. But both times, I make sure to match the content to the title, and the title to the content."

Fan: May7046

How long does it take to write a chapter?

"It can take from 10 mins to 346 hours......

I'm always bipolar like this even in my writing"

Among all your books, which one did you have the hardest time writing/ most fun writing?

"Most fun is rivals, it's literally written without giving a single shit and the characters reflect that too, they are the meme couple and the epitome of my weird character.

I had the hardest time writing rivals as well because I had to fix my own plot holes I created from not caring ...... lots of "yeah actually I meant to do that hahahah (sweats)" moments"

How do you come up with character names for your stories?

"I analyse what the character's main vibe and personality is. If it's easy going and bright, it's an easily pronounced name (Soa, Aeri, Soojung, Yena)

If it's a more elegant, beautiful and lonely type, I use non Korean names or uncommon mixed race names that you can't really tell how it's pronounced right off the bat (Yona, Estelle )

For gullible characters, I use very common Korean names." 

Is there a particular genre that you would like to write next?

"Fantasy!!!!!"

Fan: HN2005_07

Do you take inspiration for your characters from real life people that you have met?! Cause your characters are quite interesting ✨

"I do have an idea of my characters in an image in my mind, but honestly I take most of the reference from myself. Soojung is during my high school period, Yona when I was in college, Soa when I turned 20 and decided I want to box."

Fan: nini_is_a_queen

Are any of your characters based off of yourself?

"I just answered it above, but yes they are based off on what I think I would do if I were them. But the characters are still not completely identical to me, they just have behaviours that sometimes reflect what I would do if I were them."

Fan: rikkubangi7

Being an author isn't easy at all i know, and i also know how much deep authors dive only to feel the words, and when it comes to feeling, authors always think about their own personal life and stories...and thats how they dance with the words with their own life stories mixed with their own fantasy...so, my question is, have you ever wrote anything related to ur own life deeply, which u wanted to describe through ur writing?

"I wrote One More Day and 4pm when I was in the darkest place in my life, I literally felt like going to hell would be better. I experienced periods of psychosis and imagined myself as other people because I hated my situation so much.

I wrote the stories when I got a little better, but even then, the feeling expressed in these two books didn't even depict 10% of the pain I went through that time. I was living in a psychiatric ward for a time and couldn't use my phone, so when I got discharged the two stories immediately were born."

Fan: Instant_realisation

How do you deal with toxic readers?

"I don't. I leave them to yap by themselves in the comments or message board. And then I continue to do the exact thing they complain and scold me about lol"

Fan:Leanne863

Why do you write BTS ffs? (No judgement)

"There's not much reason, it's just fun."

How did you become some famous/ get all of your readers? 

"I don't think I'm famous, that's too strong of a word, I'm just well known in the writing community. I don't 'get' all my readers....I just find writing really amazing as I can literally create a world from scratch, and people just follow along to watch this journey. 

Of course, I appreciate it and it feels nice to have people pay attention to your work, it's like a neat bonus, but I think I would write just the same even without readers. You don't need to 'get' readers to create a deep fictional world, just write what u want and focus on that."

Fan: jindiary

What do you think makes your writing stand out from other works?

"I think my stories aren't too predictable, and there's unique takes to it. Someone can write the same plot as me but the content of the story and the details of events that unfold are completely unique to my mind.

For example, you can write a millionaire romance and contract story, but while Cinderella Contract uses that as a base, you will only find the emotional rollercoaster of the character as they develop to find their true purpose in the story, and the ideology of everything at the end will always bring you back to why it started.

You will only find truly personalised dialogues and thought processes of the characters as they navigate the situations presented to them." 

Fan: jkmybae16

Do you get inspired from any other writers in wattpad?

"Hmm......not really, to be honest? I rarely read fanfiction. I mostly read manga, and webtoons."

Fan: makemeyoursdarling

How do you find time to write with your daily routine? Do you make a special time for writing?

"I don't. I sacrifice rest or sleep time to write lol. I don't make special time, I just write whenever I happen to be able to."

Fan: messy_reader99

What genres do you enjoy writing the most?

"I think u can pretty much tell that I love writing anything as long as there's romance involved. Because I've never dated anyone and don't want to go through the hassle either, I just pretend I am by writing romance stories."

Does it matter to you what people think about your book? till what extent?

"It doesn't matter to me mostly. But if it's to a certain extent of hate from the majority group, I think anybody would be discouraged lol. But I haven't had that feedback yet. "

Fan: aurumoon

Have you always been talented in writing? When did your stories blow up, and what was your reaction about it at first??

"No, not really. Some may see that I wasn't that adept in writing as I am now. My first book blew up, like all of a sudden overnight. I screenshot the story when I got 10 reads, so it blowing up overnight also kinda blew my brain. It blew up even more the more I wrote, and then it blew up again when I finished it. After that, I don't do anything and my next book also blows up so I guess it's just a bunch of explosions since then."

Fan: gmzxeen

Is there a plot that you wanted to write but never had the motivation to do so? 

"If I told you how many story ideas I have had, I don't think even the national museum of archives can keep all my drafts.

So to answer your question, yes, too many, but I can't list them all."

BTS fanfic personal favorite and recommendation?

"I don't have recommendations, omg im literally the worst person to ask because I don't read a single fanfic, I just write fanfics. I don't know why people keep coming to me everyday to ask me."

Fan: junghoseok1375

What gave you motivation to write a ff about boxing?

"Because I started the sport myself. I also like reading fighting webtoons I guess? Like Lookism."

Fan: sxlnhple

What keeps you writing? (It could be anything)

"Ironically what makes me write is because I want to create illusionary works of worlds I can escape to. The reality I have is too dark.

I could also feel the need to keep writing to express certain messages in my story."

Thank you so much for accepting our interview! Keep being the awesome person you are!

And thank you to all of you who asked these amazing questions!

Let us know what you think in the comments!!

Make sure to check out some of jiminfication amazing works! Here are some for you to see below: