Note: The Red Sleeve

<aside> 🌐 Author Mikang Kang: kangmikang.com

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When I was sixteen, I became captivated by a woman from history. She was a court lady of humble origins who eventually won the King’s heart, became a royal concubine, and gave birth to a prince.

However, what truly captured my imagination wasn’t her dramatic rise in status; it was the fact that she and her fellow court ladies had picked up their pens to write a book of their own.

To me, this act felt extraordinary. In the 18th century, education was rarely encouraged for women, and these ladies were chosen solely to serve and devote their lives to the King.

I found myself consumed by curiosity. Where historical records fell silent, I began to imagine. That spark of imagination eventually grew into the story you now know as The Red Sleeve.

It took eight years to complete this journey. My greatest challenge was bridging the gap between the 21st and 18th centuries—trying to truly understand people who lived hundreds of years ago.

Most characters in this novel are based on real historical figures. King Jeongjo, in particular, has been extensively studied and defined by historians as a “Great Ruler.”

Yet, the women who lived in the shadows of his immense presence were a different story. It was a grueling task to give voice to these women—who existed only in brief, dry records—through a language born of my own understanding.

But the moment I finally wrote the last sentence, I realized that every moment of struggle had been worth it.

I still vividly remember those quiet hours before dawn. I would rush home from school, finish my homework as fast as I could, and stay awake through the night to write this story. The fact that those solitary nights have transformed into a book on a shelf, reaching readers in a faraway land, still feels surreal to me.

Yet, if there is one thing I believe in with all my heart, it is the power of literature. Literature is a magnificent medium that allows people from different languages, cultures, and histories to understand one another.

I trust that you, as readers who cherish that very strength, will discover the message I’ve woven into this novel.

My hope is that the life of this woman—who sought to make her own choices despite being but a small ripple in the vast tide of history—will resonate with you.