'Zitwer factor': Before her, few readers outside Korea heard about Korean thrillers

Literary translators are the first batch of specialists taking part in the pre-publication process. Unlike other translators who convert Korean into foreign languages verbatim, literary translators are given some room to modify original texts to help readers of target languages easily understand the context of the novel.

Once their partial or entire translation of the book is completed, the ball is in the literary agents' court.

The role of literary agents is pivotal, partly because they are responsible for finding local publishers who can publish the Korean novels.

Finding publishing houses is a waiting game, according to New York-based literary agent Barbara Zitwer.