‘Love Scout’ Writer Reflects on Drama’s Meaning and Warm Reception
Feb 26, 2025
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In response, the author, who is in charge of the script, revealed the behind-the-scenes story.
-'My perfect secretary' closing remarks.
▶ I'm just thankful that I received unexpected love. The actors, the production team, and the staff who participated in the drama were all perfect. It was a beautiful drama where everyone who participated agonized and poured out their affection. I'm glad that I was able to finish the result beautifully with the love of the viewers. Thank you so much for your love. That warmth gave me a lot of courage. The drama is over but I probably won't be able to let go of 'my perfect secretary' for quite some time. I will cherish the warm support and love you sent to the drama for a long time. I hope the viewers are happy every day.
- The reason for the creation of the work and the main focus while writing is.
▶'I need to talk about care' was the beginning of this story. I thought it was necessary to keep warm eyes on each other, wait generously, and take care of each other in an increasingly hostile world. So, I wanted viewers to think about caring and the value of good faith that moves the world through the romance and growth of a single dad-secretary optimized for caring and a search firm representative living in a numerical world denying the value of caring. There was also a wish that I could forget the reality for a while and get comfort from this warm story. So I tried not to lose that message and texture until the end. Thank you to the director and the production team for supporting us to maintain this decision until the end. Thanks to this, I was able to leave a warm message that I wanted to convey while writing this drama for the first time without being shaken.
-How do you feel about working with Han Ji-min and Lee Jun-hyuk.
▶I'm a very blessed person. It took quite a long time to write alone, and it was an honor to work with the two of you to the extent that I wonder if it was a gift from you for your hard work. I gained and learned a lot from working with two veteran actors. He even filled in the parts that I couldn't express in the script due to his research on the script and his concerns about the character. Ji-yoon and Eun-ho have been completed by meeting Han Ji-min and Lee Jun-hyuk. Thank you for making the two characters look great. Thanks to you, it became a good drama.
-The scene of Jiyoon's reverse cliché romance was a hot topic.
I think such a scene was born naturally because of the social position of ▶ representative and secretary. It is also the result of naturally reflecting the changed trend of the times. I didn't think it was special when I set Jiyoon as a female representative. In fact, there were women among the search firm representatives I met for coverage, and there are many female representatives who are working beautifully around me. Above all, I think Ji-yoon, who does not run away and goes straight in love according to her feelings, is a wannabe not only for me but also for many women. I wanted Ji-yoon to be a lovely and cool woman at the same time as the heroine of a romance drama, but I was so grateful that actor Han Ji-min expressed and made exactly that point.
-What is the background of the character setting of the real fantasy man Eunho.
▶ Eunho character 'I wish I had someone like this next to me' started with my fantasy. What made him the perfect man is actually things that are deemed unimportant in everyday life, such as affection, consideration, humor, respect for others, ability to organize and empathize. As I get older, I think I realize that these are really important values and that it's really hard to find someone like this in real life. I wanted to tell you how wonderful it is to be a person who protects and lives these values through Eunho.
Above all, it was important that Eunho's strength was not born with it. Eun-ho is not a complete type from the beginning, but a person made by his own efforts. I had a childhood when I wasn't properly cared for, and after I first received someone's goodwill, I started taking care of my own life, and when I raised my daughter Byul, it was finally completed with my current Eunho. I think it's more special and valuable because I didn't become a good person through my natural environment, but because I worked hard on myself to become a good person. It was completed with the casting of actor Lee Jun-hyuk to see how cool Eun-ho is. Thanks to this, I was able to draw Eunho as much as I wanted to express.
-Unrequited love comrades Kim Do-hoon-Kim Yoon-hye, Park Bo-kyung, and actors Lee Sang-hee, Heo Dong-won, Ko Geon-han, Seo Hye-won, and Yoon Gai were also notable.
▶ Jung-hoon and Su-hyun are healthy characters who have hurt but don't eat themselves. Long-time unrequited love can lead to self-blame, but they didn't shy away and made courageous choices facing their wounds. Raising my sister's child, choosing a different life from my brother, and the whole process of starting a new love behind a failed love has shown their solidity. I wanted to show myself moving forward without hating myself despite any loss and failure, but I was able to express it more lovingly thanks to actors Kim Do-hoon and Kim Yoon-hye.
The people' staff were the best combination to improve the drama's completeness. In a work where the balance between romance and work is important, each character is enriched to double the fun of the play. It was a natural, perfect performance, like the real 'People' staff. Thanks to the actors Lee Sang-hee, Heo Dong-won, Ko Geon-han, Seo Hye-won, and Yoon Gai, the viewers fell in love with 'People', and I also fell in love with them while watching the show. Actor Park Bo-kyung was the only villain, but he kept the character at the center with his strong presence. In particular, the scene in Part 11 where Ji-yoon reveals her inferiority complex by saying, `I hate you.' was intense. Although he couldn't devote much of his time, actor Park Bo-kyung's acting allowed Hye-jin's emotions and narratives to be deeply conveyed.
-How the preliminary investigation into headhunting was conducted and why Jiyoon's company was set up as a search firm.
▶I interviewed a lot of head hunters and looked up a lot of related books and columns. In particular, I would like to thank the head hunters for consulting on the script. The reason why Jiyoon's company was set as a search firm was to achieve a contrast with the human values that the drama wanted to convey through the world of judging by objective numbers (spec and annual salary). In addition, I thought that all office workers would be able to fully sympathize with the concerns that all office workers have while dealing with job turnover and various occupational groups of candidates that are closely related to the lives of viewers.
-Personally, especially a famous scene where you put your heart and soul into the script.
There are so many scenes where ▶New Year's Day? I like it because the 2nd part of the Bobjip scene and the 5th part of the painting scene explain the narratives of the two and show why each other should be each other. In the rice restaurant scene, Ji-yoon instinctively pushed Eun-ho out, but in the painting scene, he comforted him, and Eun-ho responded warmly by stamping his seal, which seems to be well expressed with warmth and excitement.
I thought that the ending scene of the 6th part, which was loved with "Eye Kiss", should be with bright light from the beginning. The moment Eunho poured into Jiyoon like a warm sun, I hope Jiyoon can no longer resist and become aware of her mind I thought about it, but I felt it on the screen. Eun-ho, who walks toward Ji-yoon with warm sunlight in the crowd, and Ji-yoon's expression changes in real time and falls in love with her. I was impressed that the two actors perfectly embodied the feeling even though they didn't have a line.
And personally, I save the last ending sequence of part 12. A year later, after the daily lives of all the characters were shown, Ji-yoon and Eun-ho hugging each other at the crosswalk, and I really wanted to show the characters in the drama still taking care of their daily lives. The drama ends here, but I think Ji-yoon and Eun-ho, Jung-hoon and Su-hyun, Byul and Seo-jun, and 'People's' family members will still be fiercely loving and working somewhere. I will often miss them.
-The most memorable reaction is.
▶Thank you for leaving a lot of good words, ranging from hot reactions to warm comments saying that they were excited to be comforting. My acquaintances captured it and sent it to me, and I also looked it up, and among them, the phrase "'My perfect secretary' was a drama that didn't forget people" is memorable. I was grateful because I thought that the story I wanted to tell through this drama was also delivered to the viewers. I got emotional thinking that the truth was connected. Thanks to the hot response, I was also comforted.
-What kind of work do I want 'My perfect secretary' to be remembered for.
▶I remember being comforted by a small but kind greeting from someone during an exhausting day. 'My Perfect Secretary' is also remembered as a warm drama that came to your tired daily life and greeted you kindly. I hope you have been comforted by the greeting for a while, and I hope you will recall 'My Perfect Secretary' once in a while when life is tiring and exhausting for no reason.
star77@sportschosun.com
