Kpopalypse says thank you for 2023

This is just a little post to my readers say thank you for 2023!

The Kpopalypse website has now been active for over a decade, which means it’s probably outlasted most of your favourite k-pop groups. This is especially true because Kpopalypse.com has many new readers but also a large readership of veterans who have been reading for 5+ or even 10+ years, so there’s a good chance that you reading this have a lot of first and second generation favourite groups! 2024 will be Kpopalypse’s 12th year, so we’re well on the way to beating not just the seven year curse, but also the fourteenth year curse!

The website has also outlasted a lot of reader’s interest in Korean pop music in general. I get a lot of correspondence these days along the lines of “I used to be really enthusiastic about k-pop but I’ve completely given up on k-pop now because there’s rarely any good music anymore, I don’t care about the ‘news’ sites, and I feel more distant from the fandom every year, for k-pop I only occasionally read what YOU write, and that’s honestly it”. I think this is a positive thing as we all change and grow! The things that I write about, while they are ‘framed’ within k-pop, are often things which have relevance outside of that realm also, and I like the fact that I’ve helped readers discover things outside of the k-pop realm through the k-pop writing.

Kpopalypse has of course changed and grown through the years also, and the site content reflects this, because there’s no way that it cannot. The main growth this year has been novel writing, with not just one but two books published this year! The books have been very enjoyable to write and I’ll definitely continue to write more books, with the current “Shin Hana” series planned as a four-book story, and after that, who knows what you’ll get, but you’ll definitely get something! I really enjoy writing books, and it’s also something that you have also shown you’ve enjoyed, as the books have performed far beyond my expectations. The books also solve the problem of ‘merchandise’ which is something that readers have been requesting from me since about 2016 and it’s something I’ve never known how to exactly tackle until now – I think that since this site is mainly about reading, merchandise that you can read and that actually gives back to the reader in a meaningful way makes a lot more sense than a T-shirt or a cup or something which you can get anywhere.

For those who aren’t interested in books though rest assured that the site will continue with the same level of non-book content (and more when I have time), with roundups and other posts into 2024 and beyond! Kpopalypse definitely has no plans to be going anywhere. I’ll continue to cover new songs, find new music, be as helpful to my readers as I can, and also make other miscellaneous posts when I am able. That time has been fairly short over the last year (mainly due to financial reasons unrelated to the website, meaning I’ve had to devote much more time to work than previously just to make ends meet) which is why you’ve had less postings in 2023, but I’m hoping I can work harder to stabilise my financial situation a bit more over the coming year and eventually devote a bit more time not just to roundups but also to the extra miscellaneous posts that we all love.

Special thank you to:

• Caius Augustus, the amazingly talented artist behind the Shin Hana series book covers and related portraits. Readers can definitely expect to see more work from him over the coming years!
• Lissa Caonima, for continuing to run the “Kpopalypse Hot Takes” TikTok account which has given me a lot of entertainment and also helped Kpopalypse.com find a whole new audience. Of course a lot of that audience tends to hate-read, but that’s fine – the content here doesn’t click with a lot of people until their reading and cognitive abilities mature sufficiently to ‘get it’. This is why I’m generally not too savage with people who don’t like me, I know that the smarter ones will come around to a more nuanced view eventually, even if they don’t agree with everything (nobody does, you would be weird if you did).
• Az5he6ch for hosting for the Kpopalypse computer games over at the Kpopalypse itch.io page! Yes there will be the finale to the Try Not To Have Gay Sex With Yves series in Pride Month 2024 so look forward to it!
• Amina/Jaeswoon for help with proofing of international editions of the Kpopalypse books that I’m unable to do myself due to the geo-restrictive quirks of certain book publishers!
• Everyone who donates to Kpopalypse via the Patreon page, you literally have made the continuation of many parts of the site possible. I don’t name Patreon supporters individually because I respect your privacy (not everyone wants to be public about it), but just know that I see you and love all of you and am very thankful for your continued support!
• Everyone who bought the books – wow, there’s way more of you than I ever expected! Thank you so much!
• All new readers to the website, thank you for checking out what I do and sticking around! Every new person who checks out what I do often does it in the face of significant peer pressure NOT to do so, so I really appreciate you being here and making up your own mind about the content that I present!
• All veteran readers who are still with me and still reading my nonsense after all these years, whether you follow each new post, or just check occasionally when you feel like it, the fact that you even remember me enough to continue to visit at all means a lot, so thank you!
• Anyone who ever shares a link to what I do, to anyone, for any reason. Even if it’s to the FBI because I wrote about Jennie in a nurse outfit that one time and you wanted to give me a “shut down”, I’m sure there are Kpopalypse fans in the American secret service too.
• All people who have interacted with me whether it be via social networking, the question-and-answer stuff (Retrospring, QRIMOLE), collaborations, those who have helped me out with content, and so forth. Know that I’m always available to talk to readers, and while my time is limited I will do my best!
• Jennifer and Stiglitz for eternal support and livestream appearances!

Most of all thanks to YOU, who is reading this right now. I couldn’t do what I do without you… well actually I could, but it’d be a whole lot less rewarding and fun! You make a big difference to my world. Kpopalypse will see you again in 2024 and beyond!