@article{ART003260642},
author={Park, Sung Jun},
title={A New Horizon for Web Novel Criticism - Multimodality in I Have to Go to Work Even If I Fall into a Scary Story},
journal={Journal of Popular Narrative},
issn={1738-3188},
year={2025},
volume={31},
number={3},
pages={145-179}
TY - JOUR
AU - Park, Sung Jun
TI - A New Horizon for Web Novel Criticism - Multimodality in I Have to Go to Work Even If I Fall into a Scary Story
JO - Journal of Popular Narrative
PY - 2025
VL - 31
IS - 3
PB - The Association of Popular Narrative
SP - 145
EP - 179
SN - 1738-3188
AB - This study sets mediality and multimodalityas key analytical categories in web novel criticism and examines these aspects through a case study of the KakaoPage serial I Have to Go to Work Even If I Fall into a Scary Story. Existing criticism of web novels has largely focused on text-centered analyses-such as narrative structures, character types, and genre variations-without sufficiently addressing the influence of platform environments and multimodal devices on narrative development and reader experience. To address this gap, this study comprehensively analyzes the material and technological conditions of digital platforms, visual and typographic variations, and page transition effects, aiming to identify the characteristics of web novels as sensory-narrative composite texts.
The findings reveal that the work integrates various modes&-such as color changes in typography, strikethroughs and italics, letter-spacing and word-spacing adjustments, visual illustrations, and page transition effects-to construct atmosphere, convey characters’ psychological states, and heighten scene tension. Notably, the vertical scrolling and page-turning interface of KakaoPage maximizes these effects, transforming reading into a sensory and psychological experience. This creates a triangular relationship among platform, text, and reader, which is absent in traditional print literature.
This study argues that web novel criticism must move beyond text-centered narrative analysis toward a composite analytical framework that encompasses platform environments, multimodal presentation, and technological-material conditions. Such an approach captures the intertwined processes of “reading” and “experiencing” in the digital narrative environment and can be further expanded through comparative research on multimodal implementations across different web novel genres and platforms.
KW - Web novel;Multimodality;Mediality;Digital Narrative;KakaoPage;Critical Methodology
DO -
UR -
ER -
Park, Sung Jun. (2025). A New Horizon for Web Novel Criticism - Multimodality in I Have to Go to Work Even If I Fall into a Scary Story. Journal of Popular Narrative, 31(3), 145-179.
Park, Sung Jun. 2025, "A New Horizon for Web Novel Criticism - Multimodality in I Have to Go to Work Even If I Fall into a Scary Story", Journal of Popular Narrative, vol.31, no.3 pp.145-179.
Park, Sung Jun "A New Horizon for Web Novel Criticism - Multimodality in I Have to Go to Work Even If I Fall into a Scary Story" Journal of Popular Narrative 31.3 pp.145-179 (2025) : 145.
Park, Sung Jun. A New Horizon for Web Novel Criticism - Multimodality in I Have to Go to Work Even If I Fall into a Scary Story. 2025; 31(3), 145-179.
Park, Sung Jun. "A New Horizon for Web Novel Criticism - Multimodality in I Have to Go to Work Even If I Fall into a Scary Story" Journal of Popular Narrative 31, no.3 (2025) : 145-179.
Park, Sung Jun. A New Horizon for Web Novel Criticism - Multimodality in I Have to Go to Work Even If I Fall into a Scary Story. Journal of Popular Narrative, 31(3), 145-179.
Park, Sung Jun. A New Horizon for Web Novel Criticism - Multimodality in I Have to Go to Work Even If I Fall into a Scary Story. Journal of Popular Narrative. 2025; 31(3) 145-179.
Park, Sung Jun. A New Horizon for Web Novel Criticism - Multimodality in I Have to Go to Work Even If I Fall into a Scary Story. 2025; 31(3), 145-179.
Park, Sung Jun. "A New Horizon for Web Novel Criticism - Multimodality in I Have to Go to Work Even If I Fall into a Scary Story" Journal of Popular Narrative 31, no.3 (2025) : 145-179.
