Claudia Lee Hae-in

Claudia Lee Hae-in (, born 7 June 1945) is a South Korean Catholic nun, poet, and essayist. She has sold almost two million copies of her books of poetry and been regarded as "Korea's next contender for the Nobel Prize in Literature."

Biography
Lee Hae-in was born on 7 June 1945, in Yanggu County, Gangwon to Catholic parents, Lee Dae-young and Kim Sun-ok. Three days after she was born, she was baptized Catholic with the name Velladetta. At a very young age, she displayed immense literary talent. At the outbreak of the Korean War on 25 June 1950, her father was detained and taken to North Korea and the remaining family were forced to flee to Busan, South Korea.

After completing her secondary education, she entered religious life in 1964 as an Olivetan Benedictine Sister in Busan. She pronounced her first vows in 1968 and perpetual vows in 1976. She graduated with a degree in English from the Saint Louis University in Baguio, Philippines.

From 1992 to 1997, she was appointed as the General-Secretary of her order in Korea. She was diagnosed with rectal cancer in 2008, and after receiving medical treatments, has returned to good health. In 2015, fake news spread on the internet claiming the nun had died, which she jokingly ignored by saying, "I could forgive the fake news, but I can't go easy on the fake poem."

She had solid friendship with the poet Park Wan-suh and the Venerable Buddhist monk Beopjeong, whom she both noted as having greatly influenced her in life and works.

Poetry
Lee made her debut as a poet with the poem "Flower Shovel" in the Catholic Journal Soyeon in 1970. The poem was a conversation with a natural occurrence based on her daily experiences. Her reputation as a poet grew following the publication in 1976 of her first collection of poems titled, The Land of Dandelions. She became known for her works because of its clarity and simplicity, and its usage of plain Korean language with deep-seated messages and meanings which makes the readers reflect.

Other inspiring collections of Lee's poetry and essays include; Light a Fire in My Soul (1979), The Face of Time (1989), A Little Prayer (2011), Happiness of Waiting (2018) and As If Leaves Are Seen After Flowers Fall (2011). Her poem "The Love Song of a Dandelion" which is a reflection on both consolation and hope appeared in Korean middle school text books.

From 1998 to 2002, she carried out her missionary works through a literary forum called "Hae-in's Writing Room" and delivered a series of lectures in various parts of the country on the theme "Poetry and Spirituality in Life."

Awards and recognitions
She has received six awards for her outstanding contributions to literature:
 * 1981: New Sprouts Literary Award
 * 1985: Donga Women's Prize
 * 1985: Busan Women's Literature Award
 * 2004: Woollim Arts Award
 * 2006: Cheong Sang-beong Literary Award
 * 2016: Gumin Award

In recent years, Lee has been regarded as Korea's likely candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature, alongside with the authors Ko Un, Kim Hyesoon and Hwang Sok-yong.

Publications
From an early age, Lee Hae-in was passionate about writing and as a Catholic nun explored the significant connections between poetry and spirituality. She has published 18 collections of poetry, 12 books on essays and 6 anthologies of her poems, which are included in high school textbooks.