Jo Yong, the author of "It's Okay To Not Be Okay," has confirmed that she's planning to publish five children's books from the show.
"It's Okay To Not Be Okay" is a romantic comedy about a mental hospital caretaker identified as Moon Kang Tae (performed by Kim Soo Hyun) and a kids book writer named Go Moon Young (portrayed by Seo Ye Ji). The two characters eventually meet and try to ease the suffering of one another.
The author emphasized the importance of children's books in the show as they have a strong connection to Moon Young. The main female lead had developed an antisocial disorder because of the emotional sufferings she had endured from her mother when she was little.
She managed to utilize the book 'Help me, Save me,' to send a message to the world, 'Help me so that other children won't have to suffer as I did."
Jo Yong states, "While her modes of speech were harsh at times, they were the desperate cry for help from a child and demonstrations against troubled adults. Since I started designing the character, I decided to use children's books as the communication channel for Moon Young and her survival system. I also wanted to demonstrate that only those with wounds comparable to Moon Young could uncover the stories' true essence and start healing." (via Soompi)
The author also shared that she didn't initially plan to release children's books from the show. Explicitly, she explained that while editing the series's scripts, the director suggested that she put out 'Zombie Kid' instead of putting the narrative in the drama.
Jo Yong concluded by commenting that the illustrator of the book produced an excellent job that led them to move forward with publishing the books. Together with their younger relatives, the show's spectators can expect five children's books that will soon be released in public. The author will soon announce further updates regarding this publication.
