Chinese Name: 郝明義
Born: Mar. 30, 1956
Birthplace: Busan Metropolitan City, South Korea
Did You Know That…?
Rex How is a Taiwanese publisher, currently the Chairman of Locus Publishing House. In 2022, he received the Special Contribution Award of the 13th Golden Comic Awards.
Rex How was born in Busan Metropolitan City, South Korea. In 1962, he enrolled in the Busan Overseas Chinese Elementary School. In 1974, he furthered his studies at the National Taiwan University, majoring in international business. After graduating in 1978, he entered the publishing industry.
In the early phase of his career, How worked at Long Bridge Publishing, progressing from editor-at-large to editor, chief editor, and later being appointed as the editor-in-chief of “2001” and “Productivity” magazines. From 1988 to 1996, he served as the President of China Times Publishing Company. During this period, he was responsible for introducing several notable authors and masterpieces to Taiwan, including works by Milan Kundera, Haruki Murakami, and Italo Calvino. Additionally, under his leadership, China Times Publishing Company brought several Japanese comics to Taiwan, including the “Osamu Tezuka Complete Manga Works.”
In 1989, How initiated a delegation of publishing houses to participate in the Frankfurt Book Fair in Germany. In 1996, he played a leading role in hosting the Taipei International Book Exhibition, significantly expanding its scale.
How founded the Locus Publishing Company in 1996 and at the same time served as the President and Editor-in-Chief of the Commercial Press (商務印書館) in 1997. Among the publication projects launched by Locus Publishing Company, the translated books “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (潛水鐘與蝴蝶)” and “Tuesdays with Morrie (最後14堂星期二的課)” achieved sales records of 200,000 and 600,000 copies, respectively. With a keen eye for talent, How published the works of illustrator Jimmy Liao (幾米), helping to establish the artist as a bestselling author.
(Photo credit: Locus Publishing House)