myint swe began his literary career late in his life. he wrote in his first book that he had always recounted the stories at the wartime hospital to countless friends and colleagues over the years, and that upon the repeated urging of myint oo, editor of shaytho magazine, he began writing his first book in 1966. it was a bestseller, and won the burma national literature award, 2nd prize for 1967. the first prize went to "withaytha taing thamaing a-sa" by his mandalay college classmate thein pe myint.