Chang Jeongil was born in 1962 in Dalseong, Gyeongsangbuk-do. He started his literary career by publishing a poem in the journal The World of Language in 1984.  He won the Dong-a Ilbo New Writer's Contest in 1987 and the 7th Kim Soo-young Literary Award in 1988. His collections of poems include Meditation on Hamburgers and Catching a Taxi Inside a Street.