Baek Se-hee, author of I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki, dies aged 35

"Baek Se-hee, the author of the hit self-help memoir I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki, has died at the age of 35. According to the Korean organ donation agency, Baek saved five lives through the donation of her heart, lungs, liver and both kidneys. But her readers will know she touched yet millions of lives more with her writing, said Anton Hur, who translated her works into English."

"I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki, published in 2018 in Korea and 2022 in the UK by Bloomsbury, follows Baek's conversations with her psychiatrist. A follow-up, I Want to Die but I Still Want to Eat Tteokbokki, was published in the UK last year. Tteokbokki, Baek's favourite food, is a Korean dish of rice cakes cooked in a spicy sauce."

"Born in 1990, Baek studied creative writing at university before working for five years at a publishing house. She received psychiatric treatment for 10 years. The idea for her memoir began after she posted notes from therapy in a blog, and received positive feedback. When one commenter said it was like a light was shining into the darkness of their life, I was so surprised, she said in a 2023 interview with PEN."

Baek Se-hee died at age 35. She donated her heart, lungs, liver and both kidneys, saving five lives according to the Korean organ donation agency. Her memoir I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki was published in Korea in 2018 and in the UK in 2022, followed by I Want to Die but I Still Want to Eat Tteokbokki last year. The first book sold about 600,000 copies in Korea and more than one million copies worldwide, with publication in over 25 countries. Baek studied creative writing, worked five years at a publishing house, and received psychiatric treatment for ten years. The memoir grew from therapy notes posted on a blog.

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