Baek Se-hee, author of bestselling depression memoir, dies at 35

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Published: 17 Oct. 2025, 16:26 Updated: 19 Oct. 2025, 17:15

SHIN MIN-HEE
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Author Baek Se-hee [KOREAN ORGAN DONATION AGENCY]

Baek Se-hee, the author of the best-selling memoir “I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki” (2018), has died. She was 35.

The Korea Organ Donation Agency said Friday that Baek's heart, lungs, liver and both kidneys were donated after she was declared brain-dead at the National Health Insurance Service Ilsan Hospital in Goyang, Gyeonggi, saving the lives of five patients.

The cause of death was not revealed.

“I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki” follows Baek’s conversations with her psychiatrist after she was diagnosed with dysthymia, a chronic form of depression. The book became a national best-seller after it was recommended by numerous celebrities including BTS member RM.

It was later translated in 25 countries, selling over a million copies worldwide as of last year. The English translation, published in 2022, was done by Anton Hur.

“My sister’s dream was to connect and build dreams with others through her writing,” Baek’s younger sister was quoted as saying by the agency. “Knowing her kind heart, one that could never hold hatred, we hope that she now finds peace in heaven.”

BY SHIN MIN-HEE [[email protected]]