I'm a first - I was the first person in my family born in the United States. My mom is from Croatia, and my dad is from Iran. They met at music school in Belgium. I grew up as a pianist. I was really interested in piano and sort of discovered that I was a writer when I was about 13 and started writing.

Ottessa Moshfegh

I don't care about being a literary personality - that doesn't appeal to me, especially because the literary world doesn't appeal to me. I actually don't feel like I even belong in it. If this was high school, I would be sitting with the Goths, looking at everyone, being like, 'Whatever.'

Ottessa Moshfegh

I've found that people get particularly frustrated and shut down when women in fiction are disgusting or disordered.

Ottessa Moshfegh

It's insane that people have these Internet identities. It has very little to do with who we really are. As a writer, who I'm friends with, how I spend my time, what I look like, what I wear, what I eat, what kind of music I like - it's totally not important to the work.

Ottessa Moshfegh

I've always really enjoyed sharing my work with others. I find it really hard if I don't think the work will exist outside of my own apartment.

Ottessa Moshfegh