Interview: Terry Nguyen
Photo credit: Instagram / @nguyenterry
Terry Nguyen is one of the most exciting writers to watch right now.
Over the last few years, the 24-year-old Garden Grove native has established herself as a leading commentator on consumerism, identity, and digital culture through her incisive reporting for The Goods at Vox. Offering a fresh perspective that’s rounded out by her identity as a Gen-Z child of immigrants, she’s penned numerous deep-dives and explainers like “Are we ever authentically ourselves on the internet?” and “Shein is the future of fast fashion. Is that a good thing?”.
Last month, Nguyen started a new gig as the first staff writer for Dirt, an entertainment and cultural newsletter led by writers Kyle Chayka and Daisy Alioto and funded solely through NFTs (they also recently locked in a $1.2 million seed round). Here, Nguyen will cover a wide range of weekly topics ranging from art and music to celebrity and fashion.
Beyond her work with Dirt, Nguyen also runs lychee martinis, a “project on Asian American girl culture,” and is planning a forthcoming book. And as our first-ever Writer-in-Residence, for the month of September, she’ll also be dropping a feature right here on the District One Journal (stay tuned for that!).
We sat down with Nguyen earlier this month to discuss her writing career, her Vietnamese American upbringing, and her favorite local restaurants and bars. This interview has been edited for clarity and conciseness.
How did you get your name?
My mom named me Terry after a female evening news anchor she watched during her pregnancy. My Vietnamese name is Gíang Tiên, which means heavenly angel.
Describe the place you come from in one sentence.
Garden Grove, Calif. A sleepy, humble suburb that’s home to the best Vietnamese food in the country.
Your sign(s)?
Triple Leo (Sun, Moon, and Rising) 🔥🔥🔥
When did you start writing and when did you start this gig?
I started writing fiction in elementary school and journalism in college. I started my gig as a senior writer at Dirt in August, and before that, I wrote about the internet, culture, and consumerism for Vox.
How do you explain Dirt to your family and friends?
I have a hard time describing Dirt to anyone who’s not very online or knowledgeable about crypto! The simplest explanation is: We’re a free newsletter covering entertainment and digital pop culture. Dirt is a venture-backed media company, but readers can choose to subscribe by buying our NFTs. Subscription NFTs are currently sold out, but owners get special access to exclusive content, IRL events, and participate in some editorial decisions. Dirt also has a Discord that’s open to all our readers!
What was the "a-ha" moment that made you realize you wanted to be a writer?
I knew I wanted to be a novelist and essayist since I was a child, and the “easiest” path to getting published (not that it was ever easy) was to work as a journalist. I never thought writing full-time would be a reality for me until the Washington Post offered me a summer internship in 2017. That opportunity changed my entire career trajectory.
How would you describe the focus or beat of your work, or perhaps your writing style? What excites you as a writer?
I’m fascinated by the influence and power that Culture has in our lives. I think it’s frankly reductive to describe myself as a “culture” writer because culture permeates every aspect of our lives. I’ve written a lot about the internet — how trends and identity manifests online — but I hope to write more about art, movies, and literature. I’m also at work on a book!
How would you describe your writing process?
Slow and precise. I’m fastidious about reading, re-reading, and revising my work. I care about how a sentence flows, whether a specific word or a comma makes sense to include or omit. This is the case for most of my personal writing (i.e. newsletters, fiction, essays). I jot down ideas and fragments of sentences and refine them until I’m satisfied. I don’t always have the luxury of time when I’m writing for work, so I outline and stick to simpler sentences. I can be a quick and dirty writer, even though I hate working on deadline.
Who are your favorite writers to read right now?
I’m in my poet phase! So lots of Anne Carson, Inger Christensen, Samuel Beckett. I don’t read a lot of contemporary books, although I’m finishing up Chinatown by Thuận, the mononymous Vietnamese writer.
“‘Every Vietnamese man fancies himself a poet.’ This sentiment definitely applies to me, too.”
— Terry Nguyen
How has your identity as a Vietnamese American intersected with, shaped, or challenged you as a writer?
My upbringing in Garden Grove, a major Vietnamese diasporic hub, was central to the development of my identity and confidence as a writer. I grew up in a working-class suburban community where most of the residents were either Hispanic or Asian, an experience that profoundly shaped not just my reporting and fiction writing, but my perspective on US race relations and whiteness. That, in a sense, has led me to feature identity more passively in my work. It’s an essential part of me; I don’t need to prove or disprove this identity to anyone.
Thankfully, there’s an incredibly rich lineage of Vietnamese American writers and poets that I’ve read and admired. I think it was Viet Thanh Nguyen who said something to the effect of: “Every Vietnamese man fancies himself a poet.” This sentiment definitely applies to me, too.
What are 5-6 items that would go into the Terry Nguyen “starter pack”?
Olaplex
The Row half moon bag
Maybelline lipstick
a Kindle
Jeffrey Campbell platforms
Terry’s Picks
Book you're reading? The Dream Shattered: Vietnamese Gangs in America
Pop culture moment that lives in your head rent free? The fact that Rihanna and ASAP Rocky went on a date at the Williamsburg Barcade
Ideal last meal on earth? Cơm tấm, specifically at Cơm Tấm Thuận Kiều in Garden Grove
The best club or party in NYC? Ornithology Jazz Club
Your favorite restaurant in your neighborhood? Bunna Cafe
Your celebrity "muse"? Devon Aoki
The RTD beverage that you swear by? Perroni
The best dish you personally can cook? Kung Pao Cauliflower from Food52 — I’m not vegan but I swear by this dish!
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Follow Terry on Instagram @nguyenterry and Twitter @terrygtnguyen.
