Welcome!

Hello! And welcome to the official page of freelance writer & editor Irina Gonzalez.

Whether you stumbled here by (fortunate?) accident or came by on purpose, I bet you’re wondering: Just who is this chick with the slightly confusing name? As you may have guessed by now, I’m half-Russian, half-Cuban and ALL American… which coincidentally is the subject of my memoir and newsletter, Moscow Chica. I’m also a proud bisexual Latina immigrant, lover of red lipstick and a sexy cat lady (or, ya know, a girl can dream?). Plus my history includes getting a gastric bypass in Colombia, which prompted me to lose 100 pounds, overcome a food phobia, fall in love with veggies and finally embrace my curves.

But you’re probably here because you saw some of my work and wanted to learn more… Right? Here it is:

Currently, I’m the Freelance Food Editor at Brit+Co, a Lifestyle Writer at Romper, and a regular contributor at Mom.me and MamásLatinas. I also freelance write for various publications and blog about love, fun and my life at The Cookie Dough Life.

Mainly, I write about all things food, healthy living, relationships and cultural identity. My work has been featured in:

You can find my latest writing, updates and general thoughts (probably mostly about writing) under Updates and some of my favorite Published Clips above as well. In general, I enjoy writing about food (duh!), healthy living (such as weight loss, a subject near and dear to my heart), love and sex (including the bravest thing I’ve ever written), Latina life and… a few other topics. Primarily those additional topics include feminism, what life is like for millennials, recovery, travel, beauty and entertainment (like a few celeb interviews). Oh yeah, and I occasionally do videos because I love being on camera.

Beyond that, I spend most of my free time working on my memoir, Moscow Chica: How Growing Up in Russia and Cuba Made Me an American (for which I am currently seeking representation, MORE INFORMATION BELOW), or cooking #healthylatinfood and posting the photos on Instagram. While you can find all of my work here on this site, I also encourage you to check out my personal blog and subscribe to my newsletter for writing news and updates on my memoir.

If you’d like me to write for you or you’re in PR and looking to get in touch, you can download my resume here or simply email me for more information. Want more? Don’t forget to follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest!

Here is a little bit more about my upcoming memoir, Moscow Chica:

I remember sitting on my father’s shoulders as we stood in the hours-long line when the first McDonald’s opened in Moscow.

Two years later, just after I turned 8 years old, I was playing in a McDonald’s in Miami just down the street from the hotel in which my family lived while we anxiously awaited our political asylum paperwork to come through.

Knowing no English and nobody here, my Cuban father and Russian mother were determined to provide us with a better life outside of communism and perestroika.

MOSCOW CHICA is a memoir about cultural identity and history, about an immigrant family seeking the elusive American dream, and about a young girl stuck between worlds. Was I Russian because I was born there? Was I Cuban because I spoke Spanish and loved frijoles? Was I American because I cried with the rest of the world on 9/11? And what does it mean when others call me a double commie, question my citizenship, wonder about my name or simply don’t understand how I came to be?

Beginning with my parents fateful meeting at university in Moscow, my accidental conception, their illegal marriage, our brief stint in Cuba and eventual move to the U.S.A., this book details my journey to learn how growing up Russian and Cuban made me an American.