Phillips attended Montclair High School and earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Barnard College.

[1] She spent a semester of college abroad in Moscow,[2] and was a volunteer at the Crime Victims Treatment Center in New York City for more than a decade.

[3] After graduating from college, Phillips earned a Fulbright Program grant allowing her to conduct research in Russia regarding how foreign investment and tourism have affected the Kamchatka Peninsula.

[5] During her time in Kamchatka, she began exploring the theme of what everyday harm or hurt against women looks like.

[6] This eventually led to the publication of her debut novel Disappearing Earth in 2019, which was shortlisted for the 2019 National Book Award for Fiction.