Today we’d like to introduce you to Moriah Georges.
Moriah, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
For as long as I can remember, I have loved words – words in books and poems, words in songs and conversation. I think my family would recognize it as me having loved to talk. As I got older, that love of words made me a voracious reader, and eventually, an aspiring writer. When I was in high school, here in Richardson, at JJ Pearce, writing was my sport of choice (I was never very athletic). Growing up, my parents encouraged participation in academic things more than anything. And that was mostly fine by me because I was interested in such things – speech and debate, writing, and art. I found a home on the school newspaper staff from my sophomore year up until I graduated. I also edited and wrote for our school’s literary magazine, Oxala. Somewhere in a box, I have old copies stashed away. I might be a bit afraid to read any of the things I wrote then. I would see all of my errors and imperfections, but at the time, I was so proud of that work. And outside of mistakes, or the cheesiness of teenage love stories written by a girl who hadn’t experienced any love stories at all, I think I’d still be proud of the work. Although my heart for that creative process never left, I was not sufficiently diligent in finding an outlet for it after high school. I spent some time pursuing a degree in media and communication at the University of Texas at Dallas. There I began a blog, which was required for class, and then tried to keep up with it when it was no longer a requirement. I wrote a few articles that I shared and a couple more that maybe no one should read, but the blog left the door open for me to write somewhere. It is still up and running, although I have only written one entry this year. Even with the blog at my disposal, finding time to write and compelling topics to write about, was challenging. Life went on, adulting was relentless, and my writing became less and less.
In the last year, I suddenly became aware of people in my life who also had a desire to write. And so I was encouraged in my efforts to write as we would go little distances together – sprints, not marathons, but at least we were getting somewhere. Among those people was my dear friend Kathryn, who initiated a Facebook group with me and one other writer, where we would talk about what we were writing or reading or being inspired by with respect to our writing. Kathryn called our group Inklings. At that time, I was not familiar with the term, and when she told me about it, I completely fell in love with it. A couple of months later, I determined that it would be a fantastic name for a literary magazine.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I’m not very far down the road yet, but I can already tell you that it has not been smooth. Somedays I can fill a page with meaningful thoughts, and other days, words won’t even come to mind. I’m still learning to play the long game – to devote the time, even when I don’t feel like it, or it seems fruitless. Writing material for IR is challenging enough for me, but finding other writers who are able and willing to make time for that has been the biggest challenge.
Inkling Renaissance – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Inkling Renaissance is an online literary magazine inspired by an informal circle of literary friends in the 1930’s & 40’s. Members included writing heavyweights, C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and Charles Williams, among others. During their meetings, writers would listen to one another to read their works aloud and offer feedback. Tolkien is said to have summed up the spirit of Inkling meetings when he called it “a feast of reason and flow of soul.” In that spirit, our publication seeks to revive communion between writers and provide a creative space for writers to share their offerings with others. We believe in the efficacy of writing as a medium for impactful messages. We at Inkling Renaissance choose to honor God and love each other by harvesting our words to encourage and edify all writers and readers who engage with our publication.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
The way I think about success has evolved over the last several years. I used to think of success as a sort of absolute – finite and quantitative, measured in miles over a map that I had created for my life. Experience, and especially some trying times, have taught me that the map I drew was for uncharted territory – areas in life that I had yet to navigate – and therefore that map was more imaginary, or hoped-for that it was accurate. I do believe that imagination and hope factor into success, but now I look at success in terms of growth and impact, and I consider it to be relative. A single step in my journey towards all that I hope for could be a giant leap across unseen obstacles. If I have the opportunity to impact a single person, I value that opportunity. I believe that you can change the world, one person at a time. Success, for me, is measured in the strides I make to better myself and others.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.inklingrenaissance.com/
- Email: moriah.georges@inklingrenaissance.com
- Other: https://www.moriahwithano.com/
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