For Noelia Moore, journalism has helped her conquer her fears.
It all started in creative writing…
Creative writing became the foundation for Noelia Moore to escape a life shattered by her parents’ split when she was 5.
“When I was younger, writing was an outlet for all the drama going on in my life,” she remembers. “It made me realize that writing can be an outlet for my emotions.”
A breakup can surely affect the family unit and Moore’s situation is no different. For refuge, she would go into her own little world and decorate it with everything that made her happy. Moore would write about the happy memories she shared with her dad in this world. It was all done through creative writing.
However, this world was hers only, and it was isolated from others. It was not until the age of 15, when she was introduced to journalism, that Moore started to venture outside of her creative writing memos. The truth was that creative writing is private business; it involves emotion-fueled writing. Journalism, on the other hand, requires you to detach from emotion and go out to capture a story. This was far from Noelia Moore’s comfort zone.
Her journalism teacher was a big reason for a break in her comfort zone. She explains, “I had a really good journalism teacher who always encouraged me to go look for a story and to interview people because I was so shy.” With her teacher’s push, she was able to gain confidence. “She made me interview anyway, and, it made me come out of my shell.”
Moore reflects on her first story as a journalist, in which she was super nervous. “My first story ever was to the principal’s office. I had to interview him. Even the seniors in my class were terrified of talking to him,” she adds. “I was nervous. He kept on asking if I was okay because I was shaking.”
That one experience in journalism has led Moore to shake away her shyness. “I guess that [experience] helped me get my feet wet,” she says. Since she was able to go out and get a story, Moore soon found that she was talking more. She had found her voice.
Now, Noelia Moore covers many stories for her school news website. She continues to interview and write stories about her school’s team winning and student council presidents. It’s clear that journalism has a special place in her heart. In the future, Moore aspires to become a journalist to educate the public on issues. She has special interest on injustices facing the LGBTQ+ community, and hopes to shine a spotlight on them.
For people who have faced similar situations, Moore shares a piece of advice: “Don’t be scared to put yourself out there and try something new. No matter what happens, as long as you did your best then you’ve already succeeded.”
