Kayde moore

Contributor Interview

UNL: Tell us a little more about yourself. When did you first start writing? Why and how is writing important to you?

KM: I have loved writing for my entire life, but it has become more important to me in the past couple of years. Writing is not only a therapeutic process for me, but a way of understanding. It helps me navigate a complex world and my place in it.

UNL: Would you mind sharing how the piece you wrote came into being? What was your process like for creating it? How do you determine what is important to write about?

KM: I wrote this particular piece after being impacted by the Spirit Pole Ceremony that I attended at UW-Superior this past April. Seeing the cultural oppression that has been happening continuously with Native Americans has inspired me to write more about the Native community. The issues hit close to home, with my grandmother living on the reservation and close family experiencing the oppression firsthand. I wrote this piece sitting on my bedroom floor in the middle of the night and let the words and the feelings from the ceremony flow.

UNL: Do you have a favorite place to write?

KM: I don’t have one place that I love to write, but I usually do my best thinking and writing at night.

UNL: How has the Northland area affected how you write or what you write about?

KM: The Northland is my home and the source of most of my ideas. There is an endless supply of inspiration, whether it be Lake Superior to my north or the personal memories that I have made here.

UNL: We know you’re only a sophomore so you still have plenty of time to decide what you will do after school, but have you thought of what your next steps will be after school? If so, how will writing factor into these next steps?

KM: Career wise, I’m hoping to figure that out soon. Other than that, I really want to travel and write about the people that I come across. I don’t know when I’ll do this, or how, but meeting people and writing their stories has been a dream of mine for years.

UNL: Would you mind sharing what you’re currently reading?

KM: Right now, I’m reading The Nix by Nathan Hill, but when I’m in more of a fantasy mood I read The Hero of Ages, the third book in the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson.

UNL: Do you have any reading recommendations or advice for aspiring Northland student writers?

KM: There are so many books that I want to recommend, but recently I read a book called Commonwealth by Ann Patchett. The way it described the impact of people's actions—big and small—really stood out to me. It told truth about real life in the form of a story.

UNL: Where can we go to read more of your work? Anything else you’d like to share with us?

KM: I write for the Superior High School student newspaper, The Spartan Spin. This and personal writing is what I mostly do now, but I’m always looking for ways to broaden my experience.

Kayde Moore is a 16-year-old student at Superior High School. She is an avid reader and writer, as well as an advocate for social and humanitarian causes. She enjoys writing for her school’s newspaper, The Spartan Spin, acting in Superior’s mock trial team, and spending time with her family and friends.