In Volume Seven: Chapter Three of the program, we welcomed Writer, Author, and Poet Irina Moga. Her work has been nominated for the SFPA Rhysling Award and Best of the Net, and her collection Variations Without Palace was the 2022 winner of the Dina Sahyouni International Literary Prize. She’s the author of six collections, including her latest, Quantum, and is an active member of several literary organizations across Canada.

In our conversation, Irina discusses her early creative beginnings—starting with a poetry group in high school that, in her words, “mercilessly” tore apart each other’s work. What could have discouraged a young writer instead became foundational, shaping her approach to revision, experimentation, and resilience. We talk about what it means to have your work challenged early, and how that kind of environment can either push you out—or pull you deeper in.

We also spend time on one of the more fascinating parts of her journey: the transition from writing in Romanian to writing in English after immigrating to Canada. Rather than simply carrying over her voice, Irina made the intentional decision to rebuild it. We get into what that process looked like in real time—the frustrations, the disconnects, and what it took to stay committed to that evolution instead of retreating to what was familiar.

Throughout the conversation, Irina shares how writing lives for her today—not just as a craft, but as a space. A space of silence, concentration, and layering, where language, culture, and personal experience intersect. We talk about poetry as both deconstruction and reconstruction—how it allows us to break reality apart and reassemble it into something that feels more true, more honest, and sometimes more bearable.

Contact Irina:
Website: irinamoga.com Instagram: @pictopoems

Recorded Spoken Word Performances Featured Include:

Taalam Acey – Affirmation for Black Men
Instagram: @taalamacey Website: taalamacey.com

Brandon Alexander Williams – Black Woman Studies
Instagram: @brandonalexanderwilliams

Anita D. – Colors
Instagram: @anitadpoetry

Alyesha Wise – Cannibal
Instagram: @alyeshawise Website: alyeshawise.com

Ciara Chantelle – Empty Cups
Instagram: @ciarachantelle

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