In my professional (i.e., journalism) work, I use my full name with my middle initial — Georgia I. Salvaryn. But as you may notice in my creative (master’s program) work, I use my full name with my last name spelled differently — Georgia Iris Szawaryn.
Now, many of you might be wondering: why did she spell her last name like that? The explanation, put simply: that was the original way of spelling my dad’s family name.
Back when my great-grandparents came over from Poland, their last name was spelled “Szawaryn.” On Ellis Island, my great-grandparents’ names can be found on the stone, written with this last name.
I decided, as an artist, I would like to honor them by using the original spelling of our family name on my creative work.
You can explore my master’s program blog to read about my research and read the piece I have published in literary magazines.
Georgia Iris Salvaryn 