Maryam Sullivan
Encyclopedia
Maryam “Umm Juwayriyah” Sullivan is an American Muslim
poet, novelist, playwright, journalist and performance artist. Sullivan’s novel The Size of a Mustard Seed is the first published Islamic Urban fiction
title.
, SISTERS, An Nisaa, and as well is published on several internet sites and other e-zines
. Umm Juwayriyah’s debut Islamic fiction
novel The Size of a Mustard Seed is the first Islamic Urban fiction
title.
Umm Juwayriyah has been performing her poetry and plays since she was 17. She has performed at the Islamic Circle of North America
Convention (ICNA), New England Muslim Sisters Association (NEMSA), RETREAT, Muslimah Fit Retreat, the New Haven Masjid Al Islam’s Youth Retreat, and numerous American colleges, including American International College
and Amherst College
. She has presented workshops at Rochester Institute of Technology
, Al Iqra Academy, and at many Islamic Centers in New England. Her first staged play In The Shadows of Our Mothers debuted in 2003. Hijab All Mine opened in 2010 in New Haven, Connecticut. Umm Juwayriyah also speaks to Muslim and non-Muslim groups across the United States addressing issues, such as Muslims and media, Muslims in print, the state of Muslim youth in the West, and growing up Muslim in America.
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
poet, novelist, playwright, journalist and performance artist. Sullivan’s novel The Size of a Mustard Seed is the first published Islamic Urban fiction
Urban fiction
Urban fiction, also known as Street lit, is a literary genre set, as the name implies, in a city landscape; however, the genre is as much defined by the race and culture of its characters as the urban setting. The tone for urban fiction is usually dark, focusing on the underside...
title.
Life
Umm Juwayriyah is an American Muslim of West Indian and American ancestry. She has two children and is a full-time elementary school teacher. In addition to writing, performing, and teaching, Umm Juwayriyah is editor for the New England Muslim Women's Association and former two-term assistant director of the Islamic Writers Alliance.Work
Umm Juwayriyah’s began publishing her work at fourteen years old as the founder and a contributor to the newsletter and e-zine Adhaanul Mu’minaat. She has been published in print magazines such as Al Jumuah, AzizahAzizah
Azizah Timimi is an American magazine for North American Muslim women. It is run by Tayyibah Taylor and Marlina Soerakoesoemah....
, SISTERS, An Nisaa, and as well is published on several internet sites and other e-zines
Online magazine
An online magazine shares some features with a blog and also with online newspapers, but can usually be distinguished by its approach to editorial control...
. Umm Juwayriyah’s debut Islamic fiction
Islamic fiction
Islamic fiction is written by and for Muslims as it expounds and illustrates an Islamic world view in its plot and characters. Islamic fiction excludes vulgar language and explicit depictions of sexuality; as well it aims to identify non-Islamic practices as such, portraying Muslims as striving to...
novel The Size of a Mustard Seed is the first Islamic Urban fiction
Urban fiction
Urban fiction, also known as Street lit, is a literary genre set, as the name implies, in a city landscape; however, the genre is as much defined by the race and culture of its characters as the urban setting. The tone for urban fiction is usually dark, focusing on the underside...
title.
Umm Juwayriyah has been performing her poetry and plays since she was 17. She has performed at the Islamic Circle of North America
Islamic Circle of North America
Islamic Circle of North America , formally chartered in 1971 but active since 1968, is an Islamic North American grassroots umbrella organization....
Convention (ICNA), New England Muslim Sisters Association (NEMSA), RETREAT, Muslimah Fit Retreat, the New Haven Masjid Al Islam’s Youth Retreat, and numerous American colleges, including American International College
American International College
American International College is a private, co-educational liberal-arts college located in the Mason Square neighborhood of Springfield, Massachusetts.-History:...
and Amherst College
Amherst College
Amherst College is a private liberal arts college located in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Amherst is an exclusively undergraduate four-year institution and enrolled 1,744 students in the fall of 2009...
. She has presented workshops at Rochester Institute of Technology
Rochester Institute of Technology
The Rochester Institute of Technology is a private university, located within the town of Henrietta in metropolitan Rochester, New York, United States...
, Al Iqra Academy, and at many Islamic Centers in New England. Her first staged play In The Shadows of Our Mothers debuted in 2003. Hijab All Mine opened in 2010 in New Haven, Connecticut. Umm Juwayriyah also speaks to Muslim and non-Muslim groups across the United States addressing issues, such as Muslims and media, Muslims in print, the state of Muslim youth in the West, and growing up Muslim in America.
Awards
- 2010 WGGBWGGB-TVWGGB-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts licensed to Springfield. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 40 from a transmitter on Mount Tom in Holyoke. The station can also be seen on Charter and Comcast channel 4...
/ Springfield Partners for Community Action Activism Award - 2009 Lorraine Hansberry'sLorraine HansberryLorraine Hansberry was an African American playwright and author of political speeches, letters, and essays...
Performing Arts Scholarship - 2006 Canada's An Nisaa's Muslim Fiction Writer of The Year Award
Selected Published Works
- The Size of a Mustard Seed (Muslim Writers Publishing, 2009) ISBN 0-97678-614-1 ISBN 978-0-97678-614-6
- Many Voices, One Faith II – Islamic Fiction Stories (Muslim Writers Publishing, 2009) ISBN 0-98197-701-4 ISBN 978-098197-701-0
- Many Poetic Voices, One Faith (Muslim Writers Publishing, 2009) ISBN 0-98197-700-6 ISBN 978-098197-700-3
- Many Voices, One Faith (Heliographica Press, 2005) ISBN 1-93303-747-4 ISBN 978-193303-747-9