Serenity Sundays


Clinnesha Sibley, a native of McComb, Mississippi, is a published author, community leader, and educator. She promotes creative-mindedness—believing that visual, performing, and literary arts can change the way we think about some of life’s most important questions.  

A writer of plays, blogs, poetry, prose, essays and creative non-fiction, Clinnesha has received numerous honors including the Holland New Voices Award, the Arkansas Arts Council Individual Artist Fellowship, Mississippi Theatre Association Adult Playwriting Award, A.I.M. Award for Creative Writing, and a 2021 Vance Fellowship from the Natchez Literary and Cinema Celebration. Her work has appeared on national theatre stages and in national literary journals, anthologies/ publications including Penumbra Literary and Art Journal, HerStry, Poetry South, The Maine Review, Feels Blind Literary, Quince Magazine, In Full Color, Black Masks Magazine, and Muzzle Magazine. She has also authored numerous essays including ‘How to Survive Predominately White Academic Theatre: Cause a Disruptive Innovation’, published by Howlround in 2016; and “Remembering, Rewriting and Re-Imagining: An Afrocentric Approach to Directing New Work for the Theatre”, featured in Black Acting Methods and published by Routledge Books. She is also a blog contributor on TheWriteAddiction.com, where her “Serenity Sunday” beat goes live every week.  

Clinnesha received her B.A. at Tougaloo College in Jackson, Mississippi, where she was a 2003 initiate into the Gamma Psi Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and was the 2005-2006 Miss Tougaloo College. She received her Master of Fine Arts Degree (MFA) from the University of Arkansas (U of A) in Fayetteville, becoming the first African-American to earn such a degree from that institution. As both a student and an Assistant Professor at the U of A, Clinnesha was a diversity champion and a key woman educator in the arts. She proudly served the College of Charleston in South Carolina as an Assistant Professor of Playwriting where her mission was to empower students to cultivate their unique voice and write fearlessly, without limits. After teaching at the college/university level for seven years, she moved into secondary residential education. She has taught at The Historic Piney Woods School and is currently the Literary Arts Instructor at Mississippi School of the Arts.

Her plays have been called feminist, protest, political, southern, and circular. Her widely known works include Tell Martha Not to Moan, Naked: What Women and Their Bodies Represent to America, Bound by Blood, Search Team, Thorns, The Cleaning Ladies, Uprooted, and Love Be Like…— all of which have received national recognition by reputable organizations including Penumbra Theatre, TheatreSquared, Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center, Kentucky Women Writers Conference, Fade to Black Reading Series, Blackboard Reading Series, Spark Creative Works, New Circle Theatre, New Stage Theatre, The Union For Contemporary Art, and NYCPlaywrights. She is also known for authoring numerous essays including “How to Survive Predominately White Academic Theatre: Cause a Disruptive Innovation”, published by Howlround in 2016; “Remembering, Rewriting and Re-Imagining: An Afrocentric Approach to Directing New Work for the Theatre”, featured in Black Acting Methods and published by Routledge Books, and ‘“I Am Speaking” and Why Black and Brown Voices Matter’, featured in the anthology 2020: The Year that Changed America alongside Nikki Giovanni. Her work breaks stereotypes in the American theatre and contributes authentic narratives about Mississippians, southerners, and Black women to the contemporary literary canon. 

Clinnesha was selected as one of twenty-four change-makers across the United States for the 2017-2018 National Arts Strategies Creative Communities Fellow Program. This program was her springboard into the non-profit sector and social entrepreneurship. A 2019 recipient of a “Rise Grant” from Women on the Rise Network, she is the Executive-Artistic Director for the Southwest Mississippi Multiplex for Early Innovative Intervention Studies.

Clinnesha is married to her high school sweetheart, Keith Sibley, and they have three children: Kaylee, Karlee, and Keith Jr.

Tune in to http://www.TheWRITEaddiction.com weekly for Clinnesha’s Serenity Sundays.


SERENITY SUNDAYS QUICK JUMP INDEX (BY YEAR)


2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022


BOOKS & CREATIVE WORKS BY CLINNESHA

To order your copy visit https://serenityeveryday.com/shop/


Links to published works in online literary journals and magazines: 

How To Survive Predominately White Academic Theatre: Cause A Disruptive Innovation
Clinnesha D. Sibley Life Writing
He Needed His Momma
Breonna’s Poem
A Matter of Being


Anthologies Featuring Clinnesha’s work: 

Black Acting Methods (1st Edition) by Sharrell Luckett & Tia M. Shaffer


Play Reviews: 

Denver Post Review of “Tell Martha Not to Moan”

Spark Creative Works Launches Women’s Playwriting Project

Interview: https://yourartsygirlpodcast.com/episodes/episode-60-clinnesha-d-sibley-s1!33ffd

Non-Profit Work: http://smmeiis.strikingly.com/


SERENITY SUNDAYS BLOG INDEX


2022

April 3, 2022 – Fear Not

March 6, 2022 – The Coming of Spring

February 6, 2022 – When COVID Hits Home

January 2, 2022 – Make Peace With Peas

2021

December 5, 2021 – The Last Christmas Tree

November 28, 2021 – You Only Get One Life

November 14, 2021 – Jericho Season

October 31, 2021 – Serenity Everyday

October 24, 2021 – Why I Cried At the P.O.

October 17, 2021 – Big Things & The Book My Mother Will Never Read…

October 10, 2021 – Send Book To Printing Press

September 19, 2021 – The Geology Of Men

September 12, 2021 – “I Refuse To Die With The Music Still In Me.”

September 5, 2021 – Contrary To What Beyoncé Says, I Did Not Wake Up Like This

August 22, 2021 – Serenity Everyday

August 1, 2021 – Walking Away

July 25, 2021 – Serenity Everyday

July 18, 2021 – Why Women Are Sleeping On Their Couches

July 11, 2021 – Total Balance

July 4, 2021 – From the Ground, Up

June 6, 2021 – The Podcast (Bonus Episode)

May 30, 2021 – The Podcast (Episode 5)

May 23, 2021 – The Podcast (Episode 4)

May 16, 2021 – The Podcast (Episode 3)

May 9, 2021 – The Podcast (Episode 2)

May 2, 2021 – The Podcast (Episode 1)

April 11, 2021 – Finding Mama, Finding Myself

March 21, 2021 – Before We Were Women, We Were Girls

March 14, 2021 – A Belly Story

March 7, 2021 – The Yellow Dress

February 28, 2021 – Spread The Love

February 21, 2021 – First Couple Vibes

February 14, 2021 – No, We Are Not A 90’s Black Rom Com

February 7, 2021 – Whoever Says Thank You, Wins

January 31, 2021 – May Nothing Go To Waste

January 24, 2021 – Dinosauria (Or Parental Burnout)

January 17, 2021 – In The Beyond Of It

January 10, 2021 – Doth My Eyes Deceive Me?

January 3, 2021 – Debris, Scars and Please Don’t Wake the Baby

2020

December 20, 2020 – Until The New Year…

December 6, 2020 – Getting Comfortable Again

November 29, 2020 – Exit Ahead

November 22, 2020 – No One Rides For Free

November 15, 2020 – To Be Pruned

November 8, 2020 – Safe (Young Me Speaks)

November 1, 2020 – Evidently, I Have Issues

October 25, 2020 – Radical For You

October 18, 2020 – Live From The Letters Festival

October 11, 2020 – “I Am Speaking” And Why Black and Brown Voices Matter

October 4, 2020 – Returning To Child-Like Vulnerability

September 27, 2020 – Breaonna’s Poem

September 20, 2020 – If I Ever Hurt You…

September 13, 2020 – Something’s Missing (Part 2)

September 6, 2020 – Something’s Missing (Part 1)

August 30, 2020 – They Were Right

August 23, 2020 – The Power of Manifestation

August 16, 2020 – Jada, Cardi, Meg, Kamala – And What Black Women Nee Most

August 9, 2020 – Low-Grade Depression

August 2, 2020 – Wholeness (And Why I Can’t Cry)

June 28, 2020 – The Family Edition

June 21, 2020 – The Family Edition (In Mourning)

June 14, 2020 – Lessons Learned From Marching

June 7, 2020 – Remember the Artist In Times Like These…

May 31, 2020 – He Needed His Momma

May 24, 2020 – Thoughts While Running

May 17, 2020 – Love Amid Crisis

May 10, 2020 – Balancing the Craze of Motherhood

May 3, 2020 – Hello 36

April 26, 2020 – Who Else Sucks At This?!

April 19, 2020 – New Mercies

April 12, 2020 – Light

April 5, 2020 – No Shelter For Me

March 29, 2020 – Safe, But Savage

March 22, 2020 – Homeschoolin’

March 15, 2020 – COVID-19 and the Hidden Blessing of Slowing Down

March 8, 2020 – Navigating Her

February 16, 2020 – This Is How I Do The Dishes

February 9, 2020 – Negligence

February 2, 2020 – How I Became A Butterfly

January 26, 2020 – Year of The Rat (Pt. 3)

January 19, 2020 – Year of the Rat (Pt. 2)

January 12, 2020 – Year of the Rat (Pt. 1)

January 5, 2020 – Cut It Off

2019

December 29, 2019 – Leave It Behind

December 22, 2019 – The Ultimate Sacrifice

December 8, 2019 – The Seed We Planted

November 24, 2019 – The Assignment

November 17, 2019 – At My Happiest

November 10, 2019 – Too Long (Thank You Omaha)

November 3, 2019 – My Relationship With Time

October 27, 2019 – Pieces Of Me

October 20, 2019 – Glowing Up

October 13, 2019 – Spinning With My Hands Up

October 6, 2019 – Baby Steps and Breakthroughs

September 22, 2019 – For Women Who Push Overloaded Carts

September 15, 2019 –  Re-Thinking Happiness

September 8, 2019 – Unpacking (Part 3)

September 1, 2019 – Unpacking (Part 2)

August 18, 2019 – Unpacking (Part 1) 

July 28, 2019 – How I Twisted My Ankle, Chasing Dreams

July 21, 2019 – Seven Eighths

July 14, 2019 – What Happened At The New Wildins?

July 7, 2019 – Sincerely, Your Mean Mom

June 30, 2019 – We Had No Idea

June 23, 2019 – Social Media and My Personal Terms of Use

June 16, 2019 – Ribeyes and Racism

June 2, 2019 – Ain’t No Serenity

May 26, 2019 – Living My Best Life As A Teacher?

May 19, 2019 – Don’t Always Write What You Know

May 12, 2019 – Absorbing, A Short Story

May 5, 2019 – 35 and Owning It

April 28, 2019 – Don’t Worry

April 21, 2019 – Teach the Children

April 14, 2019 – The Sacrifice

April 7, 2019 – Ask Me Anything

March 31, 2019 – Memories That Shaped Me

March 24, 2019 – What Happened To Her?

March 17, 2019 – Calm Down

March 10, 2019 – Women, Cups and Middle Spaces

March 3, 2019 – Nine Ways To Show Yourself Love And Master This Life

February 24, 2019 – Spring Is Like A Perhaps Hand

February 17, 2019 – Where I Come From

February 10, 2019 – Ten Years, Ten Lessons

February 3, 2019 – Take It

January 27, 2019 – Controversial Dumplings

January 20, 2019 – When The Limo Breaks Down

January 14, 2019 – Consider The Birds

2018

December 30, 2018 – Weight

December 23, 2018 – 3 Ways To Be Merry

December 16, 2018 – For the Weary

December 9, 2018 – For The Gifted

December 2, 2018 – From My Womb To The World

November 25, 2018 – What’s Hidden?

November 18, 2018 – Salsa Night!

November 11, 2018 – Find Your Cause

November 4, 2018 – Happy Home

October 28, 2018 – I Was Missing Something

October 21, 2018 – In The Belly Of A Whale

October 14, 2018 – Pillow Talk

October 7, 2018 – The Change Series, Part 5 (The Finale)

September 30, 2018 – The Change Series, Part 4

September 23, 2018 – The Change Series, Part 3

September 16, 2018 – The Change Series, Part 2

September 9, 2018 – The Change Series, Part 1

September 2, 2018 – Help

August 26, 2018 – Reclaiming Poetry

August 19, 2018 – Sometimes I Hide In My Kitchen

August 12, 2018 – Marriage, Through The Eyes Of Laundry

August 5, 2018 – I Cut My Hair. Here’s Way.

July 29, 2018 – Life, According To IHOP’s “Happy Pancake”

July 22, 2018 – Another Planet

July 15, 2018 – Through The Roof

July 8, 2018 – Tune Your Instrument

July 1, 2018 – My Journey Toward Healing

April 22, 2018 – Happy Mother’s Day

April 15, 2018 – The Passion Collection

April 8, 2018 – Three Kids

April 1, 2018 – A Fool For Love

March 25, 2018 – When the Children Lead

March 18, 2018 – Grace Over Grind

March 11, 2018 – For the Kids

March 4, 2018 – Picking Flowers

February 25, 2018 – Static

February 18, 2018 – Poetic Reflections

February 11, 2018 – Don’t Get It Twisted

February 4, 2018 – Yep, The Flue

January 28, 2018 – The Pre-Season Hype-Up

January 21, 2018 – M Is For Murder, Mississippi, and Miracle

January 14, 2018 – Fantasies of Me (And How I Got Free)

January 7, 2018 – On This Rainy Night

2017

December 31, 2017 – Don’t Die In the Winter

December 24, 2017 – Last Minute Shopping

December 17, 2017 – Mary Did You Know

December 10, 2017 – Snow

December 3, 2017 – Overjoyed

November 26, 2017 – For A Woman I Know

November 19, 2017 – Why We Need To Be Ungrateful

November 12, 2017 – 3 Simple Truths

November 5, 2017 – An Open Letter To My Younger Self

October 29, 2017 – Have You Been In A Funk?

October 15, 2017 – 6 Ways To Stay Close

October 8, 2017 – 10 Songs That Help Me Escape From Life

October 1, 2017 – News

September 24, 3017 – Stranger Fruit

September 17, 2017 – The Ninth Month

September 10, 2017 – Can I Be Honest?

September 3, 2017 – The Art of Shopping

August 27, 2017 – In Light of the Eclipse

August 20, 2017 – Bears

August 13, 2017 – Clarity 

August 6, 2017 – How Internet-Free Classrooms Can Bring the Best Out of Students

July 30, 2017 – For Colored Girls Who Watch Insecure

July 23, 2017 – Chillin

July 16, 2017 – The Move That Saved Me

July 9, 2017 – What It Is

July 2, 2017 – Be The Canvas