User:Brooke Benoit

Hello, Salams, and Welcome to my Wiki studio space.

I am an artist and autodidactic who loves using Wikipedia for my personal and academic research. A few years ago I noticed a BIG lacking here on Wikipedia in the area of enteries about practicing (as opposed to formerly ;) Muslim women, especially artists and writers, so I have been slowly adding enteries of them when I can. Creating Wikipedia enteries is a longterm project for me and I hope to continue adding Muslimah writers, poets, artists and performers, branching out into the global ummah, though the language barriers make that a bit more slow going. So for now I have kept my focus on who I know of and/or have access to.

In addition to editing and adding to a few existing pages, I have created the following pages:


 * 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 practice Islam. Since Islam is not practiced homogeneously, individual Islamic practices and world views vary from author to author.


 * Linda "Jamilah" Kolocotronis is an American Muslim writer and former educator in American Islamic schools. A convert to Islam, she has published several Islamic fiction novels as well as her doctoral dissertation. Kolocotronis changed her first name to Jamilah when she became Muslim in 1980 and took her husband’s last name, Jitmoud, when she married. Kolocotronis has six sons and three grandchildren.


 * Maryam 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.


 * Na'ima B Robert, born Thando Nomhle McLaren on September 19, 1977, is an author of multicultural literature and founding editor of the UK-based Muslim women’s publication, SISTERS Magazine.

My immediate future hopeful enteries include:


 * Umm Zakiyyah, "Internationally acclaimed author of the If I Should Speak trilogy and the novels Realities of Submission and Hearts We Lost." -from her Facebook page.


 * Safiyyah Abdullah, poet


 * Notable Niqabis, an addition to the niqab page already exisiting

I appreciate any help in these endeavors and likewise would enjoy collaborating with other folks having similar interests.

Thanks much!

~Brooke