GREENEVILLE – A Tusculum University alumna who has written two books and a play and enjoyed a multidimensional career in communication and the arts since she graduated five years ago will share her varied experience and viewpoint on the creative process in an upcoming presentation at her alma mater.
Serina Marshall
Serina Marshall, who earned a bachelor’s degree in English with a concentration in communication and public relations, will present “From the Page to the Stage and Beyond” Thursday, Sept. 24, at 7 p.m. in Behan Arena Theatre. It will be the introductory program of “Oak and Ink: The Creators Series at Tusculum University,” which will feature several events throughout this academic year under the leadership of faculty members from the university’s English and art and design programs.
Marshall’s presentation is free and open to the community. It is appropriate for adults and mature teenagers.
“Serina arrived in Introduction to Creative Writing as a student with standout zeal for the practice and a talent for making everyone else in the course feel good about their writing,” said Kelsey Trom, professor of English, the creative writing program coordinator and the Harriett Reaves Neff ’21 Chair of Fine Arts at Tusculum. “She was the student who changed the chemistry of the class and made it a true community. Even though other students weren’t as advanced as she was, she never let on that she knew that.
“That’s Serina in a nutshell: someone who never lets her individual talent obscure the joys of collaborating with others. I’ve loved watching her multi-genre visibility explode.”
Marshall’s work is driven by a passion for authentic, human storytelling and a desire to create work that connects with audiences emotionally. She has navigated the challenges of building a creative career while continuing to take risks, reinvent herself and pursue new ideas – even when the path has not always been clear.
During her multimedia presentation, Marshall will describe her creative process and the practical art of having work published and produced. At the event’s conclusion, the English program will hold a reception, and Marshall will participate in a book signing.
Marshall will take the audience behind the scenes of her unconventional journey as a best-selling author, award-winning journalist, playwright, director, producer and songwriter. She will draw from her experiences in publishing, journalism, theater, film and music to discuss the practical steps involved in developing, publishing, producing and sharing creative work with an audience.
Her presentation is ideal for students and anyone interesting in exploring a career or hobby in the creative world. It will examine:
- Finding one’s creative voice
- Turning ideas into finished projects
- Navigating rejection and uncertainty
- Building a career across multiple disciplines
- Collaborating with other artists
- Creating opportunities when traditional doors are not open
Marshall will also highlight the importance of persistence, adaptability, networking and self-promotion and emphasize the need to give oneself permission to create, pursue more than one medium and chart one’s own path.
“I hope every person in the room leaves understanding that there is no single blueprint for a creative life,” Marshall said. “You don’t have to choose between being a writer, filmmaker, musician, artist, journalist or producer. You can be more than one thing, and your creative path is allowed to evolve. I want them to see that an idea is only the beginning. Having a story, song, screenplay, book or vision is exciting, but learning how to develop it, finish it, publish it, produce it, promote it and put it in front of an audience is where the real work begins.”
Serina Marshall appears on Authors’ Row at the 2025 Old Oak Festival at Tusculum University.
Marshall also will share the difficulties of entering the creative space and empower audience members to move forward with their dreams.
“I want to be honest about the parts of a creative career that aren’t always glamorous: rejection, uncertainty, starting over, hearing ‘no,’ creating opportunities for yourself and continuing even when you don’t know exactly where the road leads,” she said. “Most of all, I want students and emerging creatives to leave with the courage to take their own ideas seriously.
“You don’t have to wait until someone discovers you. You don’t need permission to call yourself a writer, artist, filmmaker, musician or storyteller. You can start where you are, use what you have, collaborate with the people around you and build something that is uniquely yours.”
In 2021, Marshall released “Handpicked,” a children’s book about adoption that borrowed heavily from her personal life. She was adopted by her grandparents and says they saved her life. The book’s main character is Allie Rose, which is the first name of her mother and her mother’s favorite flower. “Handpicked” follows the lives of Allie, her parents and her friends. Marshall said the book is about home, belonging, family and the beauty of being handpicked.
She turned “Handpicked” into a play about adoption. The mother in the play, who was adopted, could not get pregnant. The character remembers her life as a child and elects to adopt a child herself.
Then in 2024, Marshall published “The 412 Lounge,” a dark romance mystery set in 1920s Chicago that visits love, danger and identity. The book portrays a speakeasy that is raided by police during Prohibition and the desire by a group that regularly went there to open another, where they can be who they are and love who they choose.
“I wanted to explore what happens in the quiet corners – places people go to hide, to survive or to reinvent themselves,” she said. “The 412 Lounge became a space where secrets reside and nothing is ever quite what it seems.”
Marshall wrote the song “FORBIDDEN” for the “412 Lounge.” She completed the music and lyrics and turned the song into a music video that used local artists and creatives. She plans to make the “412 Lounge” into a play.
She also penned the play “Still,” which was performed at Tusculum’s annual “Edgar Allan Poe and Other Haunted Stories in the Woods.” She later converted that into a book, which tells the story about a haunted moonshine still in Appalachia.
Marshall served as a freelance writer for the Johnson City Press, Kingsport Times-News and The Greeneville Sun and as associate editor of the Herald and Tribune in Jonesborough. Additionally, she was the communications manager for the Barter Theatre in Abingdon, Virginia.
To learn more about Tusculum’s English program, please visit https://site.tusculum.edu/english-2/. Additional information about the university is available at www.tusculum.edu.