The International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) has hosted the tenth edition of its annual creative writing workshop “Nadwa”, with the participation of eight emerging writers from seven Arab countries. The workshop was sponsored by the Department of Culture- Sharjah.

The workshop, which ran from January 8-15, 2019 in Sharjah and hosted writers from the UAE, Syria, Iraq, Oman, Morocco, Kuwait and Palestine, was supervised by authors Iman Humaidan (Lebanon) and Muhsen Al Ramli (Iraq).

IPAF organizers stressed that the aim of the workshop is polishing the literary skills of participating writers, through group and one-on-one discussions.

Commenting on the event, author Iman Humaidan, said: “I was indeed overjoyed and felt extremely pleased to witness such  a distinguished group of confident and ambitious creative talent and aspiring writers, who had a very positive and fruitful interaction among themselves. The Nadwa plays a significant role in providing a creative space for emerging writers, and giving them a platform for forming friendships and for cultural and creative exchange.

Moreover, Khalid Muslit, co-ordinator and supervisor of the Nadwa from Department of Culture — Sharjah Government, said: “Holding the workshop of the International Prize for Arabic Fiction in Sharjah  this year is a unique experience and a great opportunity for emerging intellectuals. Sharjah embraces young writers and artists and is internationally recognized as a beacon of culture. It has been chosen as the World Book Capital 2019 by the international jury of UNESCO.”

“The workshop offers emerging writing talents the opportunity to refine their literary skills in the aim of enriching the Arab literary scene with distinguished books, novels and short stories that will represent a valuable addition to Arab and international libraries”  he added.