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The Last Bride
I received word from the Ontario Arts Council that they would not be funding my Palestinian folklore art project. I have one last piece that I’ve made for it. Maybe I’ll return to it at some point but for now, it’s shelved. This last concept for the Bride, or Palestinian dryad, is made in Procreate… Continue reading
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Canaanite Mythology: Anat and Aqhat
I must share one of my favourite moments from Canaanite myth: that time a hero turned down Anat’s offer of immortality. “Bows are for warriors–do women ever hunt?” Anat laughs in his face at this. “Listen to me, Aqhat the Hero, listen to me while I speak: If I meet you on the path of… Continue reading
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Clarion Flash Fic Workshop: Week Four
Yeah, I… look, time is confusing, okay? I’m finding it difficult to keep track of my place with the lectures, assignments, and critiques staggered as they are. It’s fine. But I keep writing my assignments ahead of time, which means I get nervous about having messed up the schedule. So far, I’ve written four stories!… Continue reading
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Farewell, Strange Horizons!
In the time honoured tradition of announcing secrets, I have news that I can only talk about obliquely. And change. Big changes. Today, I parted ways with the wonderful collective over at Strange Horizons. I was a First Reader for the magazine, but the news I can’t announce yet prevents me from having the time… Continue reading
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I Lied
I said no more social media platforms! I was DONE. So done. But no, I’ve signed up for just one more. It’s an old one, very old. Old as balls. I now have a journal at Dreamwidth. If you’re not familiar with DW, it’s built on the original code for Livejournal and works exactly the… Continue reading
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Land of Stone and Thyme Read-Along #2: A Green House with a Brick-Red Roof by Rashad Abu Shawer
(content warning: gore, death of children, war) This story, like The Tree, is a piece of flash fiction about the Nakba- the ethnic cleansing of Palestine. It’s a very simple story of innocence and young love, war, and tragedy. It is also a retelling of one of the Palestinian folktale variants on Cinderella. In it,… Continue reading
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Land of Stone and Thyme Read-Along #1: The Tree by Ahmed Omar Shaheen
I’m going to say this piece is speculative, but it is ambiguous enough to defy simple genre categories. This piece of flash fiction is only a page long. Like a mother, the tree had protected us, offering us refuge in its abundant, intertwining branches. And because the guardian of the gemeiz tree protected us too,… Continue reading
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Palestinian Folktale and lore: Saint George/Elijah/El Khadr
Saint George is the patron saint of Palestine. Here’s a short folktale from my family’s village: Unlike most folktales, this one is in a category that blurs the line between tale and anecdote because it is apparently something that happened within living memory at the time it was recorded. The rains of the winter of… Continue reading
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Open for Business!
I finally have my own shop. Please clap; it took literally all day for me to figure it out! You’ll find all of my singles–that is short stories you can dip into if you’ve never read my work before– as well as my collection. Hopefully, nothing is broken… If you’re not sure where to start,… Continue reading
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Palestinian Folktale: A Disputation in Signs
This is the only folktale my father told me. He’s what we call a “1948 refugee,” meaning he is one of the original Palestinian refugees, still waiting to return home. This story is interesting because it is first found in the 13th century Gloss Accursius, a medieval gloss on the Roman law code of Justinian.… Continue reading
About Me
I write speculative fiction inspired by Palestinians folklore. My work has appeared in ArabLit Quarterly, Beladi, FIYAH, Lackington’s, and Seize the Press among other venues.
My stories have been nominated for Pushcart, Lammy, Palestine Book, and Best New Weird awards. In my free time, I’m a First Reader for Strange Horizons.
Recent Posts
- The Last Bride
- Canaanite Mythology: Anat and Aqhat
- Clarion Flash Fic Workshop: Week Four
- Farewell, Strange Horizons!
- I Lied
#AuthorToolBoxBlogHop a land of stone and thyme aleatory writing alternate history an illustrated treasury of palestinian folktales archive author: grace m. crowfoot author: j. e. hanauer author: Jmal Sleem Nuwihed author: louise baldensperger author: najwa kawar farah author: praline gay-para Author: Zev Vilnay blogging books Clarion Flash Workshop 2023 discussion exercises fairy tales fairytales from the holy land fantasy folktales folk tales herbal lore hugos illustration index lebanese folktales legends legends of palestine 1932 Lightspeed nature news palestinian folktales philistia projects science fantasy speculative fiction submissions tarot translator: Inea Bushnaq update world building writing games writing prompts