Paranormal Palestine
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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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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
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Palestinian Folktale: The Patriarch Goes to Heaven
This is a Palestinian Christian story about a man who dies and goes to Heaven. While he’s getting his bearings after being let through the pearly gates, he sees everyone suddenly get all riled up. They put out decorations and line the streets as if for a festival. The man is confused, so he asks… Continue reading
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Palestinian Folktale: Pomegranate Seeds
There are a lot of ghoul stories in Palestinian folklore. Here’s one of them. It’s called Pomegranate Seeds. It begins with a woman who had an only child, a daughter. This was in the olden days when there were no schools… The girl was sent to the sheikh for her lessons. Every day she would… Continue reading
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Palestinian Folktale: The Camel Driver in Need of a Friend
There was and there was not a camel driver who passed by an orchard one day. Looking over the wall, he saw a man sitting in the shade. ‘How lucky he is! He can stay here and enjoy all of this while I must travel to earn my bread.’ Meanwhile, the man saw the camel… Continue reading
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Palestinian Folktale: The Camel Husband.
There was and there was not a poor woman who wanted nothing more than to have a child of her very own. Every day she would go to the fountain and see mothers with their children, even camels with their young and she would ask ‘why am I different? I want a child, even if… 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