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Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation (BQF)’s first Literary Majlis has taken place at Msheireb Enrichment Centre in Doha, where Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation Publishing (BQFP) authors reflected on their creative writing process and forthcoming works. |
The traditional Majlis setting introduced two writers from the region in conversation with Tariq al-Jaidah, who is a patron of the arts and founder of Katara Art Centre.
Abdulaziz al-Mahmoud, the Qatari author of The Corsair (2012), offered a preview of his upcoming historical novel The Holy Sail (2014), while Kuwaiti writer Mai al-Nakib shared her debut collection of short stories, The Hidden Light of Objects (2014).
The authors also discussed the inspiration behind their books and literature. BQF’s Literary Majlis offered an opportunity for authors and readers to interact and brought together members of Qatar’s community to discuss literature.
Commenting on his participation in the Majlis, al-Mahmoud said: “The best measure for the development of a nation, population and its people is the book: writing it, reading it and publishing it.”
Al-Nakib discussed some of the key components of her collection of loosely connected short stories. Specifically, she reflected on setting, repetition, the process of remembering, the trope of objects, their secret lives and her use of English. She also read a short excerpt from the title story.
Arend Küster, acting director of BQF, said: “The Literary Majlis provided a great opportunity to showcase our authors’ forthcoming works. We are extremely honoured to be working with a diverse range of authors from across the Gulf and the region. We hope that events such as BQF’s Literary Majlis will give readers and writers a new platform to contribute to the continued development of literature in Qatar, the Gulf and beyond.”
