Parent-Teen Stories

The Parent-Teen Series is a series of books containing "a collaboration of short stories written by teens and parents that have experienced troublesome teen years in areas such as substance abuse, teen pregnancies, eating disorders, cutting, 'attempted' suicides, dropping out of school, being homeless and much more."

There are many topics for writers to choose from, and it seems like it might be a good opportunity for Muslim writers to share stories of their difficulties and how Islam helped them cope or solve a problem.

According to the site:

"The hope is for the READER to find that one story he/she can relate to and begin feeling less alone in their struggles. Sometimes that is all it takes, someone else's story, to begin a search for a new path towards a healthier, happy life. "

If interested, check out the Guidelines for Submission.

Compensation: $20.00 IF STORY IS ACCEPTED FOR PRINT. You will also receive a FREE BOOK upon publication.

Hot Off the Presses: Sophia's Journal

The following is a press release I acquired from Muslim Writers Publishing:

(For the record, this sounds like an amazing book).

I am a little late posting this, so you will have to check with the publisher on the price.

Muslim Writers Publishing is happy to announce the forthcoming publishing of Sister/IWA member Najiyah Helwani's new book, Sophia's Journal: Time Warp 1857... an historical sci-fi book written especially for older youth and teens. A good read for adults too... perfect as a supplemental book for any school's American History course! This exciting Islamic Fition book for Teens will be released and available within the next three weeks!

Book Details:

During a bike ride with her family near Lawrence, Kansas, Sophia Ahmad falls into a river and is washed downstream. She emerges in 1857 – smack in the middle of Bleeding Kansas

Sophia is an American Muslim teenager who's intelligent, feisty, and determined, yet also a bit of a germophobe, among other anxieties. A high school sophomore, Sophia is on the verge of
getting her driver's permit and embarking on a summer of mall visits and evenings at Caf? Rumi with her friends when she suddenly finds herself living in the past.

Just as Sophia is beginning to adjust to her new surroundings, she is aghast to find that slavery is being practiced in her adopted community. She and her adopted sister Abby set about fighting for the freedom of the slaves they know.

Along the way a local boy captures Sophia's heart, but when he proposes marriage she is torn about marrying outside her faith. Sophia turns to an old Gambian slave who is still a closet Muslim. He helps her work out her fears, and this causes an exciting, dangerous and unexpected turn of events, in which Sophia learns that the best cure for worrying about oneself is taking care of others.

Author Najiyah Diana Helwani's love of her American roots blends beautifully with her Islamic faith, and readers will be delighted to discover that the two are not mutually exclusive. Raised on the windswept prairies of central Kansas, Helwani's connection to and research of frontier life manifest in an interesting and realistic setting for Sophia's adventure. The book includes a glossary and several unique recipes that are specific to its period in history.

Author Bio:

Najiyah Diana Helwani is a teacher and freelance writer whose published credits include poetry and magazine & newspaper articles. Sophia's Journey: Time Warp 1857 is her first Islamic Fiction novel, and the first novel to bear the Islamic Fiction emblem. Najiyah currently teaches English and writing in Damascus, Syria, where she lives with her husband and six children. When she is in the USA she conducts workshops on Islam and the history of United States'
relations with the Middle East.

List price $10.95

Ordering:

Contact Sister Najiyah's publisher at woodad@mindspring.com
Provide your Mailing name and address and number of copies you
want to order! http://www.muslimwriterspublishing.com/

Shipping anywhere in the USA $3.00
Shipping outside the USA: The publisher will advise you of the
shipping cost on reciept of your order.

After this Pre Publication Sale, Sophia's Journal: Time Warp 1857,
will be available to order from IslamicBookstore.com and Amazon.com..

Order now to get your copy of Sophia's Journal: Time Warp 1867

Resource: MESA (Middle East Studies Association)

MESA (Middle East Studies Association) is a wonderful source of writing opportunities related to Islam and Muslim issues. This page (which contains a regularly updated list of calls for submissions) currently has several items worth looking into, such as a need for articles on contemporary Muslim life, contributions to a book on Muslim "voices" in school, scholarly research on the life of Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya, and others.

A Muslim’s Guide to Publishing and Marketing

I have mentioned A Muslim’s Guide to Publishing and Marketing on this blog before. The author, Linda D. Delgado (known to many as Sis. Widad), is an expert on the Muslim book industry as well as kind and helpful. She has personally answered many of my own questions on publishing and been a great source of support and guidance for members of the Islamic Writers Alliance, which she founded in 2004.

Sis. Widad wrote this book to help Muslim writers sort out the maze of information out there on getting a book published. In detail, she outlines the options available to writers and further explains the inner-workings of the Muslim publishing industry, which operates by different rules than you will find in the world of secular publishing.

Since I am currently reading Widad’s book myself, I will, over the next several months, be sharing some gems of wisdom from its pages. I hope you’ll join me by purchasing your own copy of the book (click on the Amazon link above) and contributing to the discussions after each post in the blog.

A List of Muslim Book Publishers and Guidelines

This page has moved. Visit the new page here.

A Muslim's Guide to Publishing & Marketing

There are many books to help new authors, but I have only seen one written exclusively for Muslims. Not only does Linda D. Delgado (a retired police officer who embraced Islam and formed the Islamic Writers Alliance and Muslim Writers Publishing) explain the differences between traditional, self and subsidy publishing, she also gives us insight into the world of Muslim publishing and compares the methods used in the Muslim and non-Muslim book publishing industries.

Do you have a marketing plan? Do you understand the ins and outs of printing, fulfillment and distribution?

Read this book before sending your manuscript out to publishers. Learn more about the book and view sample pages here:

A Muslim's Guide to Publishing and Marketing