About the IWA...

"Invite all unto the way of thy Lord with wisdom and fair exhortation, and reason with them in the best of ways."
The Qur'an, Chapter: The Bee, Surah Al Nahl, 16:125

The Islamic Writers Alliance is an international, professional organization for Muslims involved in the literary arts -- published and aspiring authors, novelists, poets, essayists, publishers, editors, illustrators, journalists, spoken word artists, and playwrights. We support one another in our goals as writers, whether it be honing our craft, seeking publication opportunities, or promoting our published works to both the Muslim and non-Muslim world. We are dedicated to writing about, presenting, and supporting positive Islamic fiction and non-fiction reading materials, in all genres, for all ages.

The IWA is an inclusive organization and welcomes Muslim men and women of all races, ethnicities, linguistic backgrounds, abilities, and creeds.

The IWA's goals:

1) To promote Alliance member's works to the public, both Muslim and non-Muslim, and to book distributors and retailers.

2) To support unpublished authors in their efforts to seek publication, and promote their works to Islamic publishers.

3) To promote reading and writing of creative Islamic fiction among Muslim children, the future authors of Islamic literature.

4) To make regular donations of quality Islamic books to Islamic schools and libraries.

History of the IWA:

The Islamic Writers Alliance was formally established on January 31st, 2004 by the membership of the Islamic Writers' e-group. Islamic Writers was founded by Linda D. Delgado (Widad) in July of 2003 to bring together Muslim women writers to encourage and educate each other, and to support each others efforts to get published and promote their work. Under Widad's leadership and with her encouragement, the members of that e-group agreed that it was time to move beyond discussion and workshopping.

Some had discovered that the work, time, and money required to write and publish a book is just the beginning. Marketing and promotion of a published work also requires considerable time and expense, and often an author finds herself primarily responsible for getting the word out about her new book. These members hoped that by networking and cooperating on promotional activities, member authors would expand their ability to reach out to the general public.

Others felt the group needed a public face so as to expand the publication opportunities for members, and to offer greater opportunities for networking. Others wanted to work on collaborative efforts, such as anthologies and writing contests.

The membership recognized establishing an alliance of sister-writers would enhance their ability to achieve these goals and extend the fellowship, support, and cooperation to an ever-widening circle.

From its modest beginning as a small e-group, the IWA has grown into a vibrant and thriving group which include authors, journalists, playwrights, editors, publishers, poets, illustrators, and more. Some are well-established, some newly published, and others just beginning their journeys as writers.

Accomplishments:

The IWA has published Many Voices, One Faith, an anthology of Islamic poetry, fiction, non-fiction and works for children. We have run the first of our annual poetry contests. We have held poetry readings and sponsored sessions at a variety of Islamic conferences. We have had booths at bazaars and festivals. We have afforded members dozens of publication opportunities, and donated books to schools hit by hurricane Katrina. Most importantly, we have provided support and opportunities for each other, all in the path of serving Allah. For details of our activities and members' accomplishments, please browse through the archives of the IWA News.