Director: Linda D. Delgado (Sister Widad) Assistant Director: Mahasin D. Shamsid-Deen Secretary: Balqees Mohammed Financial Officer: Saba Negash Marketing Officer: Zabrina bint Abu Bakr Legal Officer:Deborah McNichol (serving in a non-voting, advisor capacity)
Each of these elected positions of the Board of Directors is on a volunteer basis.
Work for Hire Positions –
Sister Umm Junayd bint Naeem is the Editor in Chief of Islamic Ink, IWA’s quarterly magazine.
Sister Balqees Mohammed is the WebAdmin supervising the publication and editing of the IWA’s organizational website: www.islamicwritersalliance.net.
Due to some complications concerning the forwarding process of the official email accounts for IWA officers, it was deemed necessary and appropriate by the IWA Board that the deadline for submissions for this year’s annual poetry contest be extended slightly to give possible contestants the chance to submit their material.
In this respect, Sr. Mahasin Shamsid-Deen, IWA Assistant Director and Manager of the IWA’s Annual Poetry Contest, announced on May 11, 2010, the official close of this year’s contest. She made note that as of that date, a total of 46 contestants had submitted their entries, and we are now waiting notification from the judges themselves of the results of their judging of the entries.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank Sister Mahasin for her efforts and good work she puts in yearly for this project, in selecting and advising the judges, as well as posting announcements of the contest, and receiving the redirecting the submissions to the judges for procession of the contest.
Keep tuned to our news reports for more updates on results.
IWA Poetry & Fiction Anthologies:
The two anthologies, Many Poetic Voices, One Faith and Many Voices, One Faith II-Islamic Fiction Stories, which were published by MWP (Muslim Writers Publishing) in 2009 can be found at various international booksellers as well as the list at Amazon. For more information on both anthologies, which both showcase the many talents of many IWA members, go to the organization’s website: www.islamicwritersalliance.net or directly to the publisher: www.muslimwriterspublishing.com. You may also contact any of the IWA Board members for information on purchasing.
The publisher is offering a generous discount of 40% for retailers off the listed price of $8.95, although there is no offer available for consignment, whether for sales or distribution.
If you are interested in advertising the books on your websites or blogs, please contact Sr. Zabrina, IWA Marketing Officer, to attain the new IWA logo/banner and jpg with text for the anthologies.
Although the IWA did not officially participate this year in the annual ICNA convention, a generously willing member who agreed to take donated copies of the IWA Anthologies as well as books of the MWP listing containing IWA authors represented it. Due to agreement by IWA Board members to the proposal set forth by MWP owner & publisher, Sis Widad, all such books (including the IWA’s Anthologies) were offered at this convention for a discount of $1.00 on each book. This year’s convention was scheduled for May29-31. We have not yet received report from Sis Umm J on how it went, but we will convey this report as soon as we receive word.
IWA Catalog:
A comprehensive listing of all participating IWA members who have paid for advertisement for their inclusion, this catalog is an excellent additional marketing tool at a reasonably low price for all and any members interested in being included in future updates It is also an excellent and helpful marketing tool to have on hand when visiting bookstores, schools, educational professionals, or anyone else who you are interested in raising interest with for the presence and purpose of the IWA.
To view the catalog, log onto the website: www.islamicwritersalliance.net and then choose the catalog from the navigational links on the left.
For those interested in downloading a printable version, please contact the IWA Marketing Officer, Sr. Zabrina or the IWA Director, Sr. Widad.
Measures are currently underway for the yearly updating of this Catalog, under the supervision of IWA Marketing Officer, Sr. Zabrina.
501C3 Non-Profit Status & Administrative Measures
As of September 11, 2009, the IWA achieved non-profit status, and is now officially known as Islamic Writers Alliance, Inc.
Measures are to resume soon for application of IRS qualification, which will mean that we will be eligible to receive tax-exempting donations.
A special note to all IWA Members and Associates: as valued members of the organization, we would like to remind you that the organization’s website is your website. We welcome your suggestions or comments on anything you think could stand improvement. Please feel free to send your comments directly to the IWA’s new WebAdmin at: balqees.mohammed@gmail.com, or to any of the other Board members, or even in the main egroup which is available for organizational communication between all members and associates.
An important reminder for all IWA Members and Associates who have a business outside of the organization, a fairly new feature we have added to the website is the “Business Directory”, in which is listed all IWA Members and Associates who wish to be listed, including a short synopsis of their business, as well as any contact information. The business itself does not have to be writing-related. It is simply a listing of those members and associates who are in business for themselves.
Any Members and Associates who are already published are also eligible to have their work represented in the “Books and More” section, where we present a jpg image of the book cover (or magazine, newspaper, or recorded message, etc.), as well as linking to a relevant website where the viewer can learn more about how to purchase the articles.
Lastly, but of course not least, is the section where Members have their own private page listed, a free service provided for our dues-paying members, where they may list a short bio of themselves and their work, as well as a CV-type report of their work, awards and credits, plus of course contact information. This is an excellent venue of free advertisement provided for dues-paying members, so if you have anything to update, please be sure to send in your information to the Director for future application to your page on the website.
Islamic Ink
Islamic Ink, the IWA’s free online magazine which is published and distributed quarterly, is yet another excellent venue which showcases IWA talent. The editor-in-chief is an IWA member. All content, whether editorial, news and all literary contributions are from IWA members. Subscription is free, so don’t miss out on this opportunity to enjoy yet another excellent aspect of the IWA. Past editions as well as information on how to subscribe can be viewed at the IWA’s website: www.islamicwritersalliance.net. Just link onto the page for Islamic Ink.
IWA Administrative News:
Although there were no major administrative changes for the organization this past month, continuing adjustments concerning the change in bank account for the organization have been completed, as such measures were made necessary due to the previous month’s change of Financial Officer. All matters are now stable, and operations are carrying on smoothly.
IWA Member & Associate News & Accomplishments:
Sr. Brandy AZ Chase, IWA Member, is happy to report that she was hired by Magrudy’s Bookstore of United Arab Emirates as a Customer Service Executive. She also happily reports an apparent rise in reading among Arabs, as monthly sales in the region continue to rise by 50%. As she notes, more needs to be done to advance reading programs in the region, but small steps already taken are beginning to pay off.
She also is happy to announce that Magrudy’s has agreed to set up a test run soon for selected titles of Islamic Fiction and other genres.
In addition to promoting Islamic Fiction and working in her new position, Sr. Brandy has begun to write the first rough draft of her UAE/Iranian Novell.
Sr. Julie Mair, IWA Member and author of many current affairs articles at www.examiner.com, reports that she will be one of the authors to participate in the “Meet the Author” Program at this year’s ISNA annual Convention in Chicago in July. For more on this, log onto: http://www.isna. net/Conferences/ pages/Annual- Convention. aspx
Br. Irving Karchmar, IWA Member and author of the internationally published novel Master of the Jinn: A Sufi Novel, announces the latest development of the increasing international publishing and translation of his novel, the newest contract to have the book published in India, in English language, by Hay House India, a division of a major American publishing company. He has also made arrangements for a Malaysian translation and publication of the novel to be done in the near future.
To learn more about the novel and all related developments, log onto the website: www.masterofthejinn.com.
Sr. Maryam Funmilayo, IWA Member, announced the publication of two articles: “Stress Management” and “Writing Opportunities Await You” in the May/June issue of the Muslim American Girls Magazine.
She also announces that she is now officially a distributor in the USA for SISTERS Magazine, and anyone interested in buying copies of the magazine should contact her directly via her email address: Mfunmilayo@yahoo.com.
She also announces that she sill be one of the speakers for the Sisters’ Health, Fitness and Nutrition Conference to be held in Raleigh, NC, on June 12.
Br. Chris Read, IWA Member, announces that in late April 2010, he released his newly published novel, a fictional memoir entitled Mom, I’m a Muslim. He is now tackling the task of marketing his work, which we all hope will be a great success.
Br. Chris is also preparing a series of state writing assessments based on the novel Night by Elie Wiesel, and embarking on reading projects of William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying and Absalom, Absalom!
Sr. Jamilah Kolocotronis, IWA Member and author of the five-part Echoes novel series, announces that she recently launched her new website: www.jamilahkolocotronisbooks.com.
Sr. Saara A. Ali, IWA Member, joined the organization during the month of May 2010. She is a librarian (MISt. Toronto) by profession, having worked in libraries in the Caribbean and North America. She enjoys writing fiction as a hobby, while spending most of her time writing book reviews of Muslim childrens’ and teen/YA books and articles about the importance of reading books, all of which can be found at her blog: http://muslimkidsbooks.wordpress.com/.
Recently she began to interview authors (and hopefully in the future illustrators as well) on her blog in an attempt to highlight the talented members of the Muslim community and hard work that goes into being a writer. She invites authors and illustrators of Muslim children's and YA books to contact her about reviewing a book or for an interview. During the month of May Saara interviewed the inspiring and dedicated writer and publisher Linda (Widad) Delgado. Upcoming is an interview with the well-known Yahiya Emerick.
Saara is a member of Kidlitosphere Central, a society of bloggers in children's and young adult literature. This gives her the opportunity to showcase the fabulous work of Muslim writers to a wide cross-section of viewers. Saara is also the owner of a website (http://islamic-libraries.webs.com/) that pertains to libraries in Islam and which also provides information on how to go about setting up your own library.
Linda D. Delgado, Sr. Widad, IWA Director, announces that during the month of May 2010, she wrote the following:
---an interview with Sister Julie S. Mair for Islamic Ink Magazine's Summer Edition -June 2010.
---contest rules and contest Q&A for her just published and released mystery-detective book, the first book in the Rainey Walker Series-Catch Me If You Dare. www.raineywalkerseries.wordpress.com
---the first article in an article series, Back Stories, about the authors and their books she has published. The first article is: Back Story-The Size of a Mustard Seed, author Umm Juwayrriyah. She is currently looking for a home for the series with a print magazine.
---an article for the Tips Section of Islamic Ink Magazine's Summer Edition-June 2010; the article includes tips on publishing trends, marketing, promotional strategies, and writing.
---created and wrote all the content for the Rainey Walker Series blog for her new book published under the author pen name, L. D. Alan
--- 3 short True Cop Stories posted at her Twitter page at Cop2867
--- 6,000 more words in her new manuscript for the 2nd book in the Rainey Walker Series, Gotcha! She plans to publish this book in late Fall of 2010.
Linda D. Delgado is the author of the award winning Islamic Rose Books series, owner-publisher of Muslim Writers Publishing at www.MuslimWritersPublishing.com, and the Director of the Islamic Writers Alliance Inc. www.islamicwritersalliance.net
Sr. Balqees Mohammed, IWA Secretary and IWA WebAdmin, announces that she has set up her new blog at: www.balqees59.wordpress.com, titled “Balqees’ World”. She invites all to come and view her world through her window, a collection of articles on Islamic Awareness, as well as a totally separate section of her more private and personal musings.
She has also submitted her article for the updating of the website of a local chapter of Islamic Education Centers of Saudi Arabia, under the supervision of the Ministry of Endowments, Propagation & Dawa. This month’s article was titled “Prayer, Life & Death”, and concentrates of course on the importance of prayer in Islam, and how it relates to our life and death. To view this and many more articles of similar nature, you can log onto the website: www.islamunveiled.com, or view it in her own private collection on her blog: www.balqees59.wordpress.com.
