Spotlight Series & Call for Submissions:

Writing from Palestine & the Palestinian Diaspora

In light of the ongoing atrocities occurring in Gaza, we're eager to share work from the Jill! archives and solicit new readings that lift up the voices of Palestinian writers. Please scroll down for information on how to submit new work for this spotlight.

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The six pieces currently in our playlist have come to Jill! at different times—two of them during our annual #WorldKidLitMonth celebrations—and are not necessarily related to the current crisis.

It is an honor to re-share both archival and new readings while adding our voice to the many cultural organizations, authors, translators, and creators calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

About the Readings:

Video 1:
Kareem James Abu-Zeid reads from Chaos, Crossing by Olivia Elias

In her English-language debut, acclaimed French-language poet of the Palestinian diaspora Olivia Elias probes deeply into the upheavals of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Chaos, Crossing is a powerful chronicle of uprootedness, of times marked by inequality, injustice, and disconnection. These poems—presented here in a bilingual edition—seek the calm at the center of the storm, the still point amidst the chaos.

Video 2:
Kay Heikkinen Reads from Velvet by Huzama Habayeb

Kay Heikkinen's English translation of Velvet, the Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature-winning novel by Palestinian poet, author, and translator Huzama Habayeb, was published by Hoopoe Fiction and awarded the 2020 Saif Ghobash Banipal Prize for Arabic Literary Translation.

Video 3:
Anam Zafar Reads "Me, My Friend, and the Donkey" by Mahmoud Shukair

Me, My Friend, and the Donkey is, centered on two best friends who embark on an adventure to find a beloved pet donkey, which is stolen at the beginning of the book. The book is based on a true story that happened to the author himself, the multi-award winning author Mahmoud Shukair, known throughout the Arab world for his short stories, as well as his other writings. 

Video 4:
Marcia Lynx Qualey Reads from Thunderbird by Sonia Nimr

In this first book from the Thunderbird trilogy, Noor must (illegally) cross a checkpoint to reach Jerusalem, where she hopes to find the time gate that will help her travel back in time and save both the world of the humans and the world of the djinn.

Video 5:
Jérémy Victor Robert Reads from Your Name, Palestine by Olivia Elias

Infused with the suffering of men and women who have been persecuted, made invisible, and thrown on the road to exile, Your Name, Palestine makes us hear their refusal to be silenced and their will to take their place in the human family.

Video 6:
Suneela Mubayi Reads Two "Open Texts" by Raji Bathish

Translator’s Note: In "Maybe, were I to die" and "Debasement," two texts which I don't want to pigeonhole as "poems" (and in his work overall), Bathish confronts the Arab reader with the reality of direct contact with the Israeli “Other”. He writes his Palestinian experience subjectively and without nationalist embellishment, steering away from clichés of stone-throwing Palestinians and the yearning for zaatar and olive trees.

How to Submit

It’s easy! Here are the basic guidelines:

• Please email your videos (or links to Google+ / Dropbox / etc. files) to jillreadingNYC@gmail.com with the subject line: [Your Name] Palestine Spotlight

• Translations must be into English.

• Either the translator or the author being read should be a trans or nonbinary person. 

• The video should be about 5 - 15 mins total (20 max)

• Please start by introducing yourself and the author you've translated, any background you want to share about the piece, and then a short reading in the original language and your translation.

• When you submit your reading via email, please include:

  • a one or two-line quote from your reading that we can use as a 'teaser' on Instagram (Previous examples here.)

  • a one or two-line introduction to (or summary of) the work being read

  • your bio and the bio of your author (please include your pronouns)

  • your location/author’s location (optional)

  • title of the work being read

  • origin language

  • country/region reading/author hail from

  • the Instagram handles and Facebook profiles you and your author use, if either/both of you want to be tagged in posts when your video is published

  • links to published work, your website, or anything else you want shared alongside your video reading

FYI: We will add a Jill! info card at the end of your reading. No other edits will be made without discussing it with you first. Likewise, if we have any other concerns or questions about your submission, we’ll be in touch.