Qaisra Shahraz MBE is a British-Pakistani novelist and scriptwriter.
34-586: Muslim Writers Awards is an annual British award ceremony, which aims to recognise, showcase and celebrate literary talent within the UK's Muslim community. It was established in 2006, with the Young Muslim Award category established in 2010. Now into its fourth year, the Muslim Writers Awards was put together to showcase and celebrate the very best of literary talent from Muslims across the UK. According to
68-642: A Scottish father and Zulu mother, both from South Africa , Robert grew up in Zimbabwe and attended university in England. She converted to Islam in 1998. Currently Robert divides her time between London and Cairo with her three daughters and two sons. Her husband Henry Amankwah died in April 2015. Robert's family moved from England to Ethiopia when she was two years old and then four years later relocated to Zimbabwe where Robert received her formal primary education. Robert had
102-452: A college inspector and a journalist. She also obtained higher degree in Islamic studies in order to enhance her knowledge in cultural, religious and historical prospectives. Qaisra Shahraz career ranges from teaching, teacher training, lectures, college inspector of Ofsted and adult learning inspectorate. Shahraz writes on women issues and is inspired by ordinary people but never uses them as
136-423: A creative writers project with writers of Muslim backgrounds. They provided writers with an e-portal where writers can upload their work of any genre online – www.publishingbirmingham.com. They aimed to offer writers the opportunity to develop themselves and earn income from their writing. To celebrate the work and contribution of British writers, On 28 March 2007, the first annual Muslim Writers Awards took place at
170-613: A fictional character in her books. In Dawn interview she says: " I never use real people in my books. I don't think it is fair to them to be fictional characters" A critical analysis of her work appeared in The Holy and the Unholy: Critical Essays on Qaisra Shahraz’s Fiction (2011) . Qaisra Shahraz has been published in magazines and newspapers including The Times . Originally she concentrated on short stories, but progressed to writing longer works. Her novel The Holy Woman
204-715: A first-class degree from the University of London . During her university studies Robert travelled to Egypt as an amateur musician and singer playing traditional Zimbabwean compositions at a music festival. Her initial reaction to the hijab -wearing Muslim women was to be "appalled" but finally asked an especially beautiful Egyptian woman why she would choose to cover her beauty: 'Because,' she said, 'I want to be judged for what I say and what I do, not for what I look like." After their exchange Robert says, "I began to think about my life, about my own self-image and how I wanted to grow and develop." Robert returned to London and began reading
238-788: A panel of independent judges. Winner of the Writer of the Year 2008 Award was 38-year-old Aliya Vaughan from Brixton in London. She was also the recipient of the Best Children's Story Award. The Published Writer of the Year 2008 was former Guntanamo detainee, and Birmingham bookstore owner, Moazzam Begg. In addition, Fatima Martin won the novel award and Solihull writer Kashif Choudry won the Short Story Writer Award. A total of 26 Muslim writers, including novelists, poets, under 16s and journalists, competed for
272-553: A typical middle-class childhood with her younger brother and sister in the suburbs of the capital city Harare . As well as being immersed in Zimbabwean culture, Robert's parents instilled in the children their South African roots and a strong political consciousness. Her father, Robert McLaren, was a senior lecturer at the University of Zimbabwe and her mother, Thembi McLaren, was an entrepreneur. After graduating high school in Zimbabwe, Robert returned to England for university and earned
306-542: A vocal advocate for women's right to choose to fully cover. Soon after becoming Muslim in 1998 Robert began to wear the niqāb full-time in 1999. In her memoir, From My Sisters' Lips , Robert explained the effect of wearing niqāb, "[The covered woman] cannot be judged on her appearance because nothing personal about her can be seen...She does not feel the need to live up to society's changing expectations of women's bodies...So whoever relates to her must relate to what she has presented – be it what she says, does or thinks." Robert
340-503: Is a historical fiction novel set in Zimbabwe and is featured in the 2011 Pop-Up Festival of Stories in London. s the Muslim identity. In February 2021, she wrote and published 'Show Up', a personal story of the author reflecting on her journey of life with references to quotes from the Qur'an, Hadith and contemporary thinkers. Robert is a full-time observer of the niqāb (Islamic face-veil) and
374-798: Is a project is by Muslim Hands and hosted by the Institute of English Studies . On 26 May 2010, the Young Muslim Writers Awards took place. The ceremony was attended by shortlisted entrants from across the UK and abroad, with parents, teachers and an array of special guests from the world of publishing and journalism. The occasion was launched through a live interactive performance of poetry, percussion and painting, choreographed by Mohammed Ali (also known as Aerosol Arabic). The panel of judges include award-winning authors Leila Aboulela (author of Minaret ) and children's writers Anna Perera (author of Guantanamo Boy ), Bhavit Mehta (author of Laghu
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#1732858230847408-725: Is a strong member of Pakistan community in UK. She has hosted many workshops and training sessions on "Quality in Education" in Pakistan and India through the British Council . Her work is mostly focused on the diversity of mankind exploring aspects of racial, gender, and cultural divides. In 2016 she won the Lifetime Achiever Award at the National Diversity Awards held at Liverpool's Anglican Cathedral . Qaisra Shahraz
442-644: Is one of the few novels available with Somali Muslim characters and subjects. It was included in the World Book Day 2009 school's pack and was long-listed for the United Kingdom Literacy Association Award. Robert's second YA novel, Boy vs. Girl , challenged common stereotypes about young Muslims in Britain and featured a cameo appearance of Urban Islamic graffiti artist Muhammed 'Aerosol Arabic' Ali. Robert's third YA title, Far From Home ,
476-559: Is one of the founding members of Veiled Justice and has represented the East London Mosque on Muslim women's issues. She has spoken in support of the niqāb in numerous British media, including The Telegraph , BBC News , The Times Online , BBC Radio 4 's The Moral Maze and Channel 4's Undercover Mosque series; as well as speaking to Muslim and international media outlets, such as for Islam Channel and AIM TV . Robert's young adult fiction novel Boy vs. Girl includes
510-581: The Marmaduke Pickthall translation of the Quran , learning about Islam and Islamic law , and she gave "dressing modestly a try." Over the Christmas holiday that same year Robert travelled to "Muslim Africa, to Guinea" where she found that "As someone still steeped in the ideals of Black nationalism , these Muslims appealed to my own African identity and my sense of Black pride ." In Guinea Robert began making
544-512: The Clever Crow ), Sufiya Ahmed (author of the Khadija Academy series) along with best-selling novelist Qaisra Shahraz , Moazzam Begg (author and 2008 MWA writer of the year) and Zahid Hussain (author of The Curry Mile ). Winners of both Best Short story and Best Poetry were revealed at a televised awards ceremony in April 2010. Regional events to highlight the aims and objectives behind
578-599: The Henna Girl ) and Na'ima B. Robert ( Far From Home ). YMWA also organises a series of events over the year in partnership with authors, Local Education Authorities and schools around the country to nurture and develop the writing skills of children, helping them to become better communicators. Qaisra Shahraz Shahraz is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a former director of Gatehouse Books, publishing books written by students for Skills of Life classes. She
612-996: The Islamic five daily prayers, fasted during Ramadan and upon her return to London announced her shahada (declaration of Islamic faith) in 1998. After teaching in the classroom and founding a private home school, Robert began writing multicultural picture books with Muslim themes for children. Her first picture book, The Swirling Hijab , was included in the Booktrust programme. Robert's picture books and young adult fiction have had cross-over appeal being accepted for inclusion in state settings, such as schools and multicultural training, as well as recognised as Islamic fiction amongst Muslims. To date she has published thirteen picture books for children, many of which are used in dual language settings and are published in up to 31 languages, including Tamil, Kurdish, Portuguese, Japanese, Russian, Yoruba, Czech, Arabic, Polish, Chinese, Urdu, Panjabi, French, Swahili and Farisi. Journey Through Islamic Arts
646-592: The Library Theatre in Birmingham. At the event, Muslim speakers and writers including Qaisra Shahraz , Moazzem Begg , Salma Yaqoob and Faraz Yousufzai spoke about their experiences on getting published. After 10,000 submissions of work was received in 12 months, on 29 March 2008, the second Muslim Writers Awards event took place on at the International Convention Centre in Birmingham. The event
680-574: The Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Baroness Sayeeda Warsi and guest of honour Jermaine Jackson , whilst James Caan , who was unable to make the event, greeted the audience with a video message. The ceremony was broadcast live to millions of viewers across the United Kingdom, Europe and the Middle East by Islam Channel . Eight awards were handed out to winners, following a review of the 10,000 entries by
714-561: The Year Award 2011. The ceremony included live performances by performance poets Wajid Hussain, Radikal Queen, Lubna Iqbal, David Byrne and drummer Shahbaz Ahmed. On 2 July 2013 the third Young Muslim Writers Awards ceremony took place at Senate House in London. It was organised by Muslim Hands and held in association with the Yusuf Islam Foundation. This year's panel of judges included award-winning authors Sufiya Ahmed ( Secrets of
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#1732858230847748-417: The Year – Tam Hussein, also succeeded in the short story category for his new work, Little Flecks of Silver . The winners were placed in writing programmes and partnered with editors and more established writers who will provide them with mentoring over the next year. The winners were placed in writing programmes and partnered with editors and more established writers who will provide them with mentoring over
782-515: The awards took place around the country. On 1 June 2011, the Young Muslim Writers Awards ceremony was held at Senate House . Speakers at the ceremony included Sue Evans, Director of Development and Fundraising at Booktrust, and Nabil Ahmed, President of the Federation of Student Islamic Societies, who presented an award on behalf of Muslim Community Fund, sponsors of the Young Muslim Writer of
816-792: The fifth Muslim Writers Awards took place at Shakespeare's Globe in London. The event was supported by Muslim Hands and sponsored by the Penguin Group, Puffin Books , Islam Channel and the Brit Writers Awards. Singer Dawud Wharnsby performance poet zkthepoet performed at the event. Guests included authors Aamer Hussein , Roopa Farooki , Irfan Master and Shelina Zahra Janmohamed amongst wider literary and publishing industry figures. The entries were submitted for eight categories including novels, short stories, poetry, children's stories, screenplays, blogging and journalism. Shahriar Mandanipour won
850-486: The founders of the Muslim Writers Awards, Imran Akram and Faraz Yousufzai, the goal of the Muslim Writers Awards "is to nurture that talent, bring it to the attention of the wider world and then celebrate it. We want to give Muslim writers confidence in their abilities and offer a platform to communicate their experiences and creativity through the power of the pen." The motto for the awards is: "Share stories, come together. It's time, Write Now!" Birmingham Libraries worked on
884-507: The prizes in the eight categories. On 27 May 2009, the third Muslim Writers awards took place at the Hilton Hotel on Park Lane in London in partnership with publishers group Penguin Group . Submissions for the Muslim Writers Awards 2010 event were open from 15 September 2009 to 5 February 2010. In addition, a new category was announced — the Young Muslim Writers Awards. On 22 November 2011,
918-456: The published novel category for Censoring an Iranian Love Story whilst Far From Home by Na'ima B. Robert triumphed in the Children's book category. Zkthepoet and Ahmed Masoud were declared as winners in the unpublished poetry and novel categories respectively. But despite the big names in the room it was a lesser known, emerging talent that succeeded in taking home the prize for Muslim Writer of
952-458: The year. In November 2012, the sixth Muslim Writers Awards took place in London and featured a broad range of categories from screen play to novel writing to journalism. In October 2009, Muslim Writers Awards announced that writers from the ages of eight through to 16 can now enter and winners for both best short story and best poetry categories will be announced at the awards ceremony scheduled for April 2010. The Young Muslim Writers Awards (YMWA)
986-548: Was awarded the UK National Literacy Trust Association WOW! Award for Best Children's titles. After the success of her autobiography, From My Sisters' Lips , Robert began writing young adult (YA) Islamic fiction . Her first YA novel, From Somalia, With Love was inspired by a weekend retreat with a group of Somali youth, arranged by the Somali Integration Team. From Somalia, With Love
1020-518: Was born in Pakistan in 1958 and raised in England. She has lived in Manchester since nine. She obtained three degrees [BA honours in English literature classical civilization from The University of Manchester as well as two master's degree of Europe literature and scriptwriting for University of Salford . She is also a screenwriting }. She worked as an advisor for the University of Lancaster , as well as
1054-580: Was featured in the local literary scenes of many other countries. Publication-UK Publication-Germany Publication-Holland Publication-India Publication-Indonesia Publication-Pakistan Publication-Turkey Na%27ima B. Robert Na'ima B Robert (born Thando Nomhle McLaren ; 19 September 1977) is an author of multicultural literature and founding editor of the UK-based Muslim women's publication, SISTERS Magazine . Born in Leeds to
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1088-552: Was organised by Aston-based not-for-profit company Innovate Arts CIC in partnership with Birmingham Libraries, the Islam Channel, which broadcast the ceremony, Yorkshire Bank and Radisson SAS, and it was hosted by Birmingham Mail blogger Faraz Yousufzai. The ceremony attracted support from the Prime Minister Gordon Brown , local government and celebrity advocates. It was attended by more than 1,000 people including
1122-823: Was picked by a German Professor/Editor, Dr. Liesel Hermes, as a literary text to be used in German schools for the German Abitur examination. She has been active in Cochin for inaugurating the DC international book fair. Shahraz was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2020 Birthday Honours for services to gender equality and cultural learning. "A Pair of Jeans" has been published twelve times, including eight in Germany and
1156-407: Was published in multiple countries and languages. She wrote a drama serial Dil he to hay that reached Pakistan Television (PTV). This drama series was nominated for five awards in Pakistan television and received two awards. Her early creation, "A pair of Jeans" was published in the UK in 1988. It explores the issue of clothing, female modesty, multiple identities and cultural clashes. In 1989, it
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