المُؤْمِنُ مِرَآةُ المُؤْمِنِ
“One believer is a mirror to another.” – Allah’s Messenger Muhammad ﷺ
Who: God willing, this summer Zaynab Books will publish an anthology of student writing that includes poems, short stories and essays! Middle and high school students (grades 7 to 12): you are invited to submit your writing for consideration. The working title of the book is The Reflective Friend Anthology of Student Writing. Did you write any poems, short stories or essays this school year?
What: Contribute one or more pieces of your original, grammatically correct and polished writing to Zaynab Books for publication in a collection of student writing.
Why: Production, Distribution and Publishing of Writing is an educational standard that middle and high school students are expected to achieve by state boards of education in the United States, as you can see if you search their websites for ELA standards. Here are the standards from the Illinois State Board of Education.
Submitting your writing to Reflective Friend gives you an opportunity and an incentive to polish up a draft of a poem or story you have already completed or finish a piece that you have not, but which looks like it could be good if you did, and get it published! You will then be a published author, insha’ Allah. In any case, you will have refined a piece of your writing in pursuit of excellence, which is a reward in itself.
What type of writing should you submit?
- Shakespearean sonnets
- Lyrical odes
- Free verse poems
- Blank verse poems
- Islamic satirical stories with literary elements (hyperbole, verbal irony, or understatement)
- Journal entries about Ramadan, or the pandemic, or other reflective pieces of writing
- Short stories up to 5,000 words long
- Essays (including essays that analyze a work of literature, or discuss an Islamic concept, or explore a theme or topic in social studies)
- Artwork to illustrate the anthology or put on its front of back cover
- Haikus
- Acrostic poems
- Word art
Reasons for acceptance or rejection will not be given, as there is no time for that, but your polished piece(s) will shine, insha’ Allah.
When: The deadline for submissions is 5 PM, Thursday, June 10, 2023.
How: All submissions must be submitted together in one document. Please have your work proofread by somebody with good grammar, punctuation, spelling, and reading skills first. All submissions must be submitted with a consent form signed by the student and both parents (if applicable) to be considered.
Where: Download your consent form / contributor’s agreement here, print it out, and return a signed hard copy to the publisher, or e-mail a clear photo of one to editors@zaynabbooks.com along with your submission(s). No need to send an accompanying cover letter or note. Alternatively, fill in this handy form to submit. (If you have a problem with the form, just e-mail editors@zaynabbooks.com.)