Muslim writers are defined by the urge to share what is good and beneficial, but we are frequently rejected by mainstream publishers. This has been a growing problem and the authors are speaking up. The question is will it be rectified or swept under the rug like most.
Since the publication of Hanifa Deen’s acclaimed 1995 book, Caravanserai, Muslims have been visibly present in Australian writing and publishing. However, it wasn’t until 10 years later, when Randa Abdel-Fattah published her iconic young adult book, Does My Head Look Big in This?, that Muslim voices really started appearing in Australian fiction.
While 2005 is not so long ago, Muslim Australian writing has changed since Abdel-Fattah was first published. “There is more freedom to write from a place of self-determination and risk, and there is the joy and comfort of writing in a growing community,” she says.
Michael Mohammed Ahmad, the author of The Other Half of You, characterises Muslim writing in Australia as a beautiful paradox. “On one hand it is the voice of many people; eclectic, diverse and cross-cultural. On the other hand, it is the voice of a single people; bound together by faith, love and language,” he says.
Now is the time for a greater focus on what Muslim writers have to say…
