Emirati Women’s Day: authors contribute to the narrative of the UAE

Emirati women writers tell us what inspires and informs their work.

I Love My Dad's Long Beard by Maitha Al Khayat is published by Zodiac.

Maitha Al Khayat

It wasn’t until she became a mother that Maitha Al Khayat decided to turn her love of storytelling into writing and illustrating books for children. “Writing books for my own children, about our Emirati culture, traditions and our lives today, just made sense to me,” she says.

Her books, including Mum's Amazing Socks, written first in English and then translated into Arabic, are an attempt to introduce Arabic cultural traditions and Islamic heritage to children and to western audiences.

Noura Al Khoori

Emirati writer Noura Al Khoori published her first children’s book Fanteer the Fluffy Flamingo in 2013. “Everything around me inspires me, like ​themes from childhood, mothering my four children, observing other kids and happenings around the world, feelings and values, or even the most remotely insignificant things like an insect or the scent of baby skin are all sources of inspiration.”

Shaima Al Marzooqi

The 28-year-old columnist, novelist and children's author best known for Hamad's Trip in Dubai, Shaima Al Marzooqi grew up surrounded by books, and says that if she's not writing then she's reading. "I want to try all kinds of writing. I have written for children and for young adults, and I've tried writing science fiction and I like to write commentaries about our social life, as well as write about my love for the Arabic language.

“No topic is off-limits until I find my niche, if I ever do,” she says.

Lulwah Al Mansouri

Lulwah Al Mansouri is a journalist often inspired by her hometown of Ras Al Khaimah. Her novel, We Came from the Mountain's Rib, won the Emirates Novel Award for Best Short Novel in 2014. It is a fantasy tale inspired by a mysterious phenomena occurring on Jees Mountain in RAK. "Jees does exist and it is a beautiful place. It moved me to write a story based there," she says. "My country always inspires me."

Maha Gargash

While working at Dubai Television during the mid-1980s, Maha Gargash researched, wrote scripts and produced programmes that focused mainly on traditional Arab societies. That interest translated into her first novel, The Sand Fish, set in 1950s Dubai. Written in English, it tells the story of a rebellious girl's passage into womanhood in a country moving away from tradition. Her second book, That Other Me, is set in the mid-1990s in Dubai and Cairo and delves into the Gulf's cultural nuances.