U of A Press, Arab American Writers Establish Etel Adnan Poetry Prize

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The University of Arkansas Press, together with the Radius of Arab American Writers, announces the initiation of the Etel Adnan Poetry Series and Etel Adnan Poetry Prize. The $1000 prize will be be awarded to a first or second book of poetry, in English, by a writer of Arab heritage. The book will be published by the University of Arkansas Press.

 The series and award will be supported by the King Fahd Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Arkansas.

The editors of this new series, Hayan Charara and Fady Joudah, have authored or edited several poetry collections or translations. They will choose the winner every year and write a preface for the book.

Etel Adnan is a world-renowned poet, novelist, essayist, and artist who has been called “arguably the most celebrated and accomplished Arab American author writing today.”

David Scott Cunningham, senior editor at the University of Arkansas Press, said the press has long been interested in diverse kinds of poetry by a broad range of poets.  The 2008 publication of Inclined to Speak: An Anthology of Contemporary Poetry, edited by Charara, marked the University of Arkansas Press’ entry into Arab American poetry.

“We are happy and proud to support and cultivate the work of American poets of Arab heritage as this group continues to challenge and reinvent not only the aesthetics they have inherited but also what it means to be Arab or Arab American,” Cunningham said.

Submissions for the prize will open this summer, with a deadline of April 2016 for the 2017 prize. To learn more about the prize, including submission requirements, visit uapress.com.

About the University of Arkansas Press:  Founded in 1980, the University of Arkansas Press is an academic publishing house that is part of the University of Arkansas. A member of the Association of American University Presses, it has as its central and continuing mission the publication of books that serve both the broader academic community and Arkansas and the region.

About the Radius of Arab American Writers: the Radius of Arab American Writers, founded in 1996, is a non-profit literary organization dedicated to supporting and disseminating creative writing and scholarly writing by Arab Americans.

About the King Fahd Center for Middle East Studies: The King Fahd Center for Middle East Studies, an interdisciplinary program in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas, is dedicated to the study of the modern Middle East and the geocultural area in which Islamic civilization prospered and which continues to shape world history.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines.