Dubai: Dubai-based author Sara Hamdan has achieved a regional first in publishing. Her debut novel, “What Will People Think?” got snapped up in a major two-book deal with US publisher Holt following a highly competitive auction.
Holt is the prestigious publisher of literary giants including Hilary Mantel, Toni Morrison and Liane Moriarity, as well as memoirs by Mariah Carey and Matthew Perry.
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Elite list of authors
Sara – a Netflix short story award winner, former New York Times journalist and ex-editor at Google – joins Holt’s elite list of authors after participating in the First Chapter ELF (Emirates Literature Foundation) Seddiqi Writers’ Fellowship.
The novel, What Will People Think? is the heart-warming story of a young woman’s career aspirations to become a stand-up comedian in New York City as she balances the traditions of her Palestinian upbringing with the need to live life – and to love – on her own terms.
It has been pitched as The Marvellous Mrs Maisel meets Crazy Rich Asians. It is scheduled for publication in the winter of 2025. “We are thrilled and proud beyond belief that Sara, one of the first cohorts in the First Chapter programme, has achieved this level of success so soon after completing it in February,” said Ahlam Bolooki, CEO of the Emirates Literature Foundation.
“With the support of Seddiqi Holding, we designed First Chapter to give writers from the UAE, with stories that resonate here, the platform to be published internationally, and to have Sara’s talent recognised in the US and UK is so wonderful to see. We know she is a trailblazer, the first in a long line of authors putting writing from the Emirates on the map. We have exceptional writers in the fellowship programme and are expecting more publishing deals to be announced soon.”
The Dubai connection
Sara signed with literary agents Meredith Miller at UTA and Sheila Crowley at Curtis Brown when she was part of the inaugural Emirates Literature Foundation and Seddiqi Holding mentorship programme, First Chapter. Sara’s mentor for the First Chapter programme was Yrsa Siguroardottir, the Icelandic award-winning crime novelist.
Sara Hamdan said: “I am so appreciative of the support that I received from First Chapter and would like to thank Emirates Literature Foundation and Seddiqi Holding for believing in me - this is our collective win. From the mentorship to the tribe, I found among my fellows, the programme gave me the tools and confidence to think of myself seriously as a writer. As a Palestinian-American, I am so excited to share my story with the world featuring a strong, warm Arab female lead. It’s time!”
One-to-one mentorship
Writers accepted in the First Chapter programme each receive six hours of one-to-one mentorship from an international author, 40 hours of workshops and talks from world-renowned writers and experts spanning the whole of the industry and encompassing all stages of writing, publishing and promoting a book.
The programme also provides introductions to international agents, editors and publishers and access to writing classes from international partner writing institutions such as the Gotham Writers Centre in New York.
Seddiqi Holding has agreed to partner with the ELF for five years, with the aim that the Fellowship will create a notable pool of authors based in the UAE with audiences all over the world.
Applications for entry for year three of the programme will open in September 2023.
