🚨BOOK NEWS!🚨

I am delighted to finally, FINALLY share that after two years of pandemic writing and virtual schooling, my next book, THE ADVENTURES OF AMINA AL-SIRAFI, will be coming out March 2023!

Get ready to meet the crew, friends. We're going pirating⚔️

More info below! THE ADVENTURES OF AMINA AL-SIRAFI is the first book in a whole new trilogy (though we may see some Daevabad connections👀) It's a story about motherhood and swashbuckling adventures on the high seas, survivor's guilt and faith. And yes, as per @Roshani_Chokshi a himbo chaos demon

I know Twitter is where nuance goes to die but it is both possible to say this weekend's Hugo Awards were a great night for marginalized creators (many of whom knew nothing about its sponsorship) and that Raytheon should have had absolutely nothing to do with them. I am probably going to regret tweeting this. I know people, many of whom I respect, worked incredibly hard to put DisCon and the Hugos together. I know it changed hands and the process was chaotic (I didn't even know it had sponsors!) But Raytheon? Let's talk about them.

I went to see the Royal Tombs of Ur exhibit at the Penn Museum and as promised, I have some photos to share.

First up, the star of the exhibit: the burial headdress and beaded cloak of Queen Puabi, an Akkadian/Sumerian royal from Ur, who died in about 2600 BCE Additional necklaces (note the incredible details on the tiny pendants) and what appears to be the world's longest drinking straw.

Every once in a while, I come across something in my research that I must share, which is why today I need to talk about Queen Arwa of Yemen, the most honorable lady of revenge served cold. A thread! So our story starts in 1066 with the current King Ali and Queen Asma of Yemen (Arwa’s just as amazing mother-in-law) on the road to Mecca when they’re beset by an old enemy: Sa’id ibn Najah, prince of Zubayd.

I don't normally like to take up too much space in the Book Discourse of Twitter since frankly I think others are better at it, but white fantasy writers? A word. If you make the choice to write about a culture that isn't yours in today's world (and it is a choice), you should be prepared for the heat and rightful second glances that sparks.

I don't want to clog Sajidah's mentions with more negativity but I'm seeing white, non-Muslim authors jump in to explain why they want to write these books and can't help but notice two trends. 1) You lived abroad in a Muslim-majority country and studied the culture and religion. Lovely! This doesn't mean you're equipped to write about the politics and struggles of a minority population in an entirely different country.

Alright, as promised, I’m sharing the judhaba I made tonight! A downright DELICIOUS chicken dish from ninth-century Iraq, this was a lot of fun to recreate. Recipes and pictures in the thread! If you’re new to following me, I like to recreate historical recipes. I have a great fondness for the medieval Islamic world and the Abbasid era in particular. This works out great because the ruling elites at the time were big-time gourmands and collected recipes.

It’s been too long since I last tweeted about one of my favorite tropes from medieval Arabic lit—sword-wielding statues. So, today let’s discuss murderous statuary, smooth-talking treasure hunters, and a deeply disconcerting encounter with mermaids. The story I’m sharing comes from Tales of the Marvelous and News of the Strange, which is a bit like the Sharknado 4 of Arabic folktales. There’s little of noble Antar’s poetry or the earnest parables of the 1001 Nights here—these stories are pure pulp, and they are glorious.

Story time, Twitter! The prediction of yet another snowstorm has left me irrationally angry, so the tale I’m telling today from the 1001 Nights contains EXTRA MURDER, as well as deeply questionable medical practices and revenge served cold. It’s the story of the Sage Duban and King Yunan. It’s not as long as my previous story threads, but you may want to mute me if you’re not interested.

Alright, it’s time for another retelling from 1001 Nights. Get a cup of coffee and let’s talk Julnar of the Sea: the original—better—Little Mermaid*, her army of jinn, and the world’s most useless son. *Not a random comparison, trust me and read on if you’ve ever seen this drawing from Hans Christian Anderson’s Little Mermaid and confusedly gone “akhi??”

It has come to my attention that not enough of you are familiar with the original story of “The City of Brass” from the 1001 Nights. This is awful. There are death-dealing statues and screaming jinn. Gather, dear ones, it’s story time. (You may want to mute me if you’re not interested. This is going to be long.)