Creativity and imagination took centre stage this week as Sharjah’s future literary talents were put through their paces during a very special workshop organised by Kalimat, the Sharjah-based award-winning publisher of Arabic children’s books and imprint of Kalimat Group.

Titled ‘Little Author’ and presented by respected children’s author Rai Abdulal, the recent workshop gave children aged 8 to 15 the chance to learn the fundamentals of story writing from a master of the craft. Held at Sharjah Ladies Club’s Collage Talent Center, it was very well-received by all of its young participants, who made use of the opportunity to enhance their writing skills and learn the most important elements involved in creating fun and original stories.

Speaking about the workshop, Tamer Said, Managing Director of Kalimat Group, said, “Learning how to create a narrative that is interesting, innovative, and capable of capturing the imagination of the reader is one of the most important foundation skills for any writer. This workshop was a wonderful chance to help a talented group of young writers acquire key skills and encourage them to apply their creativity to producing new and inventive stories.”

Rai Abdulal has written numerous Arabic children’s stories including ‘A Small Problem’, ‘The Shining Smile Inventor’, ‘The Clean Dirham’ and ‘Falfoosh Lost His Memory’. She has also produced children’s shows with Sharjah TV, Sama Dubai and Al Jazeera Children for eight years, and has written children’s stories for the Dubai Police magazine, ‘Khaled’. Additionally, Abdulal has worked for various TV channels such as Abu Dhabi TV, where she was an editor and scriptwriter for live and recorded shows, and has published stories in several newspapers and magazines in the UAE. Most notably, the children’s author won the Sharjah Creativity and Ghanem Ghubash Awards for the Short Story in 2007 and 2010 respectively.

Kalimat is the first publishing house in the UAE dedicated solely to publishing and distributing high quality Arabic children's books. With over 160 publications since its establishment seven years ago, Kalimat focuses on publishing books that deal with issues of interest to children in the UAE and Arab region, as well as stories that highlight family values, humanitarian relations, and concepts about simplicity and happiness through innovative text and lively illustrations. Kalimat has an elite group of internationally acclaimed and award-winning authors and illustrators.