Dubai LitArt Society Launches Open Call for “Memory of the Desert”: An Anthology of Modern Arab Poetry

This international literary project seeks to bring together contemporary Arab poets from across the Middle East and the Gulf, creating a vibrant collection that reflects the richness, diversity, and evolving landscape of modern Arab poetry. Both established and emerging poets are invited to participate.

The title, “Memory of the Desert”, serves as a powerful metaphor for the cultural memory, heritage, resilience, and imagination that have shaped Arab civilization for centuries. While inspired by the symbolism of the desert, the anthology embraces the many voices, experiences, and poetic expressions that emerge from the Arab world today—from bustling cities and coastal communities to mountains, villages, and deserts.

The anthology aims to create a literary bridge connecting poets from different Arab countries and generations while introducing their work to a broader international readership through the English language. Through this collection, Dubai LitArt Society seeks to celebrate contemporary Arab poetry as a living art form that continues to preserve memory, inspire dialogue, and foster cultural understanding.

Poets wishing to participate are invited to submit three original poems in English, accompanied by a short biography of up to 150 words and a high-resolution profile photograph.

Submissions should be sent to:

dubailitartsociety@gmail.com

Project Editor: Dr. Ana Stjelja

The project is supported by the Association Alia Mundi for Promoting Cultural Diversity.

Media support is provided by Sands & City Magazine and Enheduana Online Literary Magazine.

Dubai LitArt Society welcomes poets whose work reflects the beauty, complexity, and diversity of the contemporary Arab experience and invites them to become part of this unique literary journey.

Let your words become part of the memory of the desert—a memory carried by the wind, preserved through poetry, and shared across borders and generations.