Al-Ghazi: Not everything one writes deserves publication
As part of the “Oasis of Thought and Creativity: Philosophy and Literature” event, organized by the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters at the Kuwait National Library and running until July 28, novelist and poet Saleh Al-Ghazi delivered a lecture titled “Creativity and Publishing: Reality and Ambition.”
Al-Ghazi began his talk with a story that captured the audience’s attention, highlighting the inferiority of imitation in contrast to influence and uniqueness. He explained that throughout his professional career, he learned to respect anyone who dedicates time to themselves for reading and writing as an expression of their feelings.
He noted that most creators begin with poetry and short stories, but authors are often surprised to find these genres to be the most challenging. A true writer should not borrow another’s voice, but rather write based on personal experience and vision. He pointed out that while one may imitate certain models for a period to master them, not everything one writes deserves publication.
Al-Ghazi added that each literary genre has its own tools and space, which a committed writer provides by reading deeply within it, as every literary category has its own pleasures, moods, and aesthetics.
He advised reading across all cultural directions, emphasizing that cultural and intellectual experience are fundamental to the quality and longevity of writing. He then shared his perspective on poetry writing and discussed his experience with the novel “The Bus,” which examined public transportation in Kuwait from a humanistic perspective. The book sparked critical discussions and was selected among the top 18 Arabic novels.
He also reviewed the experience of Dhat Al-Salasil Publishing House, which has kept pace with transformations in the publishing market since its founding in 1972, including investments in digital publishing through a prominent platform, translation and children’s publishing projects, and the Dr. Abdulaziz Al-Mansour Award for the Arab Publisher, under the patronage of the Arab Publishers Union.
On the topic of challenges, Al-Ghazi stressed that a book’s success depends not only on the quality of the text, but also on distribution and marketing.
He stated that since 2008, following the appearance of Kindle on Oprah Winfrey’s program, we have been waiting for digital books to dominate the Arab world. However, this has not happened; while digital books have spread globally, they have stagnated in the Arab world. Sales of printed books have declined, and the publishing industry has suffered.
He added, “For example, I have observed on Amazon or Kindle that foreign books gain popularity, while Arabic books do not. I believe that digital platforms employ algorithms that hinder the circulation of Arabic digital books while facilitating the success of foreign ones. This raises the question: Do we need to invest in an Arabic platform to showcase, market, and ensure the survival of our Arabic books?”
