Nobel and the Arab Writer

Following the release of a new French translation of my novel “The Dress” by ACTES SUD, I met a few months ago with a French writer accompanied by a renowned French journalist. The discussion covered issues of fiction, publishing, and translation, and inevitably touched upon the Nobel Prize. At that time, the journalist told me, “You—meaning Arab writers—are far from the Nobel.” I listened as he added, “You must navigate a large, complex maze before your name becomes genuinely considered by the Nobel selectors.” …