Egyptian Society for Science Fiction

The Egyptian Society for Science Fiction () is a science fiction community which is located in Nasr City, Egypt. The science fiction community was founded by Dr. Hosam Abd Al-Hamid El-Zembely in 2012, following the January 2011 revolution in Egypt.
Founder.
Hosam El-Zembely is a medical doctor (ophthalmologist) and university professor (human development). He has written three novels to date: "The Half-Humans, America 2030", "The Planet of the Viruses". ("The Half-Humans" is an adventure story set in outer space, 2030 is an espionage thriller about an impending nuclear war between the future world powers, and the "Planet of the Viruses" is about a pandemic threatening the human race with total blindness. All written in Arabic but are being revised for publication in English).
He has also written several short stories in the sci-fi genre. His love of science fiction began during his early years at school in the United Kingdom, when the "Star Wars" series came out. He was also introduced at an early age to two distinguished Egyptian authors, the great Islamic thinker Dr. Mustafa Mahmoud, and Nihad Sharif, known as the Dean of Arabic SF. He also has written and published two non-fictional books:
His first novel, "The Half-Humans", was a key source for a lecture by Jörg Matthias Determann, a faculty member in the Liberal Arts & Sciences program at the Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar, held at Seoul National University on Tuesday, May 15, 2018 (South Korea). The lecture was entitled "Space Aliens, Islam and Politics in Arabic Science Fiction". The lecture was part of the Seminar in West Asian Studies. (Details can be found at SNU's Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations website). Dr. El-Zembely is mentioned by name on these two posts by Dr. Determann, a distinguished historian who specializes in the Middle East and in the history of science with three books to his name, and more forthcoming.
Most recently, in an effort to popularise Egyptian and Arabic science fiction, especially the post-Arab Spring variety, Dr. El-Zembely has been interviewed by "Strange Horizons" magazine, published on 28 January 2019. The interview was conducted by Gautam Bhatia - please follow this link.
Publications.
To date the Egyptian Society for Science Fiction has published six short story anthologies in the "Shams Al-Ghad (Sun of Tomorrow) series", with a sixth planned anthology that will be dedicated to children's SF. The anthologies are all in Arabic but they each contain a short story translated into English. The anthologies also contain reviews and essays on particular works of science fiction and discussions of the state of the genre in Egypt and the Arab world. The first anthology outlined the mission statement and the set of ambitions of the Egyptian Society for Science Fiction, which was to promote science fiction in Egypt through publications, venues and events and earn SF some critical notoriety in Arab literature, as well as coordinate with like-minded groups and individuals across the world.
Activities.
The first sci-fi society in the Arab-Muslim world. Here is an interview of the society's director Dr. Hosam El-Zembely, conducted by Marcia Lynx Qualey of the Arab Literature in English blog. For a detailed review of his first published novel, "The Half-Humans", see this link to Islam and Science Fiction. So far the society has held short story contests for its anthologies, drawing on the talents of authors in Egypt and the Arab world, and organised cultural salons, presenting authors to a broader critical audience or reviewing specific novels and publications. Since 2017 these events have been held at the semi-official headquarters of the Egyptian society for SF, at the Zembely Eye Centre, floor 7, 38 Makram Ebeid Street, Madinat Nasr (Nasr City).
Names and dates of cultural salons listed here:
Dr. El-Zembely participated in two panels. Also at the convention was Francesco Verso, a distinguished European SF writer and Founder and Editor-in-Chief at "Future Fiction".
The ESSF is also seeking active cooperation with like-minded groups around the world, not least in the region. In this vein has interviewed Farzin Souri, the editor-in-chief of the Iranian SF magazine 3Feed, the chief online sci-fi publication in Iran and the mouthpiece of the Speculative Fiction Group (گروه ادبیات گمانه‌زن). The interview appeared on Samovar blog, dated 9 February 2019.
Staff.
The society is not made up only of authors of science fiction and fantasy. The sci-fi and literary community all help in some form or another, including publishers, literary critics, authors, professors, journalists, translators and fans all alike. Dr. Hosam El-Zembely edited all five volumes of the "Shams Al-Ghad series", despite his work duties which take him from North to South Egypt; he is also a member of the Egyptian Writers’ Union (ERU) and head of the ERU Scientific Committee. Mohammad Naguib Matter, one of the society's most active members, is an engineer by training and has won scores of Arabic literary prizes. Ahmed Migahid is a publisher, a novelist (non-genre) and a patron of science fiction.
Dr. Kardia Said is an established literary critic, specialising in children's literature, and did her MA thesis on science fiction. Khalid Gouda is a noted literary critic and big fan of science fiction. Dr. Ahmed Yusri Fahid is a well-known literary critic and did his PhD in Arabic literature. (On Arabic SF. His MA thesis was on Edgar Allen Poe).
The logo was designed by Ahmed Salah Al-Mahdi, who is also a graphic designer and translator, in additional to his duties as a fantasy and SF author. He also designed the front cover for "Al-Samidoun". The society's resident secretary and a sci-fi enthusiast himself is Ahmed Al-Sayyid, an MA student doing his thesis on Arabic science fiction. He published his first short story in "Al-Samidoun" and also posts news items and commentary online on the society's activities.
Emad El-Din Aysha is the society's main translator and reviewer, a former (English-language) university professor and journalist, and someone who is now trying his hand at writing Arab-Islamic SF, if predominantly in English. His first SF short story was published, in Arabic, in Al-Samidoun. His first published translation of an Arabic sci-fi story, "Women… and Blood" (by Dr. Hosam El-Zembely), also appeared in "Al-Samidoun". He has contributed two short stories to the forthcoming "Al-Mustaqbaliun" and won a prize from the society for one of them, as did Ahmed Al-Mahdi and Ahmed Al-Sayyid.