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 Elzembely in 2012, following the January 2011 revolution in Egypt.
Founder Hosam Elzembely 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: The 25 January Revolution: Lessons and Examples for Human Development Simplifying Medical Sciences for Children 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. Elzembely is mentioned by name on these two postsThe first is on 'Google+' and the second is on 'Facebook'. 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. Elzembely 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 seven 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.
Most recently the ESSF has published its first non-fiction book Arab and Muslim Science Fiction: Critical Essays, (21 March 2022), edited by Dr. Hosam Elzembely and co-edited by Emad El-Din Aysha. The book consists of academic articles, personal essays and detailed interviews from sci-fi enthusiasts (authors, editors, bloggers, translators, academics) from around the world. The list includes Turkey, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, Bosnia, Algeria, Malaysia, Syria, Uzbekistan, Tunis, Morocco, Afghanistan, Egypt, Palestine, Jordan, Iraq, the UAE, Sudan, Kuwait, Yemen, Senegal, Indonesia, Oman, as well as non-Muslim countries like the Philippines, India, Russia, the United States, Australia, etc. The contributors to Arab and Muslim Science Fiction, including Dr. Hosam Elzembely and Emad El-Din Aysha, are: Marcia Lynx Qualey, James E. Gunn, Kawthar Ayed, Faycel Lahmeur, Abdulhakeem Amer Tweel, Ahmed Salah Al-Mahdi, Mouad Bouyadou, Ziane Guedim, Taleb Omran, with Jeremy Szal, Fadi Zaghmout, Mohammed Abdullah Alyasin, Zahra Jannessari-Ladani, Ibrahim Al-Marashi, Noura al Noman, Abdulwahab Al-Rifaee, Farkhondeh Fazel Bakhsheshi, Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa, Wajdi Muhammad Al-Ahdal, Manar Al Hosni, Harun Šiljak, Gamze G. Özfırat, İsmail Yamanol, Shamil Idiatullin, Hamid Ismailov, Abdulwakil Sulamal, Müfit Özdeş, Funda Özlem Şeran, Saqib Sadiq, Sami Ahmad Khan, Muhammad Aurangzeb Ahmad, Moussa Ould Ebnou, Mame Bougouma Diene, Rafeeat Aliyu, Ashiru Muheez Afolabi, Amir Tag Elsir, Azrul Bin Jaini, Riawani Elyta, Kristine Ong Muslim, Aditya Nugraha Wardhana, Rebecca Hankins, Barbara K. Dick, Areeg Ibrahīm.
The book is part of the Critical Explorations in Science Fiction and Fantasy series published by McFarland, edited by Donald E. Palumbo and C. W. Sullivan III. (For a comprehensive list please consult the internet speculative fiction database, including our book, which is number 74 in the series). DateNameAuthors2012Al-Qadimun (The Arrivals)Dr. Hosam Elzembely, Mustafa Seif Al-Din, Amal Ziyada, Mohammad Abd Al-Aleem, Mohammad Ahmed Al-Nagi, Lamyaa Al-Said Abd Al-Salam; non-fiction contributions were also made by Dr. Hosam Elzembely, Amal Ziyada, Magid Al-Qadi, Yasir Abu Al-Hasab, Mohammad Farouk.2013Al-Aidun (Those Who Returned)Dr. Hosam Elzembely, Muhammad Naguib Matter, Lamyaa Al-Said, Ahmed Badran, Dr. Zaynab Abu Al-Nagah, Magid Al-Qadi, Magid Shahin, Saida Abd Allah; non-fiction contributions by Dr. Hosam Elzembely.2013Al-Thairun (The Rebels)Dr. Hosam Elzembely, Lamyaa Al-Said, Amr Al-Munufi, Muhammad Naguib Matter, Eman Baha A-Din, Haitham Mumtaz, Mohammad Fatylynah, Hibatullah Muhammad Hassan, Muhammad Esmat Abd Al-Hamid, Mahmoud Hassanien, Amr Al-Munufi, Zainab Muhammad; non-fiction contributions by Dr. Hosam Elzembely and Dr. Nader Abd Al-Khaliq.2013Al-Muntasirun (The Victors)Dr. Hosam Elzembely, Lamyaa Al-Said, Muhammad Naguib Matter, Sharif Shawqi, Muhammad Abd Al-Razaq, Muhammad Abd Al-Alim, Muhammad Ahmed Al-Nagi, Amr Al-Munufi, Muhammad Esmat Abd Al-Hamid, Ahmed Badran, Samar Ziyada, Manal Abd Al-Hamid, Marwa Al-Mazun, Ahmed Al-Nahas, Noura Kamal, Mahmoud Hassaniewn, Gubran Salih Ali Harmal, Muhammad Ali Ali; non-fiction contribution by Dr. Hosam Elzembely.2017Al-Samidun (Those Who Persevered)Dr. Hosam Elzembely, Manal Abd Al-Hamid, Hebatullah Muhammad Hassan, Ahmed Salah Al-Mahdi, Wael Abd Al-Rahim, Muhammad Naguib Matter, Lina Kilani, Moataz Hassanien, Abd Allah Mattar, Duaa Ahmed Shukri, Nadia Al-Kilani, Ahmed Migahid, Abeer Al-Mufti, Essam Saad Hamad, Yusra Ahmed Hassan, Dr. Emad El-Din Aysha, Mahmoud Abd al-Rahim, Essam Qabil, Ahmed Badran, Ahmed Al-Sayyid; non-fiction contributions were made by Dr. Hosam Elzembely and Khaled Gouda.2019Al-Mustaqbaliun (The Futurists)A special edition dedicated to children's SF, showcased at the Cairo International Book Fair. Manal Abd Al-Hamid, Yousra Ahmed Khamis, Rania Masoud, Maram Sidqi, Dr. Hosam Elzembely, Salih Sharaf A-Din, Ahmed Hamdi Al-Ashab, Muhammad Naguib Matter, Wael Abd Al-Raheem, Hossam Al-Khatieb, Muhammad Muhyi Al-Din, Emad El-Din Aysha, Ahmed Abd Al-Raheem, Safaa Al-Aghmawi, Ahmed Suwailam, Talaat Abu Salamah, Ahmed Al-Sayyid Abu Miki, Mahmoud Abd Al-Raheem, Amr Al-Radini, Shorouk Al-Tuhami, Nadia Al-Kilani, Moataz Sabir, Ammar Mahmoud Al-Masry, Ahmed Salah Al-Mahdi, Nihal Khairy, Muhammad Khalil, Tarek Farouk, Ali Ali Awad, Hossam Al-Khatib, Kadria Said; non-fiction contributions were made by Dr. Hosam Elzembely and Khaled Gouda.2020Al-Musqawimun (The Resistors)Dr. Hosam Elzembely, Abd Al-Hakim Al-Taweel (Libya), Muhammad Naguib Matter, Dr. Kadria Said, Al-Sayyed Negm, Muhammad Muhyi Toulba, Dr. Emad El-Din Aysha, Muhammad Al-Sayyed Abu Mekki, Rania Masoud, Muhammad Al-Yassin (Syria), Mahmoud Abd Al-Rahim, Muhammad Al-Murabit (Morocco), Ashraf Mugahid, Muhammad Khalil Al-Sayyed, Muhammad Ahmed Abdel Miniem, Ismail Masa’d Al-Sayyed, Mamdouh Ahmed, Radi Abduh, Wael Abdel Rahim; the volume included an essay on resistance stories in science fiction and a translation by Dr. Areeg Ibrahim
Activities
The first sci-fi society in the Arab-Muslim world. Here is an interview of the society's director Dr. Hosam Elzembely, 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: The inaugural cultural salon of the Egyptian society. Held on Monday 17 July 2017. The salon consisted of four sessions. The first was a presentation of a classic novella by Nihad Sharif called Number 4 Commands You. (The presentation was given by SF writer Mohammad Naguib Matter.) The second session was a workshop on a science fiction story, where the participants each contributed a component of the storyline after the reading of an introductory sequence. The third was a presentation of a forthcoming short story by Emad El-Din Aysha. The fourth was a lecture on human development and its relationship with science fiction – the importance of beauty and knowledge as drivers for individual and societal progress and the power of the imagination to inspire real-world inventions and scientific advance. Friday 25 August 2017, to discuss Ahmed Al-Mahdi's novel Malaaz: City of Resurrection (ملاذ: مدينة البعث). This is a post-apocalyptic novel set in a future Egypt following the after-effects of a nuclear war, with a technological conflict brewing between Upper and Lower Egypt. Friday 29 September 2017, to discuss Wael and Mahmoud Abd Al-Raham's novel Akwan (Universes), a novel about parallel universes and alternate dimensions that coexist on Earth, with the Bermuda triangle as the meeting point. Friday 27 October 2017, to discuss the novel The Great Space Saga: The Half-Humans, (البشر أنصاف : ملحمة الفضاء الكبرى), by Dr. Hosam Elzembely. This was space adventure story where Muslim heroes save a civilization on the verge of extinction. The two literary critics who discussed the novel were Khaled Gouda and Dr. Ahmed Yusri Fahid. An extended review and critical analysis of the story has been published in Chinese, by a sister organization called the Future Affairs Administration. Friday 1 December 2017, to discuss Mohammad Naguib Matter's short story collection, A Hole in the Head الرأس المثقوب. One of the stories ("After You, After You") was about an artificially intelligent car constantly pursuing its owner, in anticipation it seems of Uber's latest innovations. Friday 29 December 2017, to discuss Ammar Al-Masry's novel Shadows of Atlantis, ظلال أطلانتس, an alien invasion epic centring around a robotic rebellion against mankind, a team of select heroes and an ancient alien language that holds the key to the long lost city of Atlantis, the first in a series of novels. The critics at the event included Dr. Kardia Said and Khalid Gouda. Here is a linked review. Friday 2 February 2018, to discuss the novel, The Delusions of a Terrorist تخاريف إرهابى, by Ahmed Migahid. Also present were literary critics Khalid Ghouda and Dr. Yusri Abd Al-Ghani. (This was a non-science fiction work).