Interview! @striving_muslimah
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1).How did you discover Wattpad?
striving_muslimah:I was browsing the web looking for a book to read. I discovered a Wattpad book, so I opened the website. After discovering it had a HUGE amount of books, I joined it to read.
2).What inspired you to write?
striving_muslimah:That traces back to my late childhood/early teens. My sister and I used to play role play games together all the time. However, I wasn't quite satisfied with it, because my sister never played outher character exactly how I wanted her to. At some point, it came to me that I could write it out instead; and that way, things would come out exactly as I wanted them. I started writing when I was about 12 or 13.
3).Why do you write for?
striving_muslimah:Well, when I started out, I wrote merely because it was what I enjoyed doing. Now I write to convey Islamic knowledge in an entertaining way and to give a correct Muslim representation in fiction.
4).Tell us about your book HCHBTF!
striving_muslimah:HCHBTF (His Child, Her Baby, Their Family) follows the story of two parents, both with children who have disabilities. The main theme of the story is family and special needs/disabilities. I wanted to write a story to represent disabilities since my teens. My mother owned a special education center and I had exposure to children with a large of disabilities and disorders. It took me some time to come up with an idea that would work. I started the book in 2014 and it has come a long way alhamdulillah.
The story starts off when Hâroon’s (main male character) son is diagnosed with autism and his wife leaves him soon after. Charity (the main female character) receives the prognosis of Edwards syndrome for her unborn child and her husband leaves her because she refuses to abort the baby and she’s left penniless to find a way to support herself and the baby on her own. Charity meets Hâroon and his family coincidentally, and the family decide to help her out of her predicament by giving her a job taking care of Ibrâhîm’s son in exchange for financial support and funding of her daughter’s medical expenses. This transitions to a marriage of convenience between the two parents when it’s determined it will be to their advantage as well as the children. The story follows the journey of coping with challenges of the different disabilities, their marriage, and Charity's gradual exposure to Islâm through her husband and his family. The book falls under the genres of spiritual, romance, family, and humor.
5).What is your favourite book(s) on Wattpad?
striving_muslimah:I have a number of favorite books on Wattpad, so I can't really choose just one.
Among them are:-
BM3, Bowled Over by The Broken, & 11 days of Halal Dating
by HopesPrayersNSmiles.
Qalb by writer_muslimah
Empire of Faith & Musa of Al-Aqrab by Le_Muslim_MAN
In Your Love abdofRahman
Prince of Knights by TheQueenofDarkness
These are just a few. There are of course many more.
6).Who are your favourite Author(s) on Wattpad?
striving_muslimah:Among my favorite authors are:
7).What is your way out of Writer Blocks?And How was your first encounter?
striving_muslimah:There is a quote by John Rogers,which says..
"You can't think yourself out of a writing block; you have to write yourself out of a thinking block."
I find this to be true.It's easier to edit a horribly written chapter than to edit what doesn't exist.If I have writer's block,I just write whatever and then go back and fix it when the time comes.One of the ways I prevent a block is by having my book fully planned before I began writing. I have every chapter and every scene planned out in detail. Of course, not everything comes out as planned. I change things here and there; but the point is I won't get stuck with no ideas of what to write next and it also lessens the chance of loopholes in the plot.
8).What do you think is important to add in Spritual Books?
striving_muslimah:In my time on Wattpad,I have seen several problematic themes of "Islamic" fiction.
- Forced marriage (either because her parents promised her to the parents of so-and-so or because the family is struggling; and of course the guy is usually a rich, arrogant intolerable sort of person who proceeds to torture her until he apparently falls in love with her)
- Young, arrogant and rich billionaire (usually CEO of something or other) gets some innocent young woman (often poor or alone)- The religious Muslim girl who gets involved with the bad boy (sometimes Muslim and other times not) and somehow fixes him.
Almost every other story falls into these categories.They're problematic because they don't promote Islamic values,usually go against them,and are only Muslim in name.They should not be categorized as spiritual if they aren't.
One who writes an"Islamic" story must be diligent in clarifying what is haram in the context of the story (through the character learning from his/her mistakes, etc) and research everything carefully.Spiritual books should primarily contain some form of Islamic knowledge.I looked up writing fiction some time before, and the scholar who gave the fatwa I read said,writing fiction for Muslims is permissible on the condition that the story conveys some Islamic knowledge.Good examples of such stories would be those by,KittyCrackers HopesPrayersNSmiles & abdofRahman.
Beyond that,one can take any kind of story idea and put an Islamic twist to it;but billionaires and bad boys are not really good themes for Islamic stories.Stories about someone who struggles in practicing her faith (which most of us can relate to), someone finding it, learning to overcome trials and be patient,etc are good themes to include in any Islamic story;and one doesn't have to be exclusive.
There is always potential to add other themes. It's easy to add a twist of action, mystery, romance, or anything else according to your taste to what is written.
9).You're studying in an Islamic Online University,Tell us something about it!
striving_muslimah:I joined Islamic Online University a few years ago;and I have fully enjoyed what I learned from it.
It was opened for the benefit of English speakers who could not access authentic knowledge because the majority of it is in Arabic; and most of the material is based off what is taught at the renowned Islamic University of Madinah and Al-Azhar University. Because everything is completely online, it is accessible to everyone. Books are in PDF form and lectures as videos and mp3. When I joined, they only had the Islamic studies program; but now you can pursue a degree in Islamic psychology, economics, business, education, IT, and Arabic. It's also through it, I met a good group of supportive and wonderful friends alhamdulillah. The school has student-run Whatsapp support groups for all those who join and need advice or help (male and female groups are separate).
10).What is your advice to the Wattpad writers?
striving_muslimah:The most important thing,if you want readers, is you must edit your work so it's a pleasant and easy read. Many people (and I am one of them) won't read something that is very poorly edited, because it's very difficult to get through the bad grammar to understand the story.Research. This is especially important if you're writing an Islamic story. Everything you write of Islamic knowledge should be researched to be sure that it is authentic. There are many fabricated hadeeth as wellas widespread innovations among Muslims, and you must avoid writing themin your story.Don't rush. You may have readers plaguing you about updating because you haven't published in a month or so, but don't rush it. Take the time to edit the chapter to your satisfaction so you'll be happy with and it will be of better quality.If you're having writer's block, put away the chapter for a while and take a walk. It helps give you a new perspective. I also recommend, thinking over what you want to happen in the story and writing your ideas down.
11).How has Wattpad impacted your life?
striving_muslimah:When I first joined Wattpad, I was merely a reader and a silent one at that,I didn't vote or comment on anything.I was partly afraid to honestly.
Then I decided to try to post my own writing.That was probably between 2012 and 2013.I posted my first Islamic fiction around that time (which I have just recently reposted after rewriting)and I got some good response. It was when readers started voting and commenting on my works that I started doing the same on others. I met a good group of people, most of whom I'm still good friends with. I took down my first book, because of loopholes and I had not carefully researched Islamic issues and rulings when I wrote it; but I had already started HCHBTF by then, which was more popular, so only a few people noticed. I really enjoyed the years I have been here; and I personally feel that it has helped me grow as a person and Muslim (through thepeople I have met) and as a writer.
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Alhamdulillah that was an amazing interview,Jazakallahu Khayran striving_muslimah for doing this interview with me!
And Thanks guys for reading,I'll surely update an interview sooner so wait until then!
Ps.Now I know what Ps is lol,Silly thanks to AffanSyed !And do check out his books they're awesome!
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