What’s Qamar and Quill?

Years ago, when I sat down to seriously write a story, a full novel, with the intention of actually publishing and sharing it, I had no idea how it was going to happen. All I knew was the type of story I wanted to write. And after years of writing, thousands of words scrapped, and lots of late nights, I finally had a manuscript.

I thought the hard part was done. With an editor and some revision work, I’d have a book ready for printing. Little did I know, the work had just begun. And not the fun work of figuring out characters, writing snappy dialogue, and making the world in my head come to life. Now I had to think about sharing my book and starting a company and setting up socials.

All, for me, hard things.

And one of the hardest things for me has always been naming things. I could write a thirty-page paper for my university classes in a day, but then I’d stew over the title for hours.

For years, while I wrote my first manuscript, I saved it as “Yusra,” after the main character. Then one day, while rereading and editing it for the fifth time, I came across a line and I just knew. That line was the title of my book. And it was perfect, exactly the title I’d always hoped to craft but never could.

So what was left. Well, still a lot of work. But one of the most important: the title of the publishing company I wanted to start. Because I had a project, a vision, for my books and my stories. I wanted to craft the story that was in my head, and the only way I knew how to do that and maintain my need for control was to start my own company.

But that meant there was another thing I had to name. And this one was big. Not just one book, but the company that would be integral to every book I publish. I spent so. much. time. making lists and scrapping options. I wanted something that married the Islamic concepts so integral to our day-to-day life with my Muslim-American born lifetstyle and consciousness and English-major background. Something that really captured the essence of what my stories would be about. And I wanted it to sound good!

And thus, Qamar and Quill was born. “Qamar",” the word for “moon” in Arabic, and “quill,” once a common writing instrument made from the feathers of a bird’s wing or tail. The quill represents the writing, the crafting of a story in written form. Though it’s no longer used today, it is still recognized as a symbol for the pen.

The moon, on the other hand, represented something else. It is an oft-used metaphor, in all types of writing, but especially in Islamic literature. As Hassan ibn Thabit, the famous poet of the early Islamic times, recited about Prophet Muhammad (SAWS),

When I saw his light shining forth, in fear I covered my eyes with my palms, afraid for my sight because of the beauty of his form.

So I was scarcely able to look at him at all.

The lights from his light are drowned in His light and his faces shines out like the sun and moon in one.

A spirit of light lodged in a body like the moon,

a mantle made up of brilliant shining stars.

There are so many examples of the moon’s significance to Muslims. The hilal to start each blessed month, most especially Ramadan; the moon and star atop our minarets; and its appearance in countless poems.

And I knew I’d found the name of my publishing company. The perfect blend of Islamic imagery and English writing, of what my goal was in crafting stories. And what English major can deny a good use of alliteration? I was ecstatic, sharing it with all my family and friends just to hear it out loud! And thus, Qamar and Quill Publishing was born.

And then the work really began.