Creative Writing and Authorship
Creative Writing Foundations
Start from an idea you keep coming back to and finish with a complete short story you wrote yourself and revised with an author of eight books.
- Date
- Dates to be announced
Creative Writing Courses in Doha From a first idea to a text worth reading.
The Creative Writing and Authorship track at Al Qurain Training Center offers practical workshops in Doha on writing short stories, novels, memoir and radio drama in Modern Standard Arabic, led by the author Anwar Abdulrahman Al-Taneeb. You write in every session and leave with your text and the trainer's notes on it.
Who is this track for?
- First-time writers
- Writers who want to develop their work
- Anyone who wants to record their life story
- Arabic teachers and lovers of literature
Track themes
- Storytelling basics: idea, character, scene and dialogue
- The short story and flash fiction
- Your first novel, from outline to first chapter
- Memoir, life writing and writing for radio
How is it delivered?
We will announce the first cohort's dates, format and fees when registration opens. Organisations can request the track's courses as an in-house programme for their staff. Each course ends with a certificate of completion for participants who meet its requirements.
Courses in this track
5 courses
- Creative Writing and Authorship
Short Story and Flash Fiction
Write a tight story built on a single moment, a chosen scene and an ending that leaves the reader room to think.
- Date
- Dates to be announced
- Creative Writing and Authorship
Write Your Life Story: Memoir
Turn your memories into a text your family can read: choose the milestones, write them as scenes and arrange them into a connected life story.
- Date
- Dates to be announced
- Creative Writing and Authorship
Writing Your First Novel
Build your first novel on a plan: an idea big enough for a novel, characters who change, a plot that rises, and a first chapter you write and revise with a novelist.
- Date
- Dates to be announced
- Creative Writing and Authorship
Radio Drama Writing
Write for the listener's ear: scenes people see through sound, dialogue that defines a character, and episodes that end with a pull towards the next.
- Date
- Dates to be announced
Programmes in preparation
Writing Stories for Children
Stories that suit a child's age and language, for parents, teachers and anyone who writes for young readers.
From Manuscript to Book: Editing and Publishing
Editing your manuscript, working with publishers, and authors' rights.
Register your interest in the first cohort
The centre has not yet set dates or fees for the writing courses. Leave your details and tell us which course interests you, and we will write to you when we announce the first cohort. Registering your interest does not commit you to enrol or to pay.
Questions about this track
What do creative writing courses at Al Qurain Training Center cover?
You learn to build character, scene and dialogue, and to write short stories, novels, memoir and radio drama in Modern Standard Arabic. You write a short piece in every session, get the trainer's notes on it, and work on a draft of your own text in the applied project.
Who teaches the creative writing workshops?
Anwar Abdulrahman Al-Taneeb, Co-Founder of the centre. She has written for the press since 1988, published eight books of stories, novels and reflections, and written radio series broadcast on Kuwait Radio.
Do I need writing experience?
Not for Creative Writing Foundations: if you can read and write Arabic, you can start. Writing Your First Novel and Short Story and Flash Fiction suit people who have written before and want to improve.
What is the difference between creative writing and content writing?
Creative writing produces a literary text: a story, a novel or a memoir. Content writing serves a marketing or media goal on websites and social media. You will find the first in this track and the second in Social Media Content Creation, part of the Media and Content Creation track.
Can the centre help me publish my book in Qatar?
The centre does not publish books and has no say in whether a publisher accepts your manuscript. It is preparing a course, From Manuscript to Book, on editing, working with publishers and authors' rights, listed among this track's upcoming courses.
Are the workshops suitable for retirees?
Yes. Write Your Life Story is for anyone who wants to record their memories and experience, retirees and older people among them. It moves at a calm pace, with short exercises.
Writing workshops in Arabic where you leave with a text you wrote and revised with an author of eight books.