Print on demand (POD) in Egypt

Simply, the service of Print/ publish on demand (POD) depends on uploading an eBook on a website and printing this eBook only when a reader demands a paper copy & pays its price beforehand.

Unfortunately, this service is still unavailable as for the Arabic books or the right-to-left writings.

Internationally, lulu.com is the most famous website offers POD, but in the Arabic world (22 Arabic countries), 3lsooot.com is nearly the only Arabic & Egyptian website which supports the Arabic books! It is the foundation of Arabic pen voice.

I know that one website only maybe is very enough, but unfortunately, 3lsooot.com doesn’t offer this service free like lulu.com! Therefore, I'm using the American website coyly!

Yes, the Egyptian website takes 30 USD as a fee of nomination for your book because it submits the book to publishers, not only to the readers!

This fee is illogical because the publishers maybe refuse your work & the readers maybe don't demand your book at all and in the end you will lose your money.

Likewise, the Egyptian story club takes 20 EGP as fees of participation in the annual literary contest, although the winning isn't guaranteed!

Both of them, fees of book's nomination & fees of participation in the literary contest, don't take into consideration the poor writers!

These fees are only for covering the costs of printing on demand or the annual financial prize. This is the only logical explanation!

To be a wife for a year

Today, Saturday 17 July 2010 is the first anniversary of my marriage.

I confess that the first year of marriage is the most difficult year at all and sometimes it is the worst year in marriage, especially in the oriental societies, like Egypt!

In the eastern countries, there is no a big chance to study your life's partner well before the marriage. The only true chance to study him or her is during the first year of marriage itself!

As for the Arabic Muslim nations, there are not a lot of permissions during the engagement period, so you find yourself suddenly live with a stranger in one home and you are forced to acclimate with him and accept him as he is!

Yes, the divorce in Islam is very easy & is not very expensive like the divorce between the westerns, but there are a lot of traditions & thoughts which control us. These traditions are often stronger than the religion.

In the beginning, clashes must happen between two persons from two different families, different environments, different personalities (natures) & different houses. Naturally, you are very sad during the first months in marriage, but with the ends of the first year, you find yourself calmer & happier!

In the first feast of my marriage, I'm proud because I made an achievement & skipped the difficulties of marriage in the first year!