Sabah Khodir: The Story Of An Icon
Words are powerful on their own, but when mixed with a bold persona and a passionate soul, they become mind-blowing. Everyone, I’m talking about the one and only, Sabah Khodir!
Not only did she start one of the biggest arts platforms in the Middle East, but also give creative writing classes in the USA and -soon enough- will be publishing her first poetry collection. Khodir is considered a powerhouse in the field, who is constantly working on epic projects.
End Quote and Sharing Her Work With the World
Khodir has loved writing poetry and listening to people's stories for as long as she can remember, so it was to no one's surprise that she decided to share her work online. However, Khodir's artistic journey was off for a tough start. “I was posting my work to invisible eyes for a very long time," she explained.
As a writer who started with a rough patch in the artistic field, Khodir explained the importance of coming to terms with your own truths, even if your audience doesn’t. She struggled hard to build an audience, and when she finally did so, her work was plagiarized and posted all over social media without her permission.
“It’s so frustrating. It’s hard enough to get exposure for any of your work, and it discredits the artists.”
Despite the disappointment, Khodir and her best friend, Mohamed Kassem, founded End Quote, the leading artistic platform in the Middle East in 2015.
“My best friend and I would always send each other pieces of our written-work. We were each other’s only fans.”
The wonderful duo then came up with the main idea of End Quote; to provide a space for Middle Eastern talents to showcase their work and receive recognition for their talents.
“My personal life is basically managing my platform. I’m very attached to my platform and audience.”
Fortunately, and deservingly-so, End Quote instantly marked its way into the artistic field, with an audience of 155K individuals and thousands of artists from all over the region rushing to send their work in. “It was nice to be able to do that with people just like us,” Khodir stated, demonstrating the endless amount of joy this platform brought her.
Although the platform has achieved undeniable success, there were still challenges that the founders faced, that only a great deal of passion and strength could overcome. Khodir explained how demanding it can be to keep up with the platform, as you must constantly post content for your audience and remain confident through all the disappointments that might push you to give up. “There are days where the world claps for you. But there are days where the world doesn’t understand you, either," she says
Writing and Pieces of Advice for Young Talents
Given that her writings often tackle personal experiences and traumatic events she went through, it was a surprise to know about how private Khodir actually is.
“It’s been a constant effort to be brave and put on paper what I didn’t even confide to my closest friends.”
It might seem a bit contradicting; however, Khodir emphasizes the significance of being courageous and releasing your shame when it comes to writing.
And, of course, we couldn’t let someone as talented as she is, go without telling us about some of the lessons and wise advice that stem from her long and fruitful journey. One of the valuable pieces of advice she mentioned was the significance of allowing yourself to make mistakes without letting your ego get in the way. It is also equally important to remain genuine, strong and persistent.
“Writers can be very arrogant. However, we must all learn and grow. You’re going to have to let go of the idea that there is nothing left to learn or that you can’t learn something from everyone.”
More About Khodir's Projects
Her story doesn’t stop here, though! The lovely writer then decided to move to the USA, where she further shared her passion for writing by teaching creative writing classes! Although many would assume giving these classes was merely a job to her, Khodir explains that it has affected her in many ways than possible.
“Listening to my students' work and crying together is my favourite thing. We’ve created a family and I love them all in a way I can’t describe.”
Not only that, but Khodir is FINALLY done with her long-awaited poetry collection and, although the exact publishing date is still unavailable, we all certainly can’t wait for this upcoming poetic masterpiece!
The Egyptian American writer is also currently working on various, extremely exciting and not-yet-announced projects with numerous Middle Eastern artists.
Mental Health, Feminism and More!
If you take a quick scroll through her writings (@skhodirr), you’ll find a one-of-a-kind fuse between social issues and poetry. This doesn’t come as a surprise, though, because we’ve come to terms with the fact that Khodir is an extremely outspoken and bold person, just as she was in her TEDx Talk about mental health.
“Being in countries that don’t fully comprehend or respect your mental health issues can be very difficult, but thankfully the internet has provided us the opportunity to look outside our direct environments and seek help in other areas.”
She also tries to help raise awareness about the importance of mental health by constantly posting resources and listing therapists and psychiatrists as often as she can.
Khodir further explained that her incorporation of social issues in her writings was natural, given that “We live within a moving society and ever-changing cultures.”
She dreams of inspiring people and making a change in the community through her most powerful forté, which is writing.
She is also one of the biggest advocates for feminism and is always shedding light on the injustice women -especially those in the Middle East- go through.
“I wish people would mind their own business on how a woman wishes to represent herself.”
Stereotypes and sexism are two things that make Khodir's blood boil, that is why she aims to destroy them; one writing at a time!
And with that, our interview came to an end. I would like to end this by thanking the lovely Sabah Khodir for this opportunity, I’ve personally learned a lot from her over the years and through her insightful answers.
Keep being bold, talented and fearless!