Saleem Haddad

Saleem Haddad was born in Kuwait City in 1983 to a Lebanese-Palestinian father and an Iraqi-German mother.[2] Haddad was subsequently raised and educated in Jordan, Canada, and the United Kingdom.[2]

Haddad's debut novel Guapa was released in March 2016 by Other Press.[3] The book, set over 24 hours, tells the story of Rasa, a gay man living in an unnamed Arab country, and trying to carve out a life for himself in the midst of political and religious upheaval.[3]

The novel was excerpted by VICE, and received widespread acclaim, with The New Yorker calling it a "vibrant, wrenching début novel".[4] According to Book Riot, "Haddad maps postcolonial theory, post-revolutionary malaise, and post-outing upheaval onto your standard post-college, what-am-I-doing-with-my-life aimlessness, creating something wonderful and fascinating in the process."[5]

As part of the London Literature Festival, Haddad was awarded the Polari First Book Prize 2017. The prize is awarded annually to a writer whose first book explores the LGBT experience, whether in poetry, prose, fiction or non-fiction.[6]

Haddad's work has also appeared in Slate and Muftah. He has also worked as an aid worker with Doctors Without Borders and other organizations in Yemen, Syria, and Iraq.[7] He currently lives in Lisbon with his partner.[7]

In 2018 Haddad wrote and directed his first short film, Marco.[8] The film had its World Premiere at Mawjoudin Queer Film Festival in Tunis, and its European Premiere at BFI Flare: London LGBT Film Festival in London, both in March 2019. The film subsequently screened internationally at festivals including Palm Springs International ShortFest[9] and Outfest Fusion,[10] and was nominated for Best British Short at the 2019 Iris Prize.[11] In April 2020, the film was made available on YouTube.

• Official website
• Marco on YouTube
• Saleem Haddad on IMDb