Literature
Saladin Ahmed
born 1975 · novelist, comic book writer, poet
Detroit-born Arab American fantasy novelist and Marvel comics writer whose series Abbott, set in 1970s Detroit, follows a Black woman reporter facing the occult.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan
age 50- Detroit years
- 1975–
- Field
- Literature
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Ahmed was born in Detroit in 1975 to a family of Lebanese, Egyptian, Irish and Polish descent; his father is the Dearborn community leader Ismael Ahmed. He studied at Henry Ford Community College in Dearborn before transferring to the University of Michigan, and his early poetry appeared in anthologies such as Abandon Automobile: Detroit City Poetry and Arab Detroit: From Margin to Mainstream. His debut novel, Throne of the Crescent Moon (2012), an Arabian Nights-flavored fantasy, was a Hugo finalist and won the Locus Award for best first novel. He then moved into comics, writing Black Bolt, Miles Morales: Spider-Man, Ms. Marvel and Daredevil for Marvel. With Abbott (2018) and its sequels he returned to his hometown, telling the story of a Black journalist fighting supernatural forces in 1970s Detroit.
Highlights
- Throne of the Crescent Moon (2012): Hugo finalist, Locus Award winner
- Created the comic Abbott, set in 1970s Detroit
- Wrote Miles Morales: Spider-Man, Black Bolt and Daredevil for Marvel
- Poems in the anthology Abandon Automobile: Detroit City Poetry
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Studied here · 1990s
Henry Ford College (Henry Ford Community College)
Dearborn college where Ahmed began his studies.