What I Learned About Self-Publishing in the Arab World (And Why It Matters for All of Us)

Substack Writers Salon · May 2, 2026 · 31m · transcript

Last week, I sat down with a pioneering Palestinian journalist Daoud Kuttab who’s been shaping conversations about media freedom in the MENA region for over four decades and has authored multiple books.

Our conversation was a masterclass in how radically different the publishing landscape is depending on where in the world you happen to be sitting.

And, surprisingly, it made me appreciate KDP in a way I never had before.

Let me break down what I learned.

1. The Arab press is “totally free” — except about itself.

Daoud put it perfectly:

“The press in the Arab world is totally free in…