A. Ali Ural is a prominent figure in Turkish literature known for his contributions in poetry, essay, and short story genres, as well as for his roles as a poet, writer, academic, publisher, and translator. Born in 1959 in the Ladik district of Samsun, he has continued his literary production alongside his work in editing, publishing, and creative writing.

A. Ali Ural was born on 9 March 1959 in Ladik, Samsun. He completed his primary and secondary education in Ankara. He earned his undergraduate degree in 1985 from the Faculty of Arabic Language and Literature and Theology at Muhammad bin Saud University. He completed his master’s degree in 2015 at Fatih Sultan Mehmet Vakıf University’s Department of Turkish Language and Literature with a thesis titled “The Fictional Structure of Hızırla Kırk Saat,” and his doctorate from the same university with a study titled “Narrator-Reader Relationships in Turkish Short Story Writing (Examples of Sabahattin Ali, Sait Faik, and Mustafa Kutlu).”

A. Ali Ural’s first poem was published in 1982 in the magazine Mavera. After completing his higher education, he worked briefly as an editor and intensified his activities in literature and publishing during this period. His literary career, which began with poetry, gradually expanded to include essays, short stories, and critical texts.

Ural founded Şûle Yayınları in 1990. In 1997, he began publishing the monthly art magazine Merdiven Sanat, which ran for 22 issues. He also published and managed the bimonthly book and culture magazine Kitaphaber (29 issues) and the bi-monthly poetry and poetics magazine Merdiven Şiir (15 issues). Since February 2012, he has served as the general editor of Karabatak, a magazine whose first issue was published that month.

A. Ali Ural served as president of the Istanbul Branch of the Turkish Writers’ Union from 2006 to 2012. He was also a member of the Repertoire Committee of Istanbul City Theatres for a period. Since 2011, he has taught courses such as “Creative Writing,” “Written and Oral Expression,” and “Turkish Language” at various universities, primarily Fatih Sultan Mehmet Vakıf University. Since 1995, Ural has trained students in creative writing workshops using a master-apprentice model and is also the president of the AYA Art and Thought Foundation.

Poetry:
Körün Parmak Uçları (1998), Kuduz Aşısı (2006), Gizli Buzlanma (2013), Mara ve Öteki Şiirler (2017), Kâğıda Sarılı Rüzgâr (2022), Kana Karışan (2022), Okçu Duası (2024).

Short Stories:
Yangın Merdiveni (2000), Fener Bekçisinin Rüyaları (2011).

Essays:
Posta Kutusundaki Mızıka (1999), Makyaj Yapan Ölüler (2004), Resimde Görünmeyen (2006), Güneşimin Önünden Çekil (2007), Satranç Oynayan Derviş (2008), Tek Kelimelik Sözlük (2009), Ejderha ve Kelebek (2010), Bostancı Bahane (2010), Peygamber’in Aynaları (2015), Bisiklet Dersleri (2017), Ay Tiradı (2018), Raf Ömrü (2019), Şairin Şairleri (2023), Yazarlığa Giriş (2025).

Translation and Research:
Divan / İmam Şâfiî’nin Şiirleri (2002).

A. Ali Ural holds a perspective that places poetry at the center of literary genres. He associates poetry not with semantic boundaries but with intuition and association. Human beings, time, space, and metaphysical themes are prominent in his poetry, short stories, essays, and critical writings.

• Ejderha ve Kelebek won the Turkish Writers’ Union Essay Award (2010);
• Gizli Buzlanma won the Turkish Writers’ Union Poetry Award (2013);
• International Abdullah Tukay Grand Poetry Award (2015, Tatarstan – Kazan);
• Istanbul Literature Festival Award for Outstanding Contribution to Literary Publishing (2015);
• Ankara Literature Festival Grand Poetry Award (2022);
• Kâğıda Sarılı Rüzgâr won the International Kahramanmaraş Literature Awards Book of the Year in Poetry.