Aigul Kemelbaeva

Writer, literary scholar, screenwriter, member of the Union of Writers of Kazakhstan, and essayist Aigul Zholdasbaevna was born on March 21, 1965, in the village of Kundyzdyn, Aбай district of the former Semey region, and graduated from a Kazakh secondary school in 1982. In 1984, she entered the journalism faculty of Kazakh State University and graduated in 1987. Aigul Kemelbaeva received her first literary award at the age of 18. She worked for 11 years at the republican magazine "Abai".

In 1983, she won second place in a republican competition for children and adolescents, which resulted in the publication of her novella "Journey to the Seventh Continent" in 1986.

From 1989 to 1994, she studied in the prose department of the M. Gorky Literary Institute in Moscow. In 1996, she became a laureate of the Soros-Kazakhstan-Debut competition. In 1997, she won third place in a creative competition dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Mukhtar Auezov, and in 1998, she received the B. Bulqyshev award from the Union of Youth and Journalists.

In 1999, she became a recipient of the presidential scholarship for writers. In 2000, she was awarded the State "Daryn" prize for youth.

Since 2001, she has been a member of the Union of Writers of Kazakhstan. She has received the Presidential scholarship for writers multiple times.

In 2002-2003, she won a prize in a competition organized by the Soros-Kazakhstan Foundation called the Contemporary Kazakhstan Novel. In 2003, she won the first prize in the "Short Story of the City" contest published by the "Dala men qala" weekly newspaper, and in 2006, she received the third prize in the "Abai and Islam" literary competition organized by the philanthropist Medgat Qulzhanov, as well as the "Bayanaul Gold Medal" and the literary award from the Pavlodar region's Bayanaul district administration. In 2007, she won the first prize in the republican "Abai Alemi" competition, and in 2008, she received the second prize in the Mahmut Kashgari competition. In 2012, she became the winner of the "Bukharaibaty" award in a republican competition announced by the Kyzylorda regional drama theater.

In November 2001, at the republican council of young poets and writers, writer D. Ashimkhanuly said: "Aigul Kemelbaeva came to literature in the 1980s. With her published works in the press, Aigul became widely recognized and valued as a rare talent. Her short stories "Kongyr Kaz" and "Ghibadat" showcased what kind of writer she is. In 2023, as part of the "Abai Zholy" library project implemented with the support of the governor of Abai region, the author's collection "Munara" was published by "Foliant".

On the eve of the 10th anniversary of independence, Aigul's book "Tobylgysai" was published under the leadership of the Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan I. Tasmagambetov. Her story "Kokenai and Ergalaman" was included in the English translation of the 2019 anthology. She is a recipient of the B. Bulqyshev award from the Union of Journalists of Kazakhstan and the Union of Youth of Kazakhstan, as well as the State "Daryn" youth award. She is a member of the Union of Writers of Kazakhstan and a multiple recipient of the Presidential scholarship. In 2000, she was a laureate of the State "Daryn" youth award.