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An Interview with PEN/Robert J. Dau Prize Winner: Erin Connal
I wanted to explore the slippery space that misbehaving as a group allows us. The story is about a group who does something terrible but the individuals in the… More
The PEN Ten: An Interview with Fatimah Asghar
It’s important for us to keep making stories that actually have nuanced portrayals of the communities that we come from, and also break the burden of needing our voices… More
PEN America Condemns Transfer of Vietnamese Writer Pham Doan Trang to Remote Prison
“From Pham Doan Trang’s lengthy incommunicado detention to the wholly disproportionate and unjustified sentence of nine years in prison handed down in her case last year, it comes as… More
Cancellation of Down In Mississippi Play on Texas Campus Is An Affront to Artistic Freedom
Jonathan Friedman, director of free expression and education programs, said: "The decision to cancel this production because of some students' objections is an alarming affront to artistic freedom. While students'… More
NEW PEN America Report: Digital Censorship and Threats to Creative Expression Rise Against Artists in Asia
“In the last two years, we have witnessed a steady rise in threats and persecution of artists across Asia, a trend where governments are deliberately targeting and silencing cultural… More
An Interview with PEN/Robert J. Dau Prize Winner: Edward Salem
Translating can make a story overly accessible in a way that’s patronizing. I’d rather have the reader experience the unfamiliarity of being in a foreign place. More
An Interview with PEN/Robert J. Dau Prize Winner: Cal Shook
something I hope readers might hold onto is the current of agency that runs through this story, even if the woman at its center seems often adrift. More
Conservatives’ Panic Over Teachers Misses How Little Freedom They Have
In preventing teachers from guiding students in debate and critical inquiry and inhibiting them from educating about social justice, we have weakened the core elements of American democracy. More
An Interview with PEN/Robert J. Dau Prize Winner: Patch Kirschenbaum
It can sometimes be remarkably difficult as a fiction writer to escape the feeling that you are writing into the abyss. More
PEN America Recognizes the Courage and Activism of Nobel Peace Prize Winners in Ukraine, Russia and Belarus
“Living under a government determined to break the will of even its most stalwart critics, Bialiatski has fought for human rights unflinchingly for decades, sacrificing his freedom, safety, and… More