Submissions for the 2018 PEN Literary Awards
The submission period for the 2018 PEN America Literary Awards has ended. Submissions and nominations for the 2019 awards cycle (for books published in 2018) will be accepted starting… More
History, Hatred, and Hope: Writers on Charlottesville
For centuries, writers have helped us process and understand the most difficult, controversial, and heated moments in our history, as well as their historical influences and future trajectories. Today,… More
PEN America Unveils 50 Years of Literary Luminaries and Cultural Crossroads in Online Archive
PEN America launches archives online, home to over 50 years' worth of audio and video recordings of meetings, panels, and public events, covering a breathtaking range of social, political,… More
Oakland, Cal.
The horses go running through my mind. My student says / She wouldn’t believe police if they told her the sky is blue. More
Natalie Scenters-Zapico: Because They Lack Country
2017 PEN/Joyce Osterweil Award for Poetry winner Natalie Scenters-Zapico reads her poem "Because They Lack Country" at the 2017 PEN America Literary Awards Ceremony, with musical accompaniment by Ernesto… More
Scene from Suzan-Lori Parks’s Play “Topdog/Underdog”
Actors Matthew J. Harris and Tyrone Mitchell Henderson perform a scene from playwright Suzan-Lori Parks' play "Topdog/Underdog". More
PEN America’s Activist Guide to AWP 2017
PEN America has put together a guide to all events taking place at this year's Association of Writing Professionals (AWP) conference focusing on activism or action. More
TEJU COLE BECOMES FIRST WRITER EVER TO BE NAMED FINALIST FOR TWO PEN AMERICA LITERARY AWARDS
PEN America announced the finalists today for its 2017 Literary Awards, including Teju Cole, who becomes the first writer in the award program’s 54-year history to be named a… More
Fatima Shaik: ”Books Like These Are Meant to be Troubling”
On Tuesday, December 6, the Accomack County Public Schools Board, in eastern Virginia, voted to return the books To Kill a Mockingbird and Huckleberry Finn to county classrooms. The… More
An Excerpt from The Blind Writer: Stories and a Novella
We are delighted to announce that Sameer Pandya has been selected as our 2017 PEN/Civitella Fellow. Through a generous partnership with the Civitella Ranieri Foundation, an artist residency located… More
Alert Us
Are you an artist at risk or know someone who is?
PEN America On 
Oakland, Calif., voted to pass an ordinance that would ban municipal use of face recognition technology: https://t.co/LT1PgbmBLQ. Read more on mounting bipartisan concern over facial recognition: https://t.co/fNmeQXtG0z via @thomasomelia for @aminterest.
These Journalists Are Facing Huge Threats And Injustice For Pursuing The Truth: https://t.co/OWrh3QSF6X via @BuzzFeedNews. PEN America continues to advocate on behalf of individual writers who are being persecuted because of their work: https://t.co/LUzJMNFFmZ. #pressfreedom