The PEN Pod: Rediscovering the Joys of Literature with Bernardine Evaristo
“The characters start to come alive, and in a sense, those characters start to speak to me. . . And that, for me, is the magic of writing.” More
The PEN Pod: Incarceration Amid COVID-19 with Beth Shelburne
“The bottom line is we have too many people in our jails and prisons for far too long, and that makes all of these other issues so much worse.” More
The PEN Pod: Mapping the Life Cycle of the Virus with Judy Melinek and T.J. Mitchell
“Whenever I have the opportunity to choose a movie, I always try to choose something post-apocalyptic. . . that's even scarier than what we're going through.” More
The PEN Pod: Tough Questions with Suzanne Nossel
“When it comes to the scientists, in the middle of a pandemic, this really is a matter of life and death.” More
The PEN Pod: Recalibrating Our Priorities with Ruchika Tomar
“The desire that I’m seeing for connection is really heartening, because what we’re doing as writers is responding to human experience.” More
Information on Federal Coronavirus Emergency Relief for the Literary Community
In Washington, two major relief laws have the potential to help writers, small bookstores, publishers, literary organizations, and others in our sector get through the economic crisis posed by… More
The PEN Pod: Staying Connected and Collected with Yiyun Li
“I thought every day I would write some words that give my life a structure. . . Writing words also structures my life.” More
Congress Must Include Local News in Next Coronavirus Stimulus
(Washington, DC) – A coalition of nearly 50 organizations is calling on Congress to include vital funding for local news in the next stimulus package proposed in response to… More
Letter: Local News and Coronavirus Stimulus Legislation
We, the undersigned organizations, write to express our concern over the disappearance of local news and information in communities around the country. More
The PEN Pod: Keeping Literary Culture Alive Through Resilience with Jennifer Egan
“By engaging in [literature], we are entering into the dream life of a different time and place, and there’s just nothing quite like it.” More