The PEN Ten with Behrouz Boochani
I have been living my whole life under a system that wants to define my identity in a certain way and to dictate “who I am.” More
The PEN Ten with Khadijah Queen
I wanted to say that my identity determines my opportunities to make a living, how much or little time I get to spend writing, and what I write about.… More
The PEN Ten with Luis Alberto Urrea
Writers are particularly dangerous...writing strikes the heart and mind so profoundly, in such a way that it can overturn prejudice or hidebound beliefs. More
The PEN Ten with Marcus Wicker
There will always be a special place in my heart for those of us who find ways to express our beliefs and life obsessions absent of politics and megaphones... More
The PEN Ten with Mychal Denzel Smith
What we are compelled to believe is based on our relationship to power…my work navigates truth by understanding it as a struggle to reshape power. More
The PEN Ten with Kamilah Aisha Moon
Facts seem immutable, but they are used to construct reality and serve experience, which varies so widely and seems inextricably tied to what one believes. More
The PEN Ten with Carmen Maria Machado
Government censorship is never acceptable. Private organizations have the right to dictate what sorts of ideas they want to host or sponsor, and should be held accountable for those… More
The PEN Ten with Natalie Graham
I find myself thinking the responsibility is to reveal a thing the most beautiful way. Beauty is a trap, but I can't think of what else the writer is… More
The PEN Ten with sam sax
I do have more to say about what a good writer is and ought to do, which I think carries many of the same qualities as a good person.… More
The PEN Ten with Laura Swearingen-Steadwell
At its heart, the emotional truth of a poem matters the most. In nonfiction, a fact is a fact is a fact. The end. More
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