The PEN Pod: On Loose Ends and Plot Twists with Lisa Jewell
“The feeling of the book comes first. . . and then the bigger themes that encompass society and where we find ourselves now come much further down the line.” More
The PEN Pod: On Finding the Extraordinary in the Ordinary with Fredrik Backman
“I was going to try to write something about the things that everyday people go around carrying—that feeling that everybody else has their life figured out, except for me.” More
PEN to Paper: Authentic Voices with James Hannaham
Our final PEN to Paper episode features multidisciplinary artist and PEN/Faulkner Award-winning novelist James Hannaham on how to write authentic characters. More
The PEN Pod: On the Inequities of Survival with Megan Giddings
“Our healthcare system in this country is so deeply inequitable and hostile toward the people it’s supposed to serve.“ More
The PEN Pod: Everywhere You Don’t Belong with Gabriel Bump
“What I hope that we can gain from this moment and the Black Lives Matter movement in general is that all Black lives matter.” More
PEN to Paper: Hot Tips from Mona Simpson
Novelist Mona Simpson believes writing is a constant practice, and to help you nurture yours, she shares five tips, plenty of helpful anecdotes, and even some musical inspiration in… More
The PEN Pod: How We Write Our Survival with Lisa Ko
“Even when the future does feel uncertain, like right now, it feels important to. . . imagine a future for ourselves as well as our characters.” More
PEN to Paper: Writing the Landscape with Janet Fitch
Janet Fitch, the best-selling author of White Oleander, reminds us why it is so important to create a world that readers can enter. More
PEN to Paper: The Discipline of the Haiku with Mark Nowak
Poet Mark Nowak shares a haiku exercise he developed for reckoning with the pandemic at the Worker Writers School, PEN America’s writing program for low-wage workers. More
PEN to Paper: Writing Through Intuition with Ananda Naima González
Ananda Naima González helps us achieve total freedom from the conventions of literary expression through “asemic writing.” More
Alert Us
Are you an artist at risk or know someone who is?
PEN America On 
Keep calm and curl up with a good book about #democracy, #disinformation, or #votingrights--it's at least more soothing than Twitter! @PENamerica has some suggestions.
https://pen.org/what-to-expect-when-youre-electing-reading-list/
NEW: Yet another member of @pen_belarus has been detained for speaking out against the Belarusian government. Poet Dmitry Strotsev was sentenced to 13 days in prison after taking part in a peaceful demonstration.
Our statement. https://pen.org/press-release/poet-and-pen-belarus-member-imprisoned-for-demonstrating/
In the leadup to #Election2020 we're turning to the words of writers for their perspectives on how to use their voices for change. Hear from @rokwon for @ellemagazine, on the discipline of hope and the power of collective action https://www.elle.com/culture/career-politics/a34384183/ro-kwon-activism-essay/