Illustrated PEN
The Illustrated PEN aspires to be at the intersection of literature, journalism, and visual storytelling, where images and words come together in an ever-emerging and essential creative form. We feature fiction and nonfiction graphic narratives, comics journalism and illustrated reportage, stories of social justice, and personal stories that can’t be told through words alone.
The Secret Life of Gitmo’s Women
One night, a “friend” slipped something into my drink. I don’t remember what happened. But he told me I’d wanted it. More
Not Funny Ha-Ha
There were women of all ages, colors, backgrounds. Some looked scared, some were chatting with other women. Some were silent. More
Next World Tarot
A visual spectacle of both the battle cry and the reconnection between outcasts and their criminalized identities. More
#Snowflake
I remember that horrible feeling on election night, when it became clear things were rapidly going south. More
Weekend After
I grew up in the deep south during segregation. It was the worst racism and discrimination. But we fought and we didn’t let ourselves become hopeless. More
Battleground
When I lived between border patrol checkpoints, no one ever told me to go home. More
Precious Time
There’s nothing like losing your country when you’re little to help you see NATIONALISM as the strange and unnatural thing that it is. More
Evident Truths
My Maternal grandmother was 6 years old when the 19th amendment passed. Her mother, who was illiterate, wouldn’t get to vote until her daughters brought her to the polls… More