Interviews & Features
PEN America produces a breadth of interviews and features throughout the year.
The PEN Pod: On Identity Politics, Queer Selfhood, and Libraries with Lisa Hiton and Dylan Zavagno
“Queer poetics right now, at least as the poems that we have are beginning to tell us, say a lot about revolution, image, form—form being an equivalent to the… More
The PEN Pod: On Belarus, Hong Kong, and Free Speech Rights for Students
“We’ve come to recognize how vitally important it is to educated young people on free speech rights, and that isn’t being systematically done.” More
The PEN Ten: An Interview with John Paul Brammer
“There’s something about writing that can turn thoughts into objects, into something that you can turn around and fiddle with and polish up.” More
The PEN Pod: On Crackdowns in Crimea with Emine Dzheppar
“What makes me really motivated and encouraged to keep on doing what I do at the moment. . . is people. Those brave ones, those courageous ones.” More
The PEN Pod: On Iran, Digital Sovereignty, and Divisive Topics on Campus
“[There’s a hypocrisy of] purporting to be a champion of free speech on campus. . . and at the same time, trying to pass a bill stating that certain… More
Local LGBTQ+ Reporters in Conversation: Jason Parsley
“LGBT presses are not in it to make money, per se. . . . There is a love and a sense of community that big corporations do not care… More
The PEN Ten: An Interview with Choi Eunyoung, Translated by Sung Ryu
“Although a book isn’t a person, I hoped that mine would be a book that ‘listens’ to the stories of people going through similar battles as me.” More
Local LGBTQ+ Reporters in Conversation: Darian Aaron
“It matters that a journalist reporting on Black LGBTQ+ stories understands the complexities and nuances of life in the South . . . those in which we’ve been included… More
Local LGBTQ+ Reporters in Conversation: Tammye Nash
“it is our job to make our community real to the larger society. LGBTQ media should put a human face to our community so that non-LGBTQ folks see us… More
The PEN Pod: On Threats to Journalists, Information Ecosystems, and Critical Race Theory
“The gag order—what it illustrates is just the breadth and the power that the Justice Department has had to silence and stifle inquiry.” More