Interviews & Features
PEN America produces a breadth of interviews and features throughout the year.
The PEN Ten: An Interview with Vanessa Hua
“I searched for answers by reading books and through observation, following where my curiosity led me. That double-consciousness underpins my writer’s identity.” More
Free Speech 2020: An Interview with Cecile Richards
PEN America asked Cecile Richards to talk about what freedom of speech and expression mean to her, what freedom of speech and expression mean in 2020 specifically, and the… More
PEN Out Loud Talks: Bernardine Evaristo and Safiya Sinclair
“I cannot imagine living in a society where I do not have the kind of creative freedom I’ve taken for granted all my life.” More
The PEN Ten: An Interview with Natalie Diaz
“Free expression is its own threat. It was never intended to include most of us. And it certainly wasn’t meant to include merciless Indian savages.” More
The PEN Ten: An Interview with Maisy Card
“Writing it has to get me worked up. I use fiction as a vehicle to explore real emotions.” More
PEN Out Loud Talks: Ken Liu and Andrew Marantz
“The freedom to tell the stories we want to tell is sacred. We do not live in a world in which we are free to exercise that right; I… More
The PEN Ten: An Interview with Brandon Taylor
“Nothing is ever as it appears in fiction, I think. It’s almost always a composite of different truths.” More
The PEN Ten: An Interview with Paul Yoon
"Nothing else can do what stories can do for me: they are vast, elastic, personal, intimate—it’s all there." More
PEN Out Loud Talks: Mitchell S. Jackson and Imani Perry
"I do believe that books can change the world, or at least, how we inhabit it." More
Free Speech 2020: An Interview with Mira Jacob
PEN America sat down with author and illustrator Mira Jacob to talk about what freedom of speech and expression mean to her as a writer and teacher, the value… More