Interviews & Features
PEN America produces a breadth of interviews and features throughout the year.
The PEN Ten: An Interview with Poet Tsitsi Ella Jaji
"Poetry is a mode of discovery—I don’t know my identity except through the writing, making, contemplating of it." More
The PEN Ten: An Interview with Daniel José Older
"There is no more powerful force in our armory than story." More
Two Interviews with PEN Out Loud Participants Lindy West and Hari Kondabolu
Prior to their PEN Out Loud event, author Lindy West and comedian Hari Kondabolu talk about why they're excited to be in conversation. More
The PEN Ten: An Interview with the 2019 Writing for Justice Fellows
"Not everyone will understand what they’re trying to do or why it matters, but plenty will. And those are the people you want to write to and for." More
Works of Justice: Sarah Wang on Bearing Witness
"When we write our own stories, and the stories of those who are unable to write their own, we are choosing to not submit to language used in service… More
The PEN Ten: An Interview with Rivers Solomon
"I write, I get tired, I stop. I drop an idea. Sometimes I pick it up again. Sometimes I don’t. I write at night, when I feel like it.… More
The PEN Ten: An Interview with Nicole Chung
"Not everyone will understand what they’re trying to do or why it matters, but plenty will. And those are the people you want to write to and for." More
Jennifer Egan: PEN America Chapters Unite Readers, Writers Nationwide
In this Q&A, PEN America President Jennifer Egan talks about why PEN America chapters are vitally needed right now. More
A PEN Out Loud Interview with Nicole Dennis-Benn
"Sometimes we don’t even know or appreciate the ways in which the other person’s work speaks to ours until we’re put in conversations like PEN Out Loud." More
“Find your truth and tell it:” A PEN Ten Interview with Etaf Rum
"The process of translation makes clear that no one language has power over another." More