Interviews & Features
PEN America produces a breadth of interviews and features throughout the year.
The PEN Ten with Jimmy Santiago Baca
What is the responsibility of the writer? To toss out like old rotten salad the yearning for fame and money and get busy fighting for human rights and protesting… More
The PEN Ten with Monique Truong
Writers or rather our works begin the conversations about the difficult, unanswerable subjects of life, and often our works keep the conversations going when everyone else would rather forget.… More
A Conversation with Eisa Davis & Eisa Ulen.
"Born of the bloodfire of struggle for the people. I honor my child with your daughter’s name. May they both be strong forces of love and revolution."These are the… More
The PEN Ten with emily m. danforth
I fear that it sounds too nicey-nice, too passive, which isn’t my intention—writers can and should agitate and expose and upset. But I still think there’s something there in… More
PEN Ten with Chris Abani
Writers and storytellers as a whole are curators of our common humanity. This is difficult because we curate not just the good, but also the bad, the totality that… More
The PEN Ten with Alexander Chee
At some point recently I realized I mostly read about assassins. Assassins and sex work—in particular, I'm fascinated by the new porn narratives, the way porn has moved on… More
The PEN Ten with Karen Emmerich
The writer might have no responsibilities whatsoever, but the translator has only responsibilities—or at least that’s the popular perception. That’s why we’re always failing—according, again, to the popular perception.… More
Where Impunity Reigns: An Interview with Oluwafiropo Ewenla of Nigerian PEN
In honor of the International Day to End Impunity, we're publishing our interview with Oluwafiropo Ewenla of Nigerian PEN about free expression in Nigeria, human rights, and his trip… More
Interview: Myanmar PEN’s Nay Phone Latt
PEN International's Sarah Clarke catches up with Nay Phone Latt at the Internet Governance Forum (IFG) in Indonesia to talk about the impact of the political changes in Myanmar… More
The PEN Ten with Nancy K. Miller
I think constantly about aging and dying. Given my age and illness, this is in no way surprising, but the specter of a horrible death hovers over my waking… More