Writer in Residence
Cristi Donoso Best
read more
Blog
Faith Angel Campbell
Lisa Page Writing Workshops Fellow
Hugh Hunter
Writer in Residence
Lydia Davis
Winner of the 2020 PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in the Short Story Lydia Davis's ESSAYS ONE, her first nonfiction book, was published in 2019 by Farrar, Straus & Giroux. Lydia Davis is the author of VARIETIES OF DISTURBANCE, which was a National Book Award...
Dolen Perkins-Valdez
Board Chair
LeVar Burton
PEN/FAULKNER LITERARY CHAMPION
LeVar Burton is an actor, director, educator, and cofounder of the award-winning Skybrary app; former host and executive producer of PBS’s Reading Rainbow, and a lifelong children’s literacy advocate. He hosts his own podcast, LeVar Burton Reads, sharing the best short fiction and handpicked by the best voice in podcasting.
Katherine Boone
President
Willy Vlautin
Willy Vlautin
Richard Powers
Richard Powers
Ivelisse Rodriguez
Ivelisse Rodriguez
Blanche McCrary Boyd
Blanche McCrary Boyd
Azareen Van der Vliet Oloomi
Azareen Van der Vliet Oloomi
On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous
On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
We Cast a Shadow
We Cast a Shadow by Maurice Carlos Ruffin
The Night Swimmers
The Night Swimmers by Peter Rock
Where Reasons End
Where Reasons End by Yiyun Li
Amy Hempel
Amy Hempel
Ben Lerner
Ben Lerner
G. Willow Wilson
G. Willow Wilson
Mathangi Subramanian
Mathangi Subramanian
Maurice Carlos Ruffin
Maurice Carlos Ruffin
Nicole Dennis-Benn
Nicole Dennis-Benn
Ocean Vuong
Ocean Vuong is the author of the critically acclaimed poetry collection Night Sky with Exit Wounds and the New York Times bestselling novel On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous. A recipient of the 2019 MacArthur “Genius” Grant, he is also the winner of the Whiting Award...
Peter Rock
Peter Rock is the author of ten works of fiction, most recently The Night Swimmers, SPELLS, Klickitat and The Shelter Cycle. The recipient of fellowships from Stanford University, the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, he currently...
Yiyun Li
Yiyun Li
Lauren Francis-Sharma
Vice President
Chloe Aridjis
Chloe Aridjis is a Mexican American writer who grew up in the Netherlands and Mexico. She is the author of three novels, Book of Clouds, which won the Prix du Premier Roman Etranger in France, Asunder, set in London’s National Gallery, and Sea Monsters. Chloe...
Sea Monsters
Sea Monsters by Chloe Aridjis
Charles Finch
Charles Finch is the author of several nationally bestselling novels, among them The Inheritance (Minotaur, 2016) and The Last Enchantments (St. Martin’s, 2014). His criticism regularly appears in The New York Times, Washington Post, Slate, New York, The Guardian, and...
Bernice L. McFadden
Bernice L. McFadden
Alexi Zentner
Alexi Zentner
How Literary Characters Have Shaped My Life by Isabel Callahan
“I would say I most relate to Ross from Friends.” Laying on my mom’s studio carpet, phone pressed to my ear, I smiled in response to my friend’s observation. We were in the midst of a conversation about which TV show characters we relate to the most and, after...
4 Unexpected Lessons I Have Learned from Reading Novels by Melissa Young
I have been reading since I was two years old, and there are so many reasons that I fall in love with a book. Sometimes the way a sentence is written is so beautiful, I read it over and over to let it fill my soul with its magic. Sometimes the way a character is...
Mary Haft
Mary Haft (she/her) is a writer, producer, and founder of Haft Productions, LLC, specializing in documentaries for nonprofits. She is the author of Nantucket: Portrait of an American Town and one of the founding partners of the Nantucket Book Festival. Recently, she...
Jojo Ruf
Vice President
Donna Hemans
Secretary
TWR with Aida Salazar: A Virtual Success
This fall, we were joined by wonderful interns who each wrote about an experience at an author visit that impacted them. We are thrilled to present this essay by Isabel Callahan and Melissa Young, our Literary Outreach/Education Programs interns. “So...
Voices from PEN/Faulkner Interns: Isabel Callahan
This fall, we were joined by wonderful interns who each wrote about an experience at an author visit that impacted them. We are delighted to present this essay by Isabel Callahan, one of our Literary Outreach/Education Programs interns. Visit Story – Patrice...
Voices from PEN/Faulkner Interns: Melissa Young
This fall, we were joined by wonderful interns who each wrote about an experience at an author visit that impacted them. We are delighted to present this essay by Melissa Young, one of our Literary Outreach/Education Programs interns. DC International School’s...
Thomas Lloyd
Treasurer
2020 PEN/Malamud Award Ceremony
DATE | December 4, 2020 at 7:30 PM
LOCATION | Online Event
The 2020 PEN/Malamud Award Ceremony celebrated Lydia Davis. This year’s event featured a reading, an in-depth conversation and a Q&A about Ms. Davis’ work, and remarks by Janna Malamud Smith, Bernard Malamud’s daughter. The cceremony was hosted in partnership with the MFA Program in Creative Writing at American University.
Our History
Championing the Breadth and Power of Fiction The work of the PEN/Faulkner Foundation began in 1980, when National Book Award-winner Mary Lee Settle set out to create a new prize for fiction in the United States. Judged entirely by writers, free of commercial...
Why Literary Education Matters
As has been established by multiple research studies, books and reading have a profound impact on a child’s academic achievement and post-graduation employment success. A 2012 report by Princeton University and the Brookings Institution found that “over the past forty...
Morgan Jerkins
Morgan Jenkins, Author
Nisi Shawl
Nisi Shawl, Author
Rion Amilcar Scott
Rion Amilcar Scott, Author
Margaret Atwood
Margaret Atwood, Author
ESCAPE
DATE | November 23, 2020 at 7:00 PM
LOCATION | Online Event
Literature provides the perfect opportunity to escape into new worlds in an attempt to cope with and understand all that happens in our own.
This riveting Literary Conversation featured Margaret Atwood, Rion Amilcar Scott, Nisi Shawl, and moderator Morgan Jerkins.
Anne K. Aaron
Board Member
Elliot Ackerman
Board Member
Marie Arana
Board Member
Jabari Asim
Board Member
Lisa Brooks
Board Member
Kara Chiles
Board Member
Johanna Copeland
Board Member
Tope Folarin
Board Member
Louis Bayard
Board Member
Xochitl Gonzalez
Board Member
Daniel Pink
Daniel Pink, Author
Stephen King
Stephen King, Author
Emma Donoghue
Emma Donoghue, Author
Lauren Beukes
Lauren Beukes, Author
Jackson R. Bryer
Board Member
Anthony Franze
Board Member
VIRUS
DATE | October 19, 2020 at 7:00 PM
LOCATION | Online Event
The COVID-19 pandemic has completely changed the way we live our lives. It has also shown us our weak points and failures as a society.
This fascinating and especially relevant conversation featured literary powerhouses Stephen King (The Stand), Lauren Beukes (Afterland), and Emma Donoghue (The Pull of the Stars). They were joined by moderator and author Daniel H. Pink.
Susan Ginsburg
Board Member
Molly Elkin
Board Member
Renée K. Gardner
Board Member
Caroline Kepnes
Caroline Kepnes, Author
Penn Badgley
Penn Badgley stars as Joe Goldberg in Netflix’s thriller series, "YOU," based on Caroline Kepnes’ best-selling novel of the same name. Badgley was last seen on the big screen in "Greetings" from Tim Buckley, for which he won the highly sought-after role to star as...
Chris Klimek
Chris Klimek, Journalist and Critic
Linette S. Hwu
Board Member
Angie Kim
Board Member
YOU
DATE | Wed, September 23, 2020, 7:00 PM
LOCATION | Online Event
This third installment of Literature on Screen features Caroline Kepnes, author of the best-selling book turned hit Netflix series, You. Caroline was in conversation with Penn Badgley, actor and star of the TV adaptation, and moderator Chris Klimek (NPR, Washington Post) to discuss the translation of her books to the hit Netflix series, as well as the modernization of stalking in the digital age that takes place in her novels.
Sophia McCrocklin
Board Member
Diana Rojas
Board Member
Ginny Grenham
Board Member
Elizabeth Shreve
Board Member
Clay Smith
Board Member
Katherine Field Stephen
Board Member
Bethanne Patrick
Board Member
Joanne Leedom-Ackerman
Board Member
Tony Lewis Jr.
Board Member
Malcolm O’Hagan
Board Member
Ericka Taylor
Board Member
Martha Anne Toll
Board Member
Lisa Wardell
Board Member
Lisa Page
Board Member
Voices from PEN/Faulkner Interns: Alice Tsai
We continue our spotlight on the wonderful interns we worked with this spring with an essay by our Research and Evaluation intern, Alice Tsai. As the population of the United States becomes increasingly diverse, it is important that students are in classrooms that are...
Voices from PEN/Faulkner Interns: Natalie Davis (Part 2)
This spring, we were joined by incredible interns who each wrote essays inspired by their time in the organization. We are thrilled to present the second essay by Natalie Davis, our spring Education Programs intern. “Twilight Is My Harry Potter” Author’s Note: The...
Voices from PEN/Faulkner Interns: Natalie Davis (Part 1)
This spring, we were joined by Natalie Davis, our amazing Education Programs intern, who wrote two essays inspired by her time in the organization. We are excited to share the first of them with you. “A Street Where Books and YouTube Meet” There was a time where I...
Lydia Davis Wins the 2020 PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in the Short Story
WASHINGTON, DC—The PEN/Faulkner Foundation announces that Lydia Davis has been selected as the winner of the 2020 PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in the Short Story. Presented since 1988 in honor of the late Bernard Malamud, the award recognizes...
A Statement from Dolen Perkins-Valdez, Chair and Tracy B. McGillivary, President
PEN/Faulkner extends its condolences to the family and friends of George Floyd and the countless black families who have lost loved ones at the hands of the police. We stand in solidarity with activists, racial justice advocates, and other members of the...
Our Video Celebration of the 2020 PEN/Faulkner Award
Please join us in paying tribute to our 2020 winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, Chloe Aridjis’ Sea Monsters, as well as our four finalists: Yiyun Li’s Where Reasons End; Peter Rock’s The Night Swimmers; Maurice Carlos Ruffin’s We Cast a Shadow; and Ocean...
Announcing the Winner of the 2020 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction: SEA MONSTERS by Chloe Aridjis
WASHINGTON, DC—Chloe Aridjis’ Sea Monsters (Catapult) has been selected as the winner of the 2020 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction. “In these extraordinary times, the written word has never been so important or healing,” said Louis Bayard, PEN/Faulkner...
Announcing the 2020 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction Finalists
Judges have selected the five finalists for the 2020 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, America’s largest peer-juried prize for fiction. The finalists are Sea Monsters by Chloe Arijdis(Catapult), Where Reasons End by Yiyun Li(Random...
WIRED
DATE | February 27, 2020 at 7:00 PM
LOCATION | Jack Morton Auditorium, 805 21st Street NW, Washington, DC 20052
According to the NIMH, almost twenty percent of American adults live with a mental illness. From social anxiety and depression to bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, mental illness is becoming more prevalent in today’s society and everyday dialogue.
The 40th Anniversary PEN/Faulkner Award Celebration
Monday, May 4 at The Willard Hotel 6:30 pm, Cocktails 7:30 pm, Dinner and Award Program Join us on the 40th anniversary of the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction as we celebrate this year’s distinguished books and authors. This exquisite literary evening—our sole...
Announcing the 2020 PEN/Faulkner Award Longlist
In honor of the 40th anniversary of the PEN/Faulkner Award, we asked this year’s award judges to select a long list of the ten most significant books published in 2019. We are pleased to announce the following books which have been longlisted for the 2020 PEN/Faulkner...
Wired: A Literary Conversation on Mental Health – Tickets On Sale Now!
We are excited to announce that our first Literary Conversation of 2020, Wired, will be held on Thursday, February 27. Tickets can be purchased here. According to the NIMH, almost twenty percent of American adults live with a mental illness. From social anxiety and...
SUPPORT US
Your support enables PEN/Faullkner Foundation programs such as Literary Conversations, Education Programs for DC public schools and the PEN/Faulkner awards.
Thank you!
FOLLOW US
Join Our Mailing List
To make sure you never miss out on one of PEN/Faulkner’s inspiring literary programs and award celebrations, sign up for our email list.