Founded a century ago in 1922, PEN America (the abbreviation short for “Poets, Essayists and Novelists”) champions the freedom to write, and the power of writing to change minds—and even the world.
Literary greats Eugene O’Neill and Robert Frost were among the organization’s founding members. Since then, renown authors John Steinbeck, Maya Angelou EL Doctorow, John Updike, Toni Morrison, Philip Roth and Thomas Mailer joined to support the organization’s mission.
I was invited to attend the 2023 PEN America annual literary gala and serve as a Literary Hosts. Hosted this week in New York City’s American Museum of Natural
