Guernica/PEN International's Residency for Writers at Risk

PEN International is proud to announce The Guernica/PEN International's Residency for Writers at Risk, a unique virtual residency aimed at supporting writers in exile, refugee writers, and others who are at risk, globally.

Stemming from a new partnership between PEN International and Canadian publisher and member of PEN International Publishers’ Circle, Guernica Edition, the three-month residencies are globally focused, welcoming writers working anywhere in the world to apply for the support and encouragement provided by the position. 

Belarusian poet, translator, writer, PEN Belarus member and honorary member of English PEN Hanna Komar is the first writer selected for this year’s residency from a small list of writers PEN International put forward for Guernica Editions to consider.

Hanna has published three poetry collections: Страх вышыні (Fear of Heights) and Мы вернемся (We’ll Return) in Belarusian, as well as the bilingual collection Recycled. Her work has been translated into Polish, Ukrainian, Swedish, Norwegian, German, Czech, Lithuanian, Slovenian and Russian. She translates her own work into English. She is a Freedom of Speech 2020 Prize laureate from the Norwegian Authors’ Union.

The three-month program provides $1,000 each month to the writer in residence, who will be contributing blog posts to Guernica’s website bimonthly. A virtual event with the writer will be held at the end of the residency.

Hanna Komar’s first blog post can be read here.

For more information about Guernica Editions, please visit their website. 

Note to editors

For further information, please contact Sabrina Tucci, PEN International Communications and Campaigns Manager, Sabrina.Tucci@pen-international.org