CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
The PEN/Hemingway Award for debut fiction
Guidelines and submission forms available for download here
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Helene Atwan, PEN/Hemingway Award administrator

 

The PEN/Hemingway Foundation Award is given for a novel or book of short stories by an American author who has not previously published a book of fiction. The late Mary Hemingway, a member of PEN, founded the award in 1976 both to honor the memory of her husband, Ernest Hemingway, and to recognize distinguished first books of fiction. The award is funded by the Ernest Hemingway Foundation, which has been administered by the Hemingway Society since 1987, and PEN New England. In addition to $10,000, the winner also receives a one-week residency in The Distinguished Visiting Writers Series at the University of Idaho’s MFA Program in Creative Writing. In addition, the winner and competition finalists and honorable mentions receive Ucross Residency Fellowships at the Ucross Foundation in Wyoming, a retreat for artists and writers.  A panel of three distinguished fiction writers selects the winner.
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A Conversation with Past PEN Hemingway Winners 2011

Joshua Ferris, Ha Jin and Marilynne Robinson described how winning the PEN Hemingway Award for their first novels affected their careers. Helene Atwan, Director of Beacon Press, moderated.
watch video
 
 
 
 
 

PEN/ Hemingway & PEN/ Winship Awards Ceremony
To watch the ceremony, click here.

The 2012 PEN/ Hemingway Award for First Fiction
Teju Cole, Open City

Finalists:
Amy Waldman, The Submission
Stephanie Powell Watts, We Are Taking Only What We Need

Honorable Mentions:
Marjorie Hudson, Accidental Birds of the Carolinas
Chad Harbach, The Art of Fielding

Previous PEN Hemingway Award Winners

 

Dorothy Allison and Gail Tsukiyama with 2010 winner Brigid Pasulka.

Helene Atwan with Ben Fountain, Jennifer Haigh and Andre Dubus III.