2027 PEN/Jean Stein Grants for Literary Oral History
Ends on
The PEN/Jean Stein Grants for Literary Oral History recognize literary works of nonfiction that use oral history to illuminate an event, individual, place, or movement. Two PEN/Jean Stein Grants for Literary Oral History are awarded each year, with a cash prize of $15,000.
Deadline: Submissions will be accepted from April 15 through June 15, 2026. Submissions will close at 11:59 p.m. EST on June 15th.
Eligibility:
- The submitted project must be the work of a single individual, written in English.
- The project must be an unpublished work in progress that will not be published prior to April 15, 2027, as the grants are intended to support the completion of a manuscript.
- The project must be a work of literary nonfiction.
- Oral history must be a significant component of the project and its research.
NOT eligible: Scholarly or academic writing.
Submission guidelines:
All documents should be formatted in 12pt Times New Roman with 1-inch margins. Each document should be single spaced with the exception of the writing sample which should be double spaced.
- A 1-2 page description of the work, answering: Why is this project important, and why did this author choose to undertake this project?
- A 1-2 page statement answering: Why and how is oral history used in the project?
- A 1-2 page statement answering: How will this grant aid in the completion of the project? (This space can additionally be used to discuss any permissions, rights, contracts, publication timelines, or other aspects of your project.)
- The author’s CV, including information on previous or forthcoming publications.
- An outline that includes the work completed thus far and the work remaining. The outline should include the names of interviewees.
- 6-10 pages of unedited transcripts of the project interviews relating to the writing sample.
- A 20-40 page writing sample which utilizes the submitted project interviews. This document should be double spaced for legibility.
Please consult our FAQ before contacting awards@pen.org with any questions.