On creating a writing life behind bars

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Dear Friend,

Today marks the launch of PEN America's new original anthology, The Sentences That Create Us: Crafting A Writer's Life in Prison ([link removed]) , published by Haymarket Books.

In 2018, when I arrived at PEN America, I was affirmed to discover a diverse and active world of writers in prison, many of whom were completely unaware of the others in their widespread community. Through the stacks of mail marked “Prison Writing” that arrive at the PEN America office each day, I also learned that there are a million reasons to write while incarcerated—the polishing of skills necessary for effective legal work and grievance writing, letters to loved ones that puncture through the doldrums of repetitive days, the desire to self- reflect and make sense of a complex past, a healthy outlet to let off steam and wrestle with a fraught emotional life, and many more. Writing is a mighty tool that wields great power. In prison, I learned, writing can also be a matter of life and death.
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With these letters informing the content of this instructional, inspirational, aspirational and historical text, and with the help of a vibrant through-the-walls literary community, we've created a robust 350 page road map for incarcerated people and their allies to have a thriving writing life behind bars—and shared beyond the walls—that draws on the unique insights of more than fifty contributors, most themselves justice-involved, to offer advice, inspiration and resources. With generous support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, we will be donating and distributing 75,000 copies of the book in classroom sets to as many prison libraries nationwide as possible, as well as to higher education and creative writing programs working with justice-involved communities.

The Sentences That Create Us ([link removed]) is a comprehensive resource writers can grow with, beginning with the foundations of creative writing. A roster of impressive contributors including Reginald Dwayne Betts (Felon: Poems), Mitchell S. Jackson (Survival Math), Wilbert Rideau (In the Place of Justice) and Piper Kerman (Orange is the New Black), among many others, address working within and around the severe institutional, emotional, psychological and physical limitations of writing prison through compelling first-person narratives. The book’s authors offer pragmatic advice on editing techniques, pathways to publication, writing routines, launching incarcerated-run prison publications and writing groups, lesson plans from prison educators and next-step resources.

Threaded throughout the book is the running theme of addressing lived trauma in writing, and writing’s capacity to support an authentic healing journey centered in accountability and restoration. While written towards people in the justice system, this book can serve anyone seeking hard won lessons and inspiration for their own creative—and human—journey.

You can check out some amazing blurbs and advance reviews here ([link removed]) . I would be so grateful for your support in spreading the word, tweeting about it (tag us @PENAmerica), ordering a copy, and asking your local bookstore or library to stock it. Additionally, if you know anyone who might want a classroom set of the book, to teach it or to send a copy to a friend in prison, you can reach out to our team through this form. ([link removed])

It would mean a lot to me to see your friendly face at our virtual book launch on February 1 ([link removed]) , where Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah will moderate a conversation about the book between myself and Dwayne Betts.

Editing these original and stirring pieces liberated my own spirit and creative force. I believe the powerful work in this collection will do the same for anyone who reads it, whether inside prison or out. Your purchases of the book will directly support our Prison Writing Program ([link removed]) . Thank you for your continued support of PEN America's work.

All my best,
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Caits Meissner
Director, Prison and Justice Writing
PEN America
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“A book rich with craft and the vitality of necessity. An essential collection and a gift to the world.”
—Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, author of Friday Black
“The Sentences That Create Us is a wonderful immersive guide into the world of writing (and reading) that will explain, reinterpret and transform genres you thought you knew."
—Donna Murch, author of Assata Taught Me
"Not only a powerful guidebook for all who are curious about developing a writing practice, this radical collection also demonstrates how people surviving and resisting the prison industrial complex reimagine and rebuild our world."
—Erica R. Meiners, co-author of Abolition. Feminism. Now.
“This book, unlike any other I’ve read, takes seriously the beating hearts and curious minds behind the bars of a nation obsessed with punishing the most vulnerable.”
—Kiese Laymon, author of Heavy
"This volume is an homage to the power of writing to deliver each of us from our individual confines into the soaring infinity of our imaginations.”
—Jennifer Egan, author of A Visit from the Goon Squad
"Shooting stars on every page, this book is instructional beyond its promise. Through it, we may just learn that we have always had better solutions than bars and walls.”
—Gina Dent, co-author of Abolition. Feminism. Now.


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