The government misleads the public about the purpose of penitentiary. They state their purpose is for rehabilitation rather than penalizing. If this is true, why do some state legislators pass Son of Sam laws, which prohibit inmates from profiting off manuscripts about their criminal offense? Inmates in Virginia may “submit manuscripts to publishers for publication,” per Virginia Department of Corrections Operating Procedure 022.2 Inmate and Probationer/Parolee Access to the News Media – Procedure 11.(c). However, Virginia prison rules and policies conflict with this PO by stating prisoners can’t operate a business.
Literary agents rarely are interested in prisoner manuscripts because the manuscripts are usually unprofessional. Unfortunately, some prison law libraries ban inmates from typing documents unrelated to legal cases, despite providing typewriters. Thank God for USC PEP-Readers Circle Program. It gives inmates opportunities to have their handwritten manuscripts edited and typed for free.
News and media entertainment companies are skeptical of publishing manuscripts about inhumane conditions and innocence claims to avoid involvement with exposing the government. Paying you for your manuscript is possible only if you got a headline story.
Educational institutions, foundations, and organizations welcome manuscripts by inmates if they comply with their submission guidelines. The majority prefer manuscripts through email and online submissions that include a reading fee. But reading fees can hinder an inmate’s success at getting published if they can’t afford it. So prisoners must find writing contests without reading fees. Try Pen America – Annual Writing Contest and Writing for Justice Fellowship (Currently on a hiatus).
EDUCATION
Virginia Department of Corrections Operating Procedure 601.6 (Career and Technical Education Programs) and 601.5 (Academic Programs) doesn’t include college correspondence courses. In fact, you’ll have to pay for secondary schooling if the prison approves of your request. All states haven’t approved of prisoners receiving the Second Chance Pell Grant. Adams State University is the only prison education program accepting Second Chance Pell Grant for prisoners. Read OP 601.6 111.(5)(N): “Requires that the DOC restrict a student from completing more than one CTE program in total while confined to the DOC…” There are exceptions.
Nevertheless, if prisoners are incarcerated to be rehabilitated, offer more educational opportunities. Until that transpires, I’m inclined to believe DOC is designed to limit our potential.
BLOG
I salute Inmate Blogger for giving inmates the chance to be heard for free and for posting blogs without diluting content. This organization isn’t trying to suppress prisoner stories from being published. As an incarcerated writer (if you have someone who will help you maintain it, you should blog) you can blog on a blogging platform or service like Blogger, Moveable Type, and WordPress. You can be paid by Google AdSense, who pays you when someone clicks the ad. You can be paid by Affiliate Products. People placing ads on your blog for a fee.
Joel Aaron Burrell #1201708
Keen Mountain Correctional Center
PO Box 860
Oakwood, VA 24631
https://www.jpay.com
