The Swallow War
"This singular edifice sits in the center of the prison; it's open air and we call it the plaza. There are a couple of trees, some sickly grass, and… More
Execution Day—Involuntary Witness to Murder
"The significance of this cannot be understated. I’ve been down here on death watch before years ago and came within hours of being executed myself, and there’s always been… More
Going Forward with Gus
"As Gus would speak about the love for his kids and the things he wished he had done better, I thought about what it would have been like to… More
The Thrill of Discovery
"My family was never much into literary books. They read cheap paperbacks that cost less than a dollar, the stories printed on thin newsprint." More
Emerging Voices’ Community and Connections
"Emerging Voices offers a community that is forever welcoming new family. And I can’t wait to hear how those voices sound." More
Speaking Silence
"As a Mexican-Filipino-East Indian teen, I felt most comfortable in silence—scribbling words into notebooks, hoping my classmates couldn’t see me." More
Stones Refused: A Cenacle in South Central
It’s important that we express our experience for our benefit and for the world’s. We learn through stories, we experience through stories, we are stories. More
What Am I?
"There’s no magic pill, no chemical formula, no hack, no listicle that can help you be a writer. If you want to be a writer—first, last, and always, you… More
The Fate of NDAs in the #MeToo Era
Women are speaking out and challenging the legal norms that have long coerced them into silence, suggesting that we need a widespread reconsideration of when and how NDAs may… More
Writing from Within: On the 2018 PEN Prison Writing Contest
How do we respect the gravity of the stories we receive? How do we support the voices of those vanished from our society through incarceration? More
Alert Us
To any writer artist who is at risk, or is in need of assistance, including those denied entry into the U.S. as a result of the latest Trump Administration travel ban. 
