John Corley

John Corley is the associate editor of The Angolite, the news magazine of the Louisiana State Penitentiary. He is a recipient of a National Council on Crime and Delinquency Journalism Award, and has received PEN Prison Writing Awards from PEN America for his fiction, playwriting, and poetry. His work has appeared in criminal justice textbooks and literary journals, including The Atlantic, Hanging Loose, Zocalo Public Square, and other publications. He is the author of two collections of original poetry.

2022 PEN America Prison Writing Contest – Honorable Mention in Poetry for “First Night

2018 PEN America Prison Writing Contest – Honorable Mention in Fiction for “The Bizarre Conclusion of Walter Germany

Winner, 2006 PEN America Prison Writing Contest – 2nd Place in Drama for “Time Served or Conversatin’ Wi’ De Dade”


Articles by John Corley

Prison and Justice Writing
Wednesday September 7

First Night

John Corley was awarded an Honorable Mention in Poetry in the 2022 Prison Writing Contest. Every year, hundreds of imprisoned people from around the country submit poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and dramatic works to PEN America’s Prison Writing Contest, one of the few outlets of free expression for the country’s incarcerated population. The first of 12,000

Prison and Justice Writing
Monday August 6

The Bizarre Conclusion of Walter Germany

“Look at yourself, sitting there with your teeny pop gun, defending your castle against what? Where are the intruders? Remember what they say: the best defense is a good offense, right?”