A new anthology of fiction and creative non-fiction is being written in an ongoing writing workshop at San Quentin State Prison by 12 men, mostly Lifers, all serious writers. A strong theme emerging from this collection is the nature of violence and its effects on human beings, and the kind of struggle required to turn violence around.
The subtitle of this anthology, “Tragedy, Struggle, and Hope,” speaks to this kind of vision. However, the seriousness of the subject matter doesn’t mean these stories are all heavy and harsh. There is much humor, wisdom, complexity and hope to be found in these pages.
You’ll encounter struggles of temptation and forgiveness, soul-searching inquiries into the past, tragic love stories, battle bots, psychogenic amnesia, first-person accounts of Black Power history, prehistoric family drama, gang cease-fires, tommyknockers, and much more.
The class had the honor of Tobias Wolff visiting and contributing a foreword for this book.
Proceeds from this book go through the William James Association to support the program. To order go to: brothersinpen.wordpress.com.
Brothers In Pen: “A Means of Escape”
A second anthology of short stories, written by prisoners here at San Quentin State Prison is now out in print. Some stories are fiction, some memoir/creative non-fiction, and some a combination. The subject matter here is as wide as the imagination. This is a culmination of over a year’s work of labor by prisoners, many of them Lifers, all serious writers.
Copies are available from: “brothersinpen.wordpress.com” All proceeds from the sale of this book go through the William James Association to support the Creative Writing class through the Arts-in-Corrections program. The first anthology, “Brothers in Pen,” is also still available.