An advisor for the Prison Journalism Project, John J. Lennon shares his views on how to write well from behind bars with some key quotes from amazing people who have influenced his own work.
EXCERPT
I had just finished a deep-dive interview and was daydreaming in my cell, listening to Halsey on my tablet through Audio Technica headphones. I was pacing and thinking about the material. I tend to get emotional when I think about my subjects because I often relate to their struggle — externally, internally — to overcome the complication of this prison life. That’s empathy. That’s what journalism has taught me. I imagine what the story will look like in the slicks (glossy magazines), how the illustration or photography will pop in the well — the splashy two-page spreads in the back of magazines. I see “the deck,” the few lines that tease the story. Those are feature stories, the pinnacle of print journalism. That’s what I do. From my cell.