# Can people in prison have their writing published? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 5, 2016, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150 "2016-07-05T18:53:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/1 "2016-07-05T18:53:11Z")
For example, if an accountant or scientist was sent to prison or a psychiatric facility and wrote an article while there, could it be published provided he didn’t get paid and it had no connection to their crimes? I’m thinking of Hannibal Lecter post-imprisonment as an example-could he have a paper published? ---
**Author:** ![slash2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@slash2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slash2k)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/2 "2016-07-05T19:00:56Z")
> [@Love\_Rhombus](#): > > For example, if an accountant or scientist was sent to prison or a psychiatric facility and wrote an article while there, could it be published provided he didn’t get paid and it had no connection to their crimes? I’m thinking of Hannibal Lecter post-imprisonment as an example-could he have a paper published? Sure. He could even be paid for it, at least in most states, as long as it wasn’t connected to the crime (and possibly even then–the so-called “Son of Sam laws” have sometimes been ruled unconstitutional). ---
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/3 "2016-07-05T19:17:57Z")
[Paul Frampton](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Frampton). He was scammed into being an inadvertent drug mule and sentenced to prison in Argentina. I’m having difficulty finding the exact dates of when (or even if) he was imprisoned, but he has a [bunch of publications](http://www.paulframpton.org/publications/)in the likely time window. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/4 "2016-07-05T19:27:34Z")
There’s a gigantic literature of writings from prison, from people famous and not. [Prison Writings in 20th Century America](https://www.amazon.com/Prison-Writings-20th-Century-America/dp/0140273050) is a major anthology. You don’t lose all your rights in prison. Especially not under the First Amendment. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/5 "2016-07-05T19:29:53Z")
[William Chester Minor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Chester_Minor) was a major contributor to the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, despite being detained in an insane asylum after a murder. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/6 "2016-07-05T19:36:53Z")
[Nick Leeson,](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_Leeson) the infamous arbitrage broker who brought down Barings Bank, wrote his autobiography _Rogue Trader_ while in a Singapore prison. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/7 "2016-07-05T19:40:00Z")
William Sydney Porter, better know by his pen name [O. Henry](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O._Henry), first became widely known as a short story writer while jailed for embezzlement. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/8 "2016-07-05T19:49:37Z")
As far as I know, there’s no restriction on prisoners writing and selling anything they wish. Some jurisdictions, however, might seize the payment but only under very limited circumstances. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/9 "2016-07-05T19:51:44Z")
[Robert Stroud](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Stroud), AKA “The Birdman of Alcatraz” published two books (treatises on birds) while jailed as a notorious murderer. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/10 "2016-07-05T20:09:54Z")
Sure! I had a paper published just two weeks ago! But I just work in prison. However, after over 14 years of working here, I’ve spent more time inside a max security prison than a lot of convicted felons ever have. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/11 "2016-07-05T20:11:52Z")
Haven’t seen the anthology, but the well-known trio King, Hitler, and Wilde produced some classic hits from jail. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/12 "2016-07-05T20:13:14Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > Sure! I had a paper published just two weeks ago! > > … Congrats. I didn’t you know you were an MD of the research-paper ilk. Topic? ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/13 "2016-07-05T20:20:45Z")
[Jack Henry Abbott’s](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Abbott_(author)) writings in prison were so good that Norman Mailer campaigned to have him paroled. Unfortunately, writing talent did not equal rehabilitation and Abbott’s freedom was short and tragic. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/14 "2016-07-05T20:48:22Z")
> [@Leo\_Bloom](#): > > Congrats. I didn’t you know you were an MD of the research-paper ilk. > > Topic? I bet that it’s about the strange psychological and physical characteristics of people who regularly contribute to online message boards. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/15 "2016-07-05T21:45:23Z")
Now _that’s_ an ilk. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/16 "2016-07-05T21:46:41Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > As far as I know, there’s no restriction on prisoners writing and selling anything they wish. Some jurisdictions, however, might seize the payment but only under very limited circumstances. Case in point: > [@kunilou](#): > > [Jack Henry Abbott’s](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Abbott_(author)) writings in prison… ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/17 "2016-07-05T22:21:34Z")
> [@Leo\_Bloom](#): > > Congrats. I didn’t you know you were an MD of the research-paper ilk. > > Topic? [hijack]For someone who spent 8 years at Johns Hopkins training to be a medical scientist, my output has been pathetic. Not surprising, since I switched to primary care at the end of med school, as I wanted to be a generalist (aka _know it all_). 😃 Basically we looked at the efficacy of a variety of ways of screening a population for Hepatitis C infection. Screen everyone? Waaay too expensive! Screen some based on their risk factors? Catch 90% of 'em while only having to check perhaps 30% of the population. None of this involves experimentation on inmates; it just involves tracking a LOT of data we gather on them routinely anyway, and adjusting a few parameters.[/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/18 "2016-07-05T22:48:58Z")
[Valery Fabrikant](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valery_Fabrikant) published a book called “Contact and Crack Problems in Linear Theory of Elasticity” in 2010. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/19 "2016-07-05T23:12:09Z")
Interesting. I was under the impression that there was some kind of general law (the Son of Sam law that **slash2k** mentions) that prisoners could not profit from their crimes i.e. Manson could not be paid for a book specifically about his murders. Apparently I was mistaken. Now, the next question is should such a law exist… ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2016, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150/20 "2016-07-05T23:21:55Z")
Well, that’s great debates. But then, what about “Orange Is the New Black”? Technically, she’s profiting off her time in jail, not her crime. But then… Or if you write a biography (i.e. “If I Did It”) that purports to be fiction? Or if your write about your life story, and part of it is your crime and punishment? There was a recent case I read where a fellow was yanked back into prison while on parole because he wrote a critical article about the prison system. And… for some reason, the court decided that this did not qualify as whistleblowing and the prison administration was not obliged to be fair. But remember, a lot of older prison writings and items like dissident writings - including Solzhenitsyn IIRC - were actually smuggled out of prison not because of son-of-sam laws, but because of oppressive regimes - sort of like the one that yanks parolees back into prison. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-people-in-prison-have-their-writing-published/759150.md?page=2)