Prison Journal: Day 8,086
September 29, 2009
The temperatures have dropped in Taft Camp. Yesterday was probably our last day above 90 degrees until next spring. When I went outside to run this morning, I kept my t-shirt on, and I suspect I’ll be wearing a t-shirt or a sweatshirt to exercise in every day until next March or April. I like the desert climate, and I’ll miss the warmth.
I returned to some blogging responsibilities today. This writing for the Web is an important component of my preparations for release. The more influential presence I can build in the blogosphere, the more effectively I’ll be able to support my family through speaking, consulting and writing. I expect to return home within three years, and I will use every day that remains to build resources and strengthen my network through the Web.
The articles I wrote will appear on Change.org, a liberal site with tens of thousands of members. I postponed my weekly contribution earlier this year when I wanted to focus all of my writing energy on the Earning Freedom manuscript. Today I’m closing in on the completion of that project with edits. I expect to submit the manuscript to my literary agent, Jim Schiavone, in mid-October. Once I send the manuscript off, I’ll focus more energy on the blogging.
I ran 10 miles this morning, boosting my tally to 2,586 miles over the past 291 days.
Tuesday, 29 September 2009
Prison Journal: Day 8,083
September 26, 2009
I’ve been looking at my schedule, and I realize that in a few weeks, I’ll probably have time to resume my blogging responsibilities. Earlier this year I was writing between 20 and 40 blogs each week for the various websites Carole maintains for me. Since beginning my new manuscript, I suspended those activities to focus all of my writing energy on Earning Freedom. By October 15, I expect to submit the manuscript to my literary agent, and when I do, I’ll resume my blogging schedule.
It’s important for me to write daily content for the Web. I’ve kept current with the journal to record my progress as a prisoner, and I intend to keep those efforts up for as long as I remain in prison. Yet I must also write content that will provide readers with a more complete glimpse of prison life. I have a duty to show others how we can live productively inside these boundaries if we choose, and the writing doesn’t have an end.
By keeping this journal, I show readers that even after 8,083 days of prison, I can wake with an irrepressible energy, frequently before 2:00am, and focus on goals that bring meaning to my life. A strong attitude is essential to mastering a prison term, though any prisoners can build upon his strength if he sets a deliberate adjustment strategy. I’ve been doing this for longer than 22 years, but my friend, Justin Paperny, shows how he changed his life while serving a single year in Taft prison camp. Readers ought to check out his book, Lessons from Prison.
Anyway, by November I ought to update these blogs much more frequently. For now I’ll work through my final weeks of editing on Earning Freedom. I ran only six miles today, and my pace was slow. I’ve logged 2,559 miles over the past 288 days, without a single day off.
Saturday, 26 September 2009
Prison Journal: Day 7,929
April 25, 2009
I’ve read many books that authors wrote on the subject of blogging, though I have to admit that I don’t know as much about keeping readers’ interest through a blog as I would like. I intend to learn. I face challenges because I do not have access to a computer or the internet, so I cannot browse around in the blogosphere to experience effective blogging strategies. That limitation comes as a consequence of my predicament, like so many other restrictions.
I may compare my challenge to someone who wants to learn how to fly an airplane. That student may read many aviation manuals. He may familizarize himself with all the gauges, switches, levers, and cockpit mechanisms. Until he sits in the pilot’s seat and practices, however, the student will not fully grasp the complexity of flying.
I write my blog entries by hand. When I begin I create an index that identifies the number, the category, the title, and what I perceive should be the tags. As soon as I finish one blog article, I fold the page and insert it in an envelope to send to my wife. From that moment, the blog is lost to me as she coordinates the typing and publishing and I move to the next article or writing project. The writing itself is therapeutic for me, though I’d like to become a more effective blogger on the prison experience.
Carole and I have been very fortunate to have guidance and support from Bean, a former classmate of ours. Bean has sent books, lesson plans, and lengthy, instructive letters to help my understanding of effective blogging techniques. My slowness in picking up all the intricacies of blogging may come from an incorrect belief that I’m always writing for a new reader, for someone who does not have any familiarity with my work. I’m always striving to build my network of support, or advance the call for prison reform. My thoughts were that by writing frequently, more people would find my work through search queries.
During a brief conversation I had with Carole today, I learned that Bean advised me to write fewer entires. My continuously mentioning the length of my prison term, or how long I had been confined, could be overkill. I won’t know the full message until Carole sends it to me through the mail. I’ll follow the guidance Bean gives, however, as she has taken more time to help me through this learning process than anyone else. I feel grateful for her patience and her instruction.
If I am to limit my blogging to fewer daily posts, I will focus more time writing on other subjects. I can always profile other prisoners; I can write more articles for PrisonTalk.com; and I can write for change.org. I also can devote more time to this book proposal I’ve begun. Writing helps me through each day, helps me feel productive. I still need to create this meaning in my life.
I ran 10 miles today, lifting my tally to 1,182 miles over the past 134 consecutive days.
Saturday, 25 April 2009
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