Category inmate
A Crappy Commute
When did the daily commute become a trial by fire? These days my daily commute consists of a few yards from the coffee urn to the desk. Barring unforeseen complications, I make my journey in a few minutes, negotiating the stairs and stray dog toys. On those occasions where I am required to leave the compound, […]
How Real is Too Real?
Something I’ve been stewing on for a couple of years, is the bridge between reality and your fiction work. The rule is that you have to keep your reader in a state of willingness to suspend belief. So, here was my dilemma. I worked in and around prisons for over twenty-five years. I’ve seen what […]
Prison and Plotting
Prison changes a man. I actually heard a hardened prison gang member say that once. The man was feared in gang circles and ran one of the biggest gang, weapons and drug rackets in Folsom Prison in the 1980’s. New inmates, “fish” as they were called, had to check in with his underlings and pay […]
The After Life
I have this new story idea bouncing around in my head. It refuses to leave me alone. The damned thing left a ransom note in a dusty corner of my brain, threatening to hold my attention hostage until I do something. So, here goes…the background. During the years I worked inside maximum security prisons, I […]
James L'Etoile 