JoyBelle Phelan
JoyBelle Phelan is a writer in Colorado. She was the first woman at La Vista Correctional Facility to be published in Colorado’s The Inside Report statewide prison newspaper. She was later appointed the managing editor of the paper at Denver University Prison Arts Initiative.
Phelan was incarcerated twice for a total of seven years and passionately believes that no one should be remembered for their worst decisions. She is using her lived experience to challenge the perception of prisons for women and the reentry experience. She continues to work with incarcerated writers in Colorado prisons, providing a writing mentorship program. Phelan is a former PJP staff member, a graduate of the 2023 Dream Justice cohort and a 2022 TEDx San Quentin speaker.
