Q&A for How to Write a Letter to a Prison Inmate

No, you should only include the letter, photos, cards and photocopies. If you add anything else, the letter might be confiscated, and the prison inmate will never receive your letter.

You can pretty much ask whatever you would ask someone whom you're getting to know. What movies and music do you like, cat person or dog person, tell me about your family, etc. Never ask them about the thing they did to end up in prison-- that's very personal and in poor taste to ask. If they ever want to talk about it, they'll bring it up.

Writeaprisoner.com is a great website to retrieve inmates' names. They also list what crime the inmate is in prison for, which is helpful for some.

All mail is opened by prison mailroom staff and searched for contraband. They do not always read mail and it depends on the facility, but they will likely not read content of mail unless it's from someone who raises suspicion. Read the information contained on the facility website about mailing rules. You can also search online for "mailing inmates + [state]. If your mail follows the guidelines, it will be accepted and given to the inmate. If it's not, it will either be returned for you or destroyed, or if it indicates something illegal (namely, you include drugs or instructions on how to make drugs or alcohol or it's planning illegal activities), then it might get sent for further investigation.

Return to sender, not allowed -- did you try to send something that's not allowed?

Mailing instructions will be on the correctional institution's website. You typically need the inmate's first and last name and their department of corrections number/inmate number, which you can find on Vinelink or on your state DOC website, or, for some county jails/pre-conviction detention facilities, on that website.

Have a friend or family member write it for you. Give them the typed one and have them write it by hand.

You don't have to be 18, but certain sites like intouchforinmates.com that facilitate relationships between free citizens and those incarcerated do require that the site visitors are at least 18 years of age.

Yes. All inmates have the ability to receive letters at their facility by standard postal mail, which does require a stamp.

No, and in some cases, this could be a good idea! If you answer an ad that has been out there for some time, it could be that the inmate has been transferred to another facility (or even paroled!), so checking the DOC website could save you time and a stamp!

It depends on the individual facility, but in general, yes. There should be some kind of stamp or marking on the outside to indicate that the letter came from a correctional facility.

If you want a letter back, you'll need to include an address. It may be a good idea to use a nickname and get yourself a post office box if there is a possibility the inmate could get out and want to find you and you don't want to be found.

You can use any program that allows typing such as Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Pages, etc.