Photo Małgorzata Brus
eWkratke.pl – a blog written from prison
Lead
eWkratke.pl is a project unique on a global scale: a blog whose posts are written by people serving prison sentences.
“My name is Zołza. I have been in prison for over five years; I ended up here for credit fraud. I like silence.
I have been attending the Foundation’s workshops for several years, although I didn’t start writing for the blog right away. I needed time to break through.
The classes give me a lot – a break from this place, a glimpse of freedom. You can always talk things through and feel like a human being.
I try to function as normally as possible. The biggest plus is that I can work in the prison radio station – the day passes much faster there.”
Zołza, blogger at eWkratke.pl
The blog eWkratke.pl has been running since 2014. It is created by the Fundacja Dom Kultury (House of Culture Foundation) together with women serving sentences at the Warsaw-Grochów Remand Prison and at the External Unit in Warsaw-Bemowo. For many years the blog was developed entirely through voluntary work. Today its continuation is also possible thanks to funding from the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage within the Cultural Education programme.
At the heart of the blog are regular cultural education workshops organised by the Foundation in selected prisons. It is during these meetings that the texts, drawings and ideas for new posts are created. The blog is not an addition to the project – it is its natural outcome.
A blog without internet access
Prisoners do not have access to the internet. For this reason, the entire process of creating the blog happens offline.
Texts are written in prison cells or during workshops. They are then sent to volunteers outside prison who transcribe them and publish them online. At the next workshop, facilitators bring printed copies of the published posts together with readers’ comments. The bloggers write their replies by hand on paper. These responses are then typed up and published online.
In this way, a real dialogue develops between the world behind prison walls and the world outside.
Workshops and the project’s aim
The project “Blog eWkratke – Cultural Education for People in Prison” aims to develop the cultural, linguistic and social competencies of women living in prison through regular participation in cultural education and creative workshops.
The workshops take place four times a month:
– twice in Warsaw-Grochów Remand Prison (closed units),
– twice in the External Unit in Warsaw-Bemowo (semi-open units).
The new phase of the project will run from March 2026 to December 2027. During this time participants will write texts, discuss literature and culture, meet invited guests and publish new posts on the blog.
The experience of the House of Culture Foundation shows that long-term, regular educational activities are the only ones that bring real results. Regular meetings help develop self-discipline, cooperation and a sense of agency. In the conditions of prison isolation they also have a therapeutic dimension, creating relationships based on trust and continuity.
Who creates the blog
The blog is created thanks to the work of many people.
The texts are transcribed and edited by volunteers from the Maria Grzegorzewska University (Academy of Special Education) in Warsaw, working under the supervision of Dr Katarzyna Nawrocka.
The visual design of the blog was created by Małgorzata Brus.
The editorial concept is developed by Justyna Domasłowska-Szulc.
Promotion on social media is coordinated by Ada Szulc.
Since 2025, the editor-in-chief of the blog has been Agata Maczkowska – a trainer, educator and actor who regularly leads writing and editorial workshops in the prisons in Grochów and Bemowo.
A new visual identity for the blog is currently being developed by Klaudia Borawiak, a student at SWPS University in Wrocław.
Artists, writers and specialists from different fields are also invited to lead guest workshops in writing and cultural education.
A voice that remains
Some stories on the blog unfold over many years. One of the authors, Anna, wrote the following during her time in prison:
Visit the blog
We invite you to explore eWkratke.pl and follow the project on social media:
facebook.com/ewkratke
instagram.com/fundacjadomkultury
There you will find current and archived posts, photos from the workshops and graphics created by the participants.
You will see what our blog lives with every day.
„2016
My name is Anna.
I am 39 years old.
2017
I am Anna – prisoner Anna.
I am 40 years old.
I am serving a prison sentence for the sin of omission.
I live within the prison routine – a difficult routine.
Thank you for visiting our blog.
Well… we are “devils, souls in purgatory, and divine all at once.”
2018
I am Anna.
I am 41 years old.
Perhaps already free…”
– Aniucha, blogger at eWkratke.pl
Financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage from the Culture Promotion Fund – a state special-purpose fund.
