<P> In 1993, Kerman became romantically involved with Catherine Cleary Wolters (Nora Janson in her memoir), a heroin dealer working for an alleged Nigerian kingpin . Kerman laundered money for the drug operation . </P> <P> In 1998, Kerman was indicted for money laundering and drug trafficking; she subsequently pleaded guilty . Beginning in 2004, she served 13 months of a 15 - month sentence at FCI Danbury, a minimum security prison located in Danbury, Connecticut . </P> <P> During her sentence, the website "The Pipe Bomb" was set up to document her life behind bars . </P> <P> Kerman published her best - selling memoir about her experiences in prison, Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison, with Spiegel & Grau in 2010 . A television adaptation of the same name created by Jenji Kohan, the Emmy award - winning creator of Weeds, debuted on July 11, 2013 on Netflix . Kerman's character in the series ("Piper Chapman") is played by Taylor Schilling . The series was renewed for a fourth season on April 15, 2015, before the third season premiered on June 11, 2015 . A fifth season was released on June 6, 2017 . The sixth season was released on July 27, 2018 . Orange is the New Black has received critical acclaim and won four Emmy Awards . </P>

Executive producer of orange is the new black