17th
(via rollertrain)
$PREAD CALL FOR MODELS AND CONTRIBUTORS, ISSUE 5.3
In our upcoming issue, we’re exploring age and aging within the sex industry. Feature pitches (ideas for articles of 2000-3000 words) should be sent to contribute@spreadmagazine.org. We’re particularly interested in finding someone to write a “How To” Guide for escorts and dancers on remaining profitable and in-demand when catering to a mainstream clientele (i.e. not working in fetish or niche markets) and approaching/entering their 40s, to be supplemented with quotes and advice from others. Our deadline for content is November 1st at the latest, so please send your pitch in ASAP.
MODELS NEEDED
DOUBLE TAKE:
Requires two separate shots, one in work gear and the other in street clothes, to be accompanied by a brief interview about your style. If you could take self portraits, awesome; if not, we can hook you up with a $pread volunteer photographer. Include your location and profession in your reply.
SEX WORKER PETS:
Must be LA-based and own at least one non-cat pet who could pose with you in the picture. Your face can be obscured. Photos will be taken by talented $preadster Jenny DeMilo.
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
REVIEWS:
Reviews on a recent sex work related book/film/performance/etc. Please inquire about available items or suggest material before submitting full piece as we may already have someone covering it. Specify your location in your reply if you do not already have the item for review. 400-600 words.
HOT TOPIC: Age-play requests.
Do you do infantilism sessions, incest role plays, or regularly perform in schoolgirl character? We’re looking for brief meditations on how you experience this dynamic as well as any ideas you have about its benefits/consequences on a social level. 200-300 words.
POSITIONS: Would you help a baby pro?
We’re looking for someone to argue “yes” and someone to argue “no”; each angle is allotted 400 words to explain why a more seasoned worker should or should not encourage and assist someone new to the biz.
SCENE REPORT:
What’s it like to work in your hometown? How are the clients, the LE, the other workers, the activists and outreach teams? Although this piece can be framed as a personal essay, it should contain information useful to working visitors and not seem entirely unique to the writer. 500 words.
Consumer Report: Self Tanner (100 words per)*
We’re looking for pointed, possibly humorous, product reviews of self-tanner. Please provide one-to-two sentences per product and be specific about its usefulness, or its incompatibility, in relation to your line of work. Items should be identified by brand and shade/color name. (100 words per)*
HEROES:
What older worker(s) have inspired you and shown you that there is life in the industry after your ’20s? We’re hoping to use this space to acknowledge women and men who have worked into their golden years (’50s onward) 300 words.
INDECENT PROPOSAL:
Did a client look exactly your uncle? Have you danced for someone barely legal or spent the night with a guy old enough to be your great-grandfather? What work request totally caught you off-guard? Details don’t need to be graphic or wild as much as you need to convey why the situation unsettled or surprised you. 500 words.
NEWS REPORT:
News Reports should be on a timely topic, ideally an issue relevant to sex workers outside of North America. We’re particularly interested in hearing more from Eastern Europe, South America, and Africa for this issue. This is not space for a personal essay or op-ed; the approach is decidedly journalistic and should include important dates, names, places, and quotes. 800-1000 words.
A Manifesto for Radical Masculinity - Page 2 | Carnal San Francisco
Sinclair Sexsmith is brilliant. You should be reading this. It gave me a lot to chew on.
I want to bring Indian sex workers a cultural gift from American sex workers. Unfortunately I don’t have a lot of room in my suitcase, and I just know that I’d get weird and customs-unfriendly stuff in the mail, so I’m asking for this: if you are a present or former sex worker in the United States, send me a digital artifact that represents your experience in the sex industry.
Send me a picture, a screenshot, a video that you think reflects your experience as a sex worker. If you have a story to tell, call and leave it on my voicemail: 718-554-1714.
I’ll need all these artifacts by next Wednesday, September 2, so I can put them together into some kind of finished product and bring it to India with me. When I’m in India, I’ll share this little lump of digital culture from American sex workers, and I’ll create something with the sex workers there to bring back here.
Here are two suggestions of the kinds of things I’m looking for:
•An object that you use everyday in your work or something that you find really useful in whatever part of the industry you’re in
• A symbol that you think represents your experiences as a sex worker in the United States
Please circulate this to networks of sex workers you think would be interested in participating. Remember, I need your stories, pictures, and other digital ephemera in my inbox or my voicemail by Wednesday, September 2. Email me at aray [at] iwhc.org or leave a story on my voicemail at 718-554-1714.
Penny from ‘Survey Says: Job Satisfaction?’ by Alexandra Lutnick (via katstories) (via melissa)
The way this manifests in media is the empowerment vs degration binary - how do we come up with a better soundbite to deal with this? Saying I felt empowered by my time in the sex industry isn’t 100% true. Neither is the “opposite” - because these two things aren’t in opposition at all in my mind.
Kat reposted a nice piece about true rape prevention, which reminded me of this little list I whipped up a few months ago. As I just did a college RA training yesterday, re-reading this made me laugh. I mean seriously, the “tips” they give potential victims are so condescending. It’s fun to turn the tables.
Sexual Assault Prevention Tips Guaranteed to Work!
1. Don’t put drugs in people’s drinks in order to control their behavior.
2. When you see someone walking by themselves, leave them alone!
3. If you pull over to help someone with car problems, remember not to assault them!
4. NEVER open an unlocked door or window uninvited.
5. If you are in an elevator and someone else gets in, DON’T ASSAULT THEM!
6. Remember, people go to laundry to do their laundry, do not attempt to molest someone who is alone in a laundry room.
7. USE THE BUDDY SYSTEM! If you are not able to stop yourself from assaulting people, ask a friend to stay with you while you are in public.
8. Always be honest with people! Don’t pretend to be a caring friend in order to gain the trust of someone you want to assault. Consider telling them you plan to assault them. If you don’t communicate your intentions, the other person may take that as a sign that you do not plan to rape them.
9. Don’t forget: you can’t have sex with someone unless they are awake!
10. Carry a whistle! If you are worried you might assault someone “on accident” you can hand it to the person you are with, so they can blow it if you do.
Bwahahahahahaha!
Sex::Tech_2009_002 (via ISIS.Inc)
From a series of illustrations of Sex::Tech conference in San Francisco.
The Ishita I’m commenting on is the founder of the YP Foundation: http://theyouthparliament.blogspot.com/