Autostraddle Interview: on women (not) hiring escorts

Did you know that I used to obsessively read recaps of fresh episodes of the lesbian show The L Word? These were posted on Autostraddle, which was—and still is—a meaningful and major LGBTQ women’s media outlet. At the time, The L Word was a pretty groundbreaking, smutty, insufferably soapy fictional spectacle about a bunch of glamorous queer LA women and their very intertwined personal and sexual lives on TV.

Riese—who interviewed me about an uptick in women clients in this industry—was not just the co-founder of Autostraddle, but also the writer of those extremely entertaining recaps. On top of that, she had worked as a sex worker herself while kickstarting and financing Autostraddle back in the day. So being interviewed by her was just lovely. It felt great to talk to a fellow (ex-)colleague without any stigma, romanticizing, or exotification seeping into the conversation. It felt safe and effortless—and also a bit ‘full circle.’ Once upon a time, her queer media outlet was one of my only ways to connect with my queerness and consume something – anything! – sapphic.

And now I had the huge honor of talking to Riese, one of the founders, recap writer extraordinaire, and fellow (ex-)sex worker, about my own sapphic adventures as a luxury escort. We talked, pretty candidly, about a myriad of things: the uptick of women clients in my segment of the industry, what might still keep women from taking the leap, experiences with couples and single women, my advice for hiring an escort as a woman for the first time, and so much more. Do, by all means, read it for yourself (after quickly registering for free)—and tell me what you think!