Have you ever gotten hooked on one of the real or fictional sex worker journals that have come and gone over the last few years? Dancers and prostitutes have kept journals, but with one exception most of them haven't been popular with the typical online journal reader. (And that exception isn't a "sex worker journal;" it's a really good journal kept by a woman who at various times during her online journaling life has worked in the sex industry. I'm not linking here only because if you're going to read her, you should read her because she's a really good writer, not because you want to go looking for something lurid. She's on my links page; you can find her yourself.)

Are you fascinated? Repulsed? Bored? I've tried to read a few different journals kept by sex workers, but like the majority of online journals, they tend to get boring after a while. If I found a really well-written one I'd probably stick with it. What's your opinion?

-- Anonymous, July 26, 2001

Answers

I remember reading the journal of a stripper a while ago. She was dating a medical resident, I think. It was interesting.

-- Anonymous, July 26, 2001

I'm fond of Alysabeth's journal, although she hasn't been updating much lately. She writes well, which is always the most important thing to get me hooked on a journal.

Her job helps to make it an interesting read, for sure, but I've had enough friends in that line of work that funny strip-club stories alone wouldn't be enough to keep me coming back.

-- Anonymous, July 26, 2001

Well, and many of these journals don't even tell the funny stories. I think maybe some people think just the subject matter willl make the journal compelling, so they don't bother to tell a good story.

-- Anonymous, July 26, 2001

I like Lydia's journal, but she runs the sex journal burb, and there are lots of others listed too.

http://www.millerswork.com/diary_sexburb.htm

-- Anonymous, July 26, 2001

I used to read a stripper's journal too. She stripped in New York, and I thought her stories were interesting, though she wasn't the best writer. Then she moved to Boston and started working in a bank and stopped the journal. Oh well.

By the way, Beth, I am fascinated by Sam Stern's journal, and will be reading the archives too. Pretty decent writer, and such an unusual point of view. Thanks for linking it.

-- Anonymous, July 26, 2001

I passed on the link to Beth so I figured I'd respond. I first saw it at Mary Chen's Diaryland page (valueape.diaryland.com) and she mentioned going over to his house to buy some tapes, which makes me think he is a real guy making porn and living in East LA. Also I poked around on the Brown University page and while I don't have direct proof that he graduated, I did see his name in a couple of newspaper articles there.

Personally, I find his journal totally fascinating, but I've never read sex worker journals before so I don't know if it's an anomaly. The weird thing is that Sam reminds me of a couple of people who I went to school with-- in fact, of one that I used to date. He was a sperm donor and was obsessed with filmmaking and sex. We eventually broke up because he was a complete tool, but that's beside the point.

However much of Sam's journal is fictional, I'll keep reading b/c I find the character fascinating.

-- Anonymous, July 26, 2001

I think his journal is an anomaly. It's not like any other online journals I've read, sex-related or not. I'm definitely going to read all the archives.

I have an ex who, last I heard, was directing soft-core porn movies in Van Nuys. I wonder if he has a journal!

Hmm. Just thought about that. I really hope he doesn't.

-- Anonymous, July 26, 2001

Sam's updated a few times since Beth posted the link, and apparently now he's actively soliciting reader porn. I can only imagine the horror if Bad Hair Days did the same, though I wouldn't mind getting a fun porno name out of the deal.

I don't know if I like the naked lady background better or worse than the Amir pictures. Beth, could you school Sam in a little elementary web design?

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001