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What inspired you to collaborate with other performers and publish their stories in your recent publication “Strange Times”?
I’ve never seen a fair representation of Strippers in pop culture, media, television, or music. I’m not saying that one doesn’t exist, but I’ve yet to find it. In bookstores, you can find dozens of stripper-tell-all’s, and that’s great! Because each person’s story is unique, and should never be disqualified. However, I wanted to compile a dozen that would juxtapose each other, and highlight the contrast between strippers. I also did this so that the reader could discover how many common themes exist amongst us all. It doesn’t matter what you do for a living, your humanity is what defines you.
What are some recent books you have read and some of your favorite authors?
I like anything by Inga Muscio; her book “Cunt” was a discovery for me when I was seventeen, and I had a million questions about my sexuality. I hunted for months to get my hands on a copy of “Cunt”, having asked for it, red-faced from a few librarians before an older friend ordered me a copy. Her frank, conversational style of writing is a mix of history, wit and opinion. She is unapologetic when talking about sex and feminism. And we need more of that. Some of her words still ring in my ears. She speaks of her mother, who, as a child, was raped in a park by adult men. I’m paraphrasing here, but she states pointedly; “A man, in theory, could spend his entire coffee break raping a woman.” “The woman, in theory, could spend the rest of her life paying for it.” And she’s right. There are so many predators in the world, and people have a real problem talking about that. The casualness, in which life-changing events happen, is what is scary to me.
You provide intimate conversations with patrons you meet. Do those conversations play a significant role in the way you write?
When I’m at work in a strip club, I attempt to remain objective in my interactions; I feel like I am more receptive to people’s energy and cues if I ignore my biases. I notice when the businessman is chewing his gum furiously, and I’ll take note if, when I begin to deeply breathe and rub his shoulders, if his chewing slows, and he subconsciously mimics my deep breathing. I hope to keep people relaxed in my presence.
Perception is reality. If I appear confident, this affects how people interact with me. If I appear nervous, this affects how people interact with me. I try to be the best version of myself. But sometimes I need to be a mirror, and sometimes I need to wear a mask, depending on the person that I’m interacting with. I love to drink alcohol, but being sober at work helps me see, hear and feel as much as possible. I’ve made memories that I’ll never be able to remember, and had plenty of fun doing that, but in order to write authentically, I need to not forget a detail. Even the painful ones.
What other publications do you contribute to and how has that developed your creative process?
I’m the longest running female contributor to Portland’s Exotic Magazine, the strip club and adult industry monthly publication. I’ve blogged for a decade on Suicidegirls.com as “Casper”; I keep a Tumblr under my name, (Elle Stanger). I was published in Vol. 3 of “Prose and Lore”, a sex-worker anthology published out of New York, and I recently was accepted for the weirdo-horror-erotica anthology, “Strange Sex #3”. I’m the strip-club correspondent for Thrillist.com.
Tell us more about some of the ink you have and the artists you have worked with? What was your first tattoo?
I have very few tattoos that were placed without much forethought; I believe that life is a balance of good and bad, positive and negative, gentle and hard. And I want my body to reflect that. Very few things in nature are symmetrical, and yet life requires a balance. If you see me naked, I think you’ll agree that I make some very outrageous decisions, very carefully. And my first tattoos were tiny bows in my hips, and my second was the vertebrae on my back. It sounds tacky, but nobody has ever called me ‘spineless’, and they probably never will. My Oregon artists are Jerry Ware at Atlas, and Brian Thomas Wilson at Scapegoat. My California artist is Jasmine Wright, in San Diego.
As a performer in the Pacific Northwest have you seen any major changes over the past couple of years. Do you feel the rights of performers are being acknowledged or ignored?
The natives have always been restless. By that, I mean, that workers will always have concerns, some of which are viable, some of which seem superficial. I don’t believe that entertainers or artists should be unionized. Some would disagree with me. I don’t think that the strip-industry is to blame for traffickers who poach our work environment, and yet stripping is constantly conflated with coercion. It’s frustrating, and feels like an uphill battle, especially when the media is so intent on portraying us all as victims.
And it’s true that there ARE problems in my beloved industry. Each industry has evils; I challenge anyone to try to think of some aspect of human consumption that doesn’t result in complications. Public schools? Abuse by teachers, terrible food programs, and shootings. Church? Abuse by clerics, tax evasion. Clothing manufacture and fast fashion? Waste, exploitation of its workers. Farming? Unethical GMO’s, factory farms, and mistreatment of undocumented workers. The adult industry is not unique in challenges it faces in regards to exploitation and the power struggles between institutionalized oppression. I encourage a link between dancers to their managers, because the Portland adult entertainment industry is a force to be reckoned with, if we can all work together as one.
Do you have any upcoming projects or publications you are working on?
I’m currently working on a sex and dating column for a related website. It’s funny, I’ve married twice and divorced twice, and yet I still think I have an excellent outlook on love, sex, dating and the mating dance that so many of us do. I live every day with the intention of fulfilling myself and being good to those that I love. That’s not to say that I haven’t made plenty of bad decisions. I’m just happy to have learned from each one. I support the matriarchy every day, and you can keep tabs on me via my site, EroticMusePDX.com
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