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Review of 'Turning Pro' by a Pro "From dance hall girls to happy hookers, the world has always been fascinated with sex workers. Now, a woman who's done almost every kind of sex work imaginable reveals the actual details of sex work: how to get a job, how to keep yourself safe, how much you can expect to make, how to plan your exit strategy, and more." Gracie reviews Turning Pro: A Guide to Sex Work for the Ambitious & the Intrigued, by Magalene Meretrix, with a Foreword by Carol Queen, Ed.D..
As Carol Queen writes, “The vast knowledge base of sex workers has largely existed in the twilight, inaccessible even to many of us.” As a former escort, I can attest to this. Most of us learned the ropes simply by climbing them ourselves, hand over hand, hoping not to get burned too badly if we made a mistake & slipped.
When a person had the opportunity to speak with more experienced pros, the talk was more like a dance ~ a tentative question followed by a tentative answer ~ as each side wondered how much they could trust the other. After all, many are working in an illegal capacity, so who can really trust anyone who asks questions? And even if the work is legal, you have to wonder if there is some plot afoot...
Most sex work is legal, as the author points out. There are strippers, phone sex workers, fetish work with no ‘sex’ at all, adult movies, adult modeling, and of course, legal brothels. But even if the job is legal, the morality of the times (& in fact through most of recent history) makes self-censure a job priority.
Add this all up, and many sex workers are missing some serious vocational training. Enter Meretrix.
With this book she shatters through the silence & the stigma.
Unlike other books by former madams & prostitutes, this isn’t some name-dropping fest. It isn’t a glamorization of sex work. What it is about is practical information on the career of sex work.
Yes, a career.
One of the best things about this book is that it legitimizes the choice of this work by treating it with the respect that it deserves.
Both the author & Ms Queen in the Forward discuss sex work as a genuine career path. The author does so with honest & frank discussion, but always with an obvious pride & affection: “Personally, I love the word whore. It feels solid & good in my mouth. Holy. Heal. Whole. Whore. Whore sounds like a long moan of delight, trailing up from my cunt to wrap around the world.”
She presents her work from a positive spiritual & emotional stance, daring the reader to examine herself before she considers the work, while Ms Queen tackles social & legal issues:
“In doing prostitution you are up against state control of sexuality &, if you’re a woman, women’s economic opportunity. Those aren’t small-scale issues - no wonder we are caught between changing sexual mores & inflexible legal structures. Nowhere are the interests of the state so bald than in the persecutions of prostitutes & their customers: No one is supposed to be able to get, or profit from, sexual pleasure outside of state-sanctioned relationships.”
Anyone* entertaining the idea of entering into the field of adult entertainment or sex work will benefit from this book. Meretrix discusses the differing kinds of sex work, what skills you’ll need, & the myth-set of skills you won’t. She discusses how to attract customers, and how to best avoid police.
Even those already working will profit from this book, as the author gives tips on how to deal with burnout & tells the reader more about other career moves you can make if & when you seek a change.
While this review has disproportionately presented the writings of the author herself & that of the Forward as being equal parts, it is my opinion that without Ms Queen’s writings the book would be missing something. For it is the Forward that sets the larger picture as it is, so that the author can set the details of the smaller individual picture as it is.
If you are contemplating becoming a sex worker, already working in the industry, or just plain old curious, skip the celebrity pep rallies which tell you nothing about reality, and get Turning Pro. It is the most accurate writing out there on the subject, & the least expensive lesson in the business you can get.
* As the author explains: “I realize this book is written mainly about female workers in the United States & I apologize to those in other countries or other situations. I have only worked in the United States so I just don’t know from personal experience what it’s like in other places. I am female so I can’t very well tell you what sex work is like for a man unless I describe someone else’s experiences. But I can tell you what I know & I can be very honest & open about my experiences & observations.”
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