Writing this piece has been an interesting experience from start to finish. I’ve always been told to write what you know, but writing about an experience as it was happening was new to me. Many of the materials I consumed relating to the sex industry and particularly dancing were focused on the dancing or the money. The podcast “Stripcast: True Stories from a Stripper with a Ph. D” was enlightening on the actual individuals and their interactions within this world of sequins and glitter. While Dr. Byron is able to relate her experiences in a casual way, using language one would hear in a strip club, including vulgarity and sexually charged innuendo, yet she also explains situations she encounters with intelligence one may not expect from a “dancer.” She reports on her conversations with other dancers and customers in a way that pulls you into her world. I wanted my writing to reflect this raw, gritty and honest way of portraying the business of exotic dancing as well as keeping a voice that is reliable and does not slip into something unrefined.