Author Description

Prose & Lore is the Red Umbrella Project’s literary journal, which collects memoir stories about sex work in two issues per year (Fall/Winter and Spring/Summer). The stories are original to Prose & Lore, and about 75% of the authors in each issue are previously unpublished. Many of the contributors participate in our memoir workshops and drop-in writing sessions. “[The stories] that comprise this journal are straightforward without a lot of literary tropes or tricks yet their harsh and sticky realities pull readers in. A testament to Red Umbrella’s workshops, from which most of these works hail, they’re entertaining and edifying, even enlightening, at times. They are not by any means self-pitying stories but come from perspectives that are often humorous, seductive, pissed, confused, and psycho-sexually indignant.” – The Review Review “It is not uncommon for the media to skew the perspective of those who have worked in the sex industry, painting a picture of bad and dangerous people, with real life stories often going unheard. But since 2009, the Red Umbrella Project, a nonprofit group based in Downtown Brooklyn, has been providing a venue and an outlet for unheard voices of American sex workers.” – Downtown Brooklyn “Gutsy wisdom permeates these pages. Prose & Lore brings together a keen array of lived experiences and authentic voices.” – Amber Dawn, author of How Poetry Saved My Life: A Hustler’s Memoir “In this collection of creative nonfiction, people who’ve tangled with the sex industry write about the complications that arise in the mix of sex and money. From the accounts of love and loss, occupational hazards and tricks of the trade to personal stories of hope, resistance and survival, Prose & Lore is a fiery collection of narratives by people who have walked the walk, and are now telling their tales.” – Daily Loaf, CL Tampa Bay “Top 10 Most Provocative Books”