LOS ANGELES — Joanna Angel is the subject of an interview published today by Mel Magazine as part of a new holiday series highlighting “sex workers you should absolutely know about.”
“Whether they’re becoming literary superstars, breaking the ‘stunt cock’ mold or literally embodying gay Jesus himself, they’re the real gifts we need this Christmas,” wrote the Mel editors.
The piece, by Mel’s star scribe and popular Twitter influencer, Miles Klee, also promotes “Club 42,” a choose-your-own-erotic-fantasy novel by Angel. The book was published this year by Cleis Press and is a followup to 2018’s “Night Shift.”
“An acclaimed porn performer and producer, Angel has brought her strong personal brand, signature wit and raunchiness to bear on this minor literary genre — and introduced it to a whole new audience,” wrote Klee.
Klee also remarked on the “intrepid spirit that has defined 40-year-old Angel’s illustrious career, from her days pioneering the ‘alt-porn’ genre in the aughts — a punk aesthetic replete with tattoos, colorful hair and piercings to counteract the generic blondes popular at the time — to her relatively new TikTok account, where she keeps up with the hottest Gen Z dance trends.”
Angel also told Klee about her background as a college poet.
“I did a lot of open mic nights at coffee shops,” she said. “The poetry turned into ‘prose,’ and the prose turned into short stories. I suppose college was the time I was really exploring myself sexually, and, well, I wrote about the awkwardness of it all — the heartbreak, the humor and the eroticism that came with it.”
But when it came to her latest literary ventures, she noted, Angel opted for fiction.
“The most obvious thing for me to write about was the porn industry,” she told Klee “However, I chose to write fiction and not an autobiography. Fictionalizing my own job felt weird.”
To read “Joanna Angel Has Always Written Her Own Story,” visit MelMagazine.com.