I've been in this industry for five years now, and even though I've had the opportunity to leave it, I simply won't. I really love working in adult. The main thing is the people. I have met some of the most amazing people in this industry, and my work friends are people I consider friends in real life and I don't think that happens when you work in other industries. The trade shows are more like family reunions. I always brag to my friends about the last trade show I went to, how the first thing on the itinerary for the day would be the bloody mary bar. They are all so jealous. I'm not a heavy partier, but the fact that when we all get together we are able to mix business with pleasure and get a good amount of both, makes this the industry for me.
The drawback to the industy is that there is still a lot of homophobia. Take a few certain message boards and do a search for the words "fag" or "homo" and you'll see all kinds of negative, really insulting rhetoric. And I've been at parties after the booze has been flowing and people are pretty well lit and they don't think about what they are saying and heard all kinds of nasty homophobic comments. But I really think that since we work in such a sexually charged atmosphere the people who aren't used to being around gay men are suddenly forced to see images of gay sex, which you can't really help, and it makes it harder to relate to the gay men who are working the business side of it. So a guy who's never really had gay friends or been around many gay people are suddenly forced to see banners and tours of gay sites, and then when they meet a gay man they can't help but get that image in their minds and it's hard for them to deal with. Not saying that this is an excuse to be mean and hurtful, but it does explain a few things. How do we remedy this? I don't know. But it would be nice if everyone in the industry could get along the way that I get along with the scores of industry folk that I feel so privileged to call my friends.
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