Page 61 - AVN May 2016

In 2014, on the anniversary of her 30th year in adult,
Nina Hartley offered up a well-considered list of tips
for industry newbies. Hartley wrote, “Allow me to
offer words of hard-won wisdom that, if I had only
known then what I know now, I’d have had a much
better and more profitable time.” For this issue of
AVN, we asked the veteran adult star for another
set of tips, this time aimed at older performers: stars
looking to maintain longevity as well as performers
who get into the game later in life. The doyenne of
adult entertainment did not disappoint.
1. Embrace your age and experience and try to mentor younger
performers. It gives you the exposure to fans who always choose
younger, while giving your established fan base an continuing
opportunity to see your work.
2. Do a gut check on a regular basis: Am I still enjoying the sexual
aspects of the work or am I more often feeling insecure about my
body/appearance? I’ve been through a couple of such bouts in the
past ten years and each time it ended when I took control over what/
who I was doing, either for my site or my clips store. I knew I was
a lifer when I started in my mid-twenties. I don’t know how many
other women come to porn with the intention of staying forever.
3. MILF is a popular category. These days a performer of any age over
eighteen can go online when she wants, present how she wants, take
the clients she wants and do the show(s) she wants. This is such a
huge step forward in a performer being able to build independence. It
helps if she is a self-starter and not afraid to learn new (usually tech-
related) things.
Nina Hartley “The appeal of the mature woman is that she is knowing, stable, self-aware, horny.”
(Pictured in My Evil Stepson 2 from Dana Vespoli/Evil Angel)
4. If you are a new performer entering the business already over
the age of thirty-five, “MILF” is your fetish genre. Based on your
authentic sexuality, what kind of MILF do you want to be? You’re
at the age now when all of your sexual expression is best if it’s the
real you. That’s the power of experience. Let it show. Learn how to
stream live video shows. Shoot clips for a store (so you own your
content forever). Develop a specialty that is true to you but also
under-served in the fan base. I know one MILF who does nothing but
stream M-F 12-4 and clears two grand a week. She’s not stunningly
beautiful, but she’s consistent and that helped her build her regular
customer base. She treats streaming as her regular job and it pays.
It took her a year to build up to that and there were some tears and
slow days on the way, but she kept up with it and it’s paying off.
5. Dress sexy but not inappropriately for your age/body type/fitness
level. The appeal of the mature woman is that she is knowing, stable,
self-aware, horny. Dress so you look and feel very attractive and
confident.
6. In the words of Ernest Greene, a maternal intelligence is very, very,
alluring. Try to cultivate that if you can.
Nina
Hartley’s
tips for
thriving
in the
MILF
zone
Maternal
INTELLIGENCE
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