Annie Temple – The Anarchist Stripper Mom On Her Best-Selling Book

It’s easy to see why as this multi-faceted woman has gone against the grain time and again to come out on top – a sex worker since 1997, mother since 2000 and an advocate for the industry, she’s beat the odds in this business by not only sticking around but by being a light for others.

The creator of The Naked Truth (TNT) – an online resource for sex workers – she’s shared her “Trade Secrets”, put out safety alerts to protect fellow content creators, publicized important news and events that are relevant to the community, blogged advice and worked hard to share her knowledge to help newcomers that enter the industry. If that weren’t enough she’s also now a best-selling author of the book – Annie Temple’s Business Bible for Erotic Entrepreneurs.

But it hasn’t been all a bed of roses.

Annie faced personal health problems all during the writing which threatened to take her away from the industry she loves. Read below to find out more about Annie, what drove her to persevere, what she learned about herself while writing the book, and how she hopes it will help sex workers.

Why this book, why now?

About two years ago, I started writing my memoir. The story flowed out of me, almost effortlessly, except for some of the harder moments of my life. My family got used to seeing me at my computer, madly typing, with a huge grin or an equally pained look on my face, every day. The side-effect of being in “creative mode” as I like to call it, over a consistent period of time, is that I began to compose multiple other books in my head.

In particular, I had the idea for a business book for sex workers – the kind of book that I searched for when I became an independent provider. This idea had grown in my mind over time, and I made some effort to write sections, releasing them as eBooks. I wasn’t really passionate about the eBooks, though, because I dreamed of publishing the information as a complete business guide for sex workers. After all, sex work is work!

Around fall of last year, I realized that I had written almost half of the book. I began filling in the gaps and soon, “Annie Temple’s Business Bible for Erotic Entrepreneurs” was born. I published a “feedback” edition to share with sex workers, which I sent by mail at my own cost to any who offered to help. I also had a table at the ANSWERS ASSEMBLY for Sex Workers in March and the response I got from activist colleagues from across Canada fueled the fire within me.

I developed the official first edition and launched it on September 5^th. I picked that day because I was going in for a major surgery on September 15^th. I wanted to release the Biz Bible before the surgery in case the recovery was overly taxing. It was perfect timing because launching the book kept my mind off what was coming and gave me an incredible spiritual uplift to carry with me through the difficult surgery and recovery ahead.

What did you learn about yourself in writing the book?

I had a feeling of déjà vu while putting the finishing touches on the Biz Bible like I had done this before. The truth was, I had done this before… a few times. In 2001, I founded NakedTruth.ca to create an information exchange and emotional resource for exotic dancers. We shared what to expect at gigs and gave each other permission to enjoy our jobs. It was empowering!

From 2009-2012, as a member of the BC Coalition of Experiential Communities, I coordinated a project to create an occupational health and safety guide for sex workers in Canada, called “Trade Secrets” (which can be found at NakedTruth.ca) which compiled expertise from gender-diverse sex workers across the spectrum of the adult entertainment industry and manifested in different ways – online, small written guides, and a digital book.

The déjà vu I was experiencing with the Biz Bible made me realize that I had been bringing people together by empowering them with information and challenging their perspectives most of my life. It should have been obvious, that this was my purpose. But until then, I wasn’t really sure what my purpose was. This realization was transformative.

Good writing equals vulnerability – what were some of the scariest things to share with readers and how did you get over the hurdle of opening your heart on paper?

In the sex industry, street cred matters.

It’s an unspoken rule in the industry, if you’re new or naïve, shut up and listen. I wasn’t sure that I was the best person to write this book. I don’t make the most money. I don’t see the most high-end clients. Alternatively, I’ve never stood on a street corner or done a car date. My experience comes from a place of privilege on one hand, and a place of poverty on the other. I worried that I hadn’t earned the street cred required to publish a book like this.

At the same time, I felt like the information should be out there and available. No one else had written this book. Why not me? My dear friend, Amanda from Visionary Business Consulting, designed a beautiful, empowering cover and set me up with a gorgeous website.

As launch day approached, Amanda encouraged me to go very much out of my comfort zone.

She instructed me to ask my friends and colleagues for help promoting my book, and she advised me to set a goal to become a bestseller. SAY WHAT?! Impose on people AND set my expectations for success really high? Now, THAT was SCARY! Still, I rose to the challenge. I told myself that the worst that could happen was people said no to helping me and didn’t buy my book. Putting my pride and insecurities aside, I took Amanda’s advice.

To my absolute amazement and delight, sex workers and clients rallied around me. Many of the friends I reached out to helped me to promote the Biz Bible and many I hadn’t asked took it upon themselves to help me too.

On September 5, 2023, “Annie Temple’s Business Bible for Erotic Entrepreneurs” became a bestseller in three different categories on Amazon. Becoming a bestselling author, something I dreamed of but hadn’t really ever believed would happen, was an incredible feeling, beyond words. Ten days later, lying in a hospital bed in the operating room, I thought that even if I didn’t survive this major surgery, I had accomplished a lot in my life. I felt at peace.

I survived the surgery (LOL), and I will go on to write many more books – hopefully a few more bestsellers.

Talk to us about the importance of mentorship – how do you hope to be a guide for others and why is this form of learning so important in the adult industry?

Historically, mentorship has been how we pass down knowledge in the sex industry. Veteran strippers taught me how to be a stripper. I asked for guidance from those with more experience every step of the way in my 20+ years in the adult entertainment industry. If you are lucky, you find wonderful people to mentor you. But not everyone is able to find those priceless mentors.

Right now, the sex industry is expanding at such a rapid rate that I believe there is an explosion of new entertainers who don’t have the community or network to find mentors. I hope my book helps readers feel a connection to our vast, beautiful sex industry community, and inspires them to reach out locally or through the Internet.

What do you hope others will gain from reading your book?

I hope that people who read “Annie Temple’s Business Bible for Erotic Entrepreneurs” will be inspired to become the best business owners that they can be and make them feel empowered to run safe, profitable enterprises. I also hope they dive into the “Manifest Money” chapter and learn to catch themselves engaging in self-sabotaging behaviors, such as negative self-talk and limiting beliefs. That chapter, out of everything, has the power to transform everything in our lives. It’s a snippet of the vast information out there, but it’s the most important information I’ve ever learned.

What are your goals for the year?

I’ve worked in the adult entertainment industry, on and off, since I was 23 years old. I’m 49 now. I’ve done all kinds of sex industry work from stripping to massage to Only Fans. Over those years, my body has changed drastically. I’m still short and skinny with tiny titties, but now I have lines creasing my face and neck. Deep, keloid scars run the length of my abdomen from top to bottom and I have no belly button. My tiny titties have stretch marks from nursing three babies. I have a pain line in the middle of my forehead from years of chronic pain that I lived with in my early 40s.

Still, I’ve never had a problem attracting clients or making money in the adult entertainment industry. For my most recent comeback to sex work, I called myself a MILF, got over my insecurities about my scars and missing belly button, and was pleasantly surprised by how I was received after years of being too sick to work at all. I realized that adult entertainment was where I should have been all along. I finally accepted that this was where I belonged. Then, came the surgery on September 15^th, only a short time ago. Suddenly, I was faced with giving up the work I love again.

I have shed many tears and gone back-and-forth many times about what I want to do after THIS SURGERY. The reason is because this surgery would change my body in a very drastic way. THIS SURGERY would result in me living with an ileostomy for the rest of my life. For people who don’t know, ostomy bags are used by people who need to divert their intestines or bladder out of their body through a “stoma” on their abdomen. In my case, on September 15^th, I had my entire large intestine removed.

Now, I am old, wrinkled, scarred, have no belly button, AND I have a bag hanging off my stomach, which could be very off-putting for people, I imagine. LAUGH with me, because I asked myself why this had to happen just when I finally knew that sex work was my destiny?

I am home now, recovering from my surgery. I’m already feeling relieved of the symptoms that led there. I feared that I would be repulsed by my own body but looking carefully in the mirror at my naked body, I see that the bag actually hides some of my scars. Go figure.

Looking at myself in the mirror, I look exactly the same – a skinny, pale MILF with an attitude. The only difference is this bag. The bag is not as bad as I thought it was going to be. I still feel beautiful. I still see a hot, horny MILF in the mirror.

Many clients and fans have reached out to tell me that my ostomy doesn’t make a difference to them. They want me to be healthy and happy. It makes me realize that I didn’t give them the credit they deserve when I thought they’d all abandon me. My days in adult entertainment are not over yet.

As far as my Author + Speaker business goes, I plan to release my memoir early next year. I have a few different projects I’m working on – mostly drafted in my head but soon to be on paper. I’m turning 50 in January and hosting a big, sexy party to celebrate with family, friends, and fans. I want to promote myself as a guest on the podcast circuit, to share my knowledge and perspectives and to learn from others.

If you want to learn more about me, check out the links below. Do I make you horny? Sign up for free to my BLOG and receive 14 days free access to my Only Fans page AND a digital copy of my erotic book, called: “Tales of a Sensual Masseuse.”

Find Annie’s new book on Amazon here and learn more about her at annietemple.com, nakedtruth.ca, and her erotic website at tntannie.ca where you can read her weekly newsletter – tntannie.ca/blog. In addition, follow her on her author page on Facebook @tntannie4ever, X @TNTNakedTruth, and YouTube @annietemple. For some more backstory to her bestselling book head HERE and check out the recent podcast that she was recently interviewed on HERE.