Coming soon: September 22, 2026! Director’s Grant Recipient & COURAGE to WRITE Writer of Note Shelley Stoehr’s memoir, GIRLS GIRLS GIRLS: One Woman’s Experience as a Sex Worker in the 1990s will be published by Legacy Book Press. This is especially exciting, as this is the project for which Shelley was awarded both grants!
In the recession-scarred landscape of 1990s New York City, a young writer and dancer faces a brutal economic reality: no one will hire her, not even to bus tables. When she impulsively takes a job as a topless dancer, Stoehr begins a nine-year journey through the misunderstood world of sex work—a journey that runs parallel to her struggles for artistic recognition and personal autonomy. From the neon-lit stages of New York City to the debauched clubs of San Francisco, Stoehr chronicles the dualities of creating art while being objectified, and of finding camaraderie among fellow dancers while enduring an increasingly abusive marriage. With unflinching honesty, Stoehr dismantles the stereotypes and stigma surrounding sex workers, revealing the humanity, resilience, and sisterhood that flourish behind the curtain of societal judgment.