NYT Times Bestselling Author Looking to Interview Las Vegas Dancers in Mid March!

[WaiterRant]

Dear Forum Members:

My name is Steve Dublanica and I'm the author of the NYT Bestselling book Waiter Rant: Thanks for the Tip: Confessions of a Cynical Waiter. A few weeks ago I posted a request to interview dancers for my upcoming book on tipping entitled At Your Service. I'd like to thank all the wonderful people who contacted me as a result of that post and gave me a peek into a dancer's life.

Because every story needs a "sense of place" I will be visiting Las Vegas in the middle of March this year. Besides, what's a better place to talk about tipping than Vegas? Therefore, I'm looking for male and female dancers who'd be willing to let me interview them in person when I'm in town. I will be happy to provide references to prove that everything I'm saying is on the level. Please Google my name or persuse my website at as well! If you're interested in talking to me while I'm in Vegas, please email me at

Best wishes,

Steve Dublanica

[lildreamer316]

Steve, I've been waiting for you to pop up here!!
I read your blog regularly and am excited to see what you'll come up with in this next book.
I personally have not been dancing steadily for the last few years because of having a child, but I hope some of our members will help you out.
Best of luck and please keep us updated as you have time!
..and I hope you don't mind my sig line quote, LOL.

[Sophia_Starina]

I'd be happy to share my story as long as you pay me....

[WaiterRant]

Alas, paying for interviews is unethical! But if I was at your club I'd be a good tipper!
If any dancers in Vegas want to talk to me, I'll be in town from March 10-15th. Just email me at

[Sophia_Starina]

Alas, paying for interviews is unethical! But if I was at your club I'd be a good tipper!

Hilarious. I think profiting from other peoples stories and life experiences is unethical.

Getting something for nothing is all good and well.... but you just fall into the category reserved for leeches and other parasites.

[WaiterRant]

Sorry if I offended you with my attempt at humor, but if you didn't describe other peoples experiences there'd be no literature, film, painting, dance, or music! I hope you reconsider my post. Best wishes!

[Kylea2]

I agree with Sophia, you are profiting from the dancer's story - so they should be compensated. It's the same as an artist compensating a model because he/she contributed to the final product - so your argument isn't really valid unless you were not going to be profiting from the sale of the book.

As a dancer another part of the problem with free interviews is that the majority of the time we never see the final product produced after promises that we would. I can't tell you how many times I've been interviewed. Have I ever seen anything from it? Nope... not a thing. No rough draft, no final, nothing. I can't even reference it for credit anywhere because the writers never follow through on what they promise.

My opinion is to ask for pay - at least then there is some sort of compensation!

[WaiterRant]

I always try and treat my in person interviewees to lunch or dinner and give them a copy of my book. People who contribute to this current effort gets a free copy of my upcoming book. But you cannot pay for interviews! If I was in your club I would pay for your time, that's a different story.

[Sophia_Starina]

Excuse the fuck outa me, but what journalism/creative writing/ethics course did you take that says that compensating a person for their intellectual property is "unethical"???

If you have every intention of profiting from a strippers' anecdotes, stories, and experiences you should pay them!!!

Imagine if your publisher started paying you royalties in dinners and lunches... would you be happy about it?

Oh wait.... is that how you get paid... Chubsy?

[Sophia_Starina]

if you didn't describe other peoples experiences there'd be no literature, film, painting, dance, or music! I hope you reconsider my post. Best wishes!

You're a riot... in the worlds of literature, film, and music etc. people get paid for good ideas and to share their stories. Give credit where credit is due... and pay folks accordingly.

Gosh! Can't you come up with an original tale to tell... or will you forever be destined to mooch on the experiences of others???

[jester214]

Oh wait.... is that how you get paid... Chubsy?

That's a pretty fucking cheap shot...

[Kylea2]

and give them a copy of my book. People who contribute to this current effort gets a free copy of my upcoming book. But you cannot pay for interviews!

I've heard it a plenty of times that I know people tend to NOT follow through on what they say they are going to do.

Plus, there is nothing wrong with paying for interviews and obviously if you can afford to pay for lunch you can afford to pay for an interview.

what journalism/creative writing/ethics course did you take that says that compensating a person for their intellectual property is "unethical"???

^^ What she said!

[JayATee]

I don't understand, magazines like People pay celebs for interviews all the time, how is it unethical?

[nina888]

bahahahahaha......... are you SURE the story is about tipping? Or is it about strippers?

I have actually had several guys (very cheap and time consuming assholes) come into where i work and list off a thousand questions. I find it annoying as fuck and insulting. If you are offering to pay my for my time then we need to discuss the details. Not to mention how the story i am telling is going to be used.

i have thought about writing about my experiences as a dancer as i have had many very unique insights while doing this job. I have dealt with celebrities, high society people, drug dealers, and the lowest classes all in the same profession. I certainly didnt spend all these years doing this shit to give my story away for free to someone who isnt going to compensate me. I actually think the stories and television specials showing the lives of strippers hurt our business more than anything. Oftentimes they are not shown realistically or only show a very dramatic downside of how it operates.

If you really want the experience/writing material - read through the posts here. OR GO STRIP!!! LOLOLOL

[Kylea2]

I actually think the stories and television specials showing the lives of strippers hurt our business more than anything. Oftentimes they are not shown realistically or only show a very dramatic downside of how it operates.

+1 VERY true. At least with your own book you know exactly how you are being quoted and how the story is being spun.

[nina888]

The fucked up thing too is that soooo much negative publicity is given to strippers, making it a high risk thing for us to even think about writing experiences ourselves!!!!!!! Anytime i share any insight into the business with an otherwise "average" person - the information that has already been accumulated in their mind leads them straight to a one track mind. VERY VERY FEW ever even listen to what i am saying. It goes in one ear and out the other. Strippers practically have to live underground (meaning keep everything so hush hush and/or lye) to avoid being labeled a whore, skank, goldigger, moron, or bimbo. Its sickening.

[jester214]

Are you all serious? This guy is legitimate, his website and his book are all about TIPPING?? If he talked to 100 dancers to get their views on TIPPING and paid them a very low $100 he's already in the hold $10,000! Plus he doesn't just talk to dancers, he talks to any profession where people get tipped.

They pay celebs about their personal stories. He's trying to get information about tipping in a broad stance, if he paid it could be said you just told him what he wanted to hear, or lied.

[Kylea2]

Are you all serious? This guy is legitimate, his website and his book are all about TIPPING?? If he talked to 100 dancers to get their views on TIPPING and paid them a very low $100 he's already in the hold $10,000!

How is $100 low? If he wants to stay inexpensive he can. Just put a fast survey up on line and tell the dancers he'll pay them like $10 each to fill it out for the first X number of dancers or $1 per question. It's the same price as buying lunch at a deli. The answers will be more fluid from one dancer to the next, like actual research, and probably better thought out since people can actually take time to form their answers.

[jester214]

How is $100 low? If he wants to stay inexpensive he can. Just put a fast survey up on line and tell the dancers he'll pay them like $10 each to fill it out for the first X number of dancers or $1 per question. It's the same price as buying lunch at a deli. The answers will be more fluid from one dancer to the next, like actual research, and probably better thought out since people can actually take time to form their answers.

Well for one, how would he know who he was talking too? I could answer his questions.

Also, why do you want to be paid so badly when he's going to write a book about how people need to tip more? NOT JUST DANCERS. All kinds of workers who get tipped?

[nina888]

i dunno i just find this whole situation fishy.......... he is traveling all the way to vegas to interview girls?? what- there are no strippers in new york willing to give some tidbits? And like i said earlier i hate even contributing to guys writing about whatever they think they know or makes them the expert on stripping or tipping strippers or whatever. If he doesnt know already, maybe he should write about something else.

This keeps reminding me of this guy who took up an hour of my time in Chicago asking me all kinds of questions. He gave me the impression he was just settling in before he would get some dances- and then halfway into our convo revealed that he was writing a book about strippers. He kept giving HIS take on the biz, and even tryed to come across as an expert of sorts. At the end of the conversation (me being very nice to him, despite my discust at his stupidity) he refused to buy any dances and left the club with his loser friend (they bought two bud lights- so total spent maybe 20 bucks tops??) looking at me like i was a panhandler.

Negotiate something up front and deal with fewer girls if need be. "pay you for your time" is too vague. Usually when guys say that they hand over 20 bucks and say- thats how much a dance is right? Its total BS.

[Kylea2]

Well for one, how would he know who he was talking too? I could answer his questions.

Also, why do you want to be paid so badly when he's going to write a book about how people need to tip more? NOT JUST DANCERS. All kinds of workers who get tipped?

How is he going to know in Vegas? Just because they have lunch with him in Vegas doesn't mean squat! He could easily ask them to e-mail him a copy of their Vegas dance license or show him on webcam... of course that doesn't mean they are working on a regular basis. He really doesn't have any way of knowing how much these people are working. Another thing he could do was check to see if the i.p. address they are responding from is a Vegas i.p. address - but again it just means they are in Vegas.

As for getting paid, for many dancers time is money. If you want to go and answer all of his questions for free - go for it! You can report back on your experiences with him at lunch and whether or not you ever got your free book... I've already been there done that.

[jester214]

^You both sound ridiculous. The guy is well known, his book is about tipping in different industries, not just dancing. The focus isn't on dancing.

[nina888]

okay.... here is my interview. Tip me well.
Stage.......Dont hand me a dollar on stage and ask me to put my tits in your face. Dont have your girlfriend do the same thinking its more appropriate cus she is a chick. If you dont want to tip me cus im not good enough for your standards, then dont sit there staring at my ass for three sets. Dont put money in places i wouldnt ask you to put it. A dollar is a very cheap tip on stage. If you are gunna sit there staring - cough up some cash. Otherwise go sit at the bar.

Lap dance......... tipping is appreciated dearly. Dont ask for "deals" on dances. I am giving a cut of my money to the club and dont need to put even more back in your pocket (basically buy you a beer on my time). VIP rooms are for big spenders. Dont ask for deals on that unless you are planning on being in there for 3 or 4 hours. THIS is going to make me want to rip you off (aka not give you a good dance). Better tips = better service.

Vip host......... tip him!!! he is the one who is gunna make sure you are well attended to. I wont get into this further but read into it as far as your imagination can take it. These guys are ALL about the money. They will help you if you help them. DONT tip him more than your girl though hoping you will get away with more than she is comfortable with.

this is my mini interview........... like i said before i could write a whole novel on this stuff so i will leave it at that.

[Winged Dinghy]

Although it seems that the OP has disappeared from this thread (and maybe that's for the better, as things have gotten ugly), I thought some of my fellow strippers might want to know that I emailed him almost two weeks ago, on February 11th, offering to be interviewed.

Got no response. None. Not even a polite, "no, but thanks for the offer."

[nina888]

Although it seems that the OP has disappeared from this thread (and maybe that's for the better, as things have gotten ugly), I thought some of my fellow strippers might want to know that I emailed him almost two weeks ago, on February 11th, offering to be interviewed.

Got no response. None. Not even a polite, "no, but thanks for the offer."

kinda makes you wonder dont it??