NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather forecasts

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
    • The Great NZ Road Trip
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & TΕ«rangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • ManawatΕ« - Whanganui
    • All ManawatΕ« - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • ManawatΕ«
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
    • Cooking the Books
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Lifestyle

'I'm fascinated by the human body': Former escort says sex work is a job like any other

By Emma Reynolds
news.com.auΒ·
11 Mar, 2018 02:58 AM7 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber? Β Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access contentβ€”explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
β€Œ
Save

    Share this article

Former escort Andrea Werhun, 28, says she was determined to destigmatise sex work, and show that it is a job like any other. Photo / Instagram

Former escort Andrea Werhun, 28, says she was determined to destigmatise sex work, and show that it is a job like any other. Photo / Instagram

In a historic library in New York, a crowd has gathered to hear an articulate, attractive young graduate launch her eye-popping memoir β€” Modern Whore.

Former escort Andrea Werhun, 28, says she was determined to destigmatise sex work, and show that it is a job like any other.

The Canadian writer recounts sleeping with obese, unattractive and foul-smelling clients, taking part in a threesome and being raped on the job, but insists she loved the experience. She even says she actively enjoyed having sex with an 80-year-old man.

"It's a reasonable option for a certain kind of person, especially if you have strong boundaries," she tells news.com.au of her former profession after the launch. "You have to want to have sex for money. If you're just desperate for the money, it could eat you alive."

Werhun, whose book contains a practical "how-to" guide for would-be escorts, says she thought it was "important to show the full picture" and recount her worst encounters as well as the best.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"I'm not here to glamorise prostitution. It's a job with good sides and down sides," she says. "I have no personal regrets.

"I enjoyed connecting with strangers on a deep level, having a relationship that in a way seems surreal. I was using a fake name, presenting a different side of myself. I was getting paid for presenting the sexiest side of myself.

"I could connect deeply with a person, perhaps on the deepest level β€” sex β€” and then exit their lives."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
View this post on Instagram

There's still time to get your copy before XXX-mas. If you're in Toronto, you TOO can make Jesus proud by ordering the book online at modernwhore.com and shipping with Xpresspost. I personally ship everything from my bedroom and do post office runs daily! ALSO: happy to sell in person with cash if online sales/shipping costs ain't for you. Hit me up! #modernwhore #hohoho

A post shared by Andrea W.πŸ’Œ (@weenerwoman) on Dec 20, 2017 at 3:41pm PST

The young escort, who went by the name Mary Ann because "it sounded so wholesome", says that unlike some of her co-workers, she had no compunction about having sex with 80-year-old Albert. "I was fascinated by how people's bodies worked, what they did," she says. "Granted, the smellier clients were not pleasurable. But the 80-year-old, I find nothing wrong with his body."

Werhun initially wanted to be a stripper, until a friend's mother suggested escorting could be more profitable. The then 21-year-old had been interested in selling sex since working as a barista and realising she made better tips when she wore a low-cut top and flirted. "Why not get straight to the point?" she asks.

She began working as an escort while at university, and quit around the age of 25 after her mother requested it.

Werhun sees her former role as being to "accept people for who they are" and suggests her clients were "paying to not be rejected".

Discover more

Lifestyle

Confessions of a Kiwi sex worker

13 Mar 03:36 AM
Lifestyle

No one is 100% straight

14 Mar 05:20 PM

She says she loved "learning about people and sexuality" and found the job "compelling".

The ex-escort hopes her book will demystify the enriching, funny and sad elements of the job, in a book her MC describes as a "variety show" of sex work.

In one tongue-in-cheek section, she prints reviews of herself that anonymous "johns" posted online, and follows them with her own, candid reviews of them. The reviews are littered with acronyms such as DFK (deep French kissing) and MPOS (multiple positions).

"I'm naturally unjudgmental, open-minded, interested in people," she says. "I take the job seriously. My role is to accept people for who they are."

Werhun says her years as an escort taught her "about people and sexuality" in ways she wanted to share with others.

"It elevates the escort as not just someone who allows their body to be violated but loves that person, for a moment."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
View this post on Instagram

BIG @modernwhore news today! Keep abreast of updates by signing up for our newsletter at ModernWhore.com πŸ‘€πŸ’‹ #sexwork #writersofinstagram #modernwhore #kickstarter #itscumming

A post shared by Andrea W.πŸ’Œ (@weenerwoman) on Sep 14, 2017 at 7:24am PDT

Her book recounts the heartache of "coming out" to her Catholic mother. "I told her that being honest had extinguished the fire inside that threatened to burn me alive," writes the former sex worker in her book. "'Well,' she said morosely, 'You just lit me on fire.' I cried the whole way home."

Now, Werhun says, her immediate family have gone through a journey to become more accepting β€” although many of her extended family are horrified.

Perhaps the most confronting part of the book is a letter she wrote to a client after a "terrifying" sexual encounter. "You put your full weight on my body, looked me dead in the eyes without any words," she wrote.

He refused to put on a condom, rubbing against her despite her protestations, until she simply went limp. "I hope you'll consider the way you make other escorts feel in the future and take their wellbeing into consideration when paying them for sex," she said.

He never replied.

But she says it didn't put her off the profession. "As a woman, these things are going to happen to me anyways," she said. "These things happened to me at a job I liked. Even rape didn't stop me doing it. I had so many positive experiences."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

She says the best way to protect sex workers is to decriminalise the job and treat it like any other. "Criminal law makes it nearly impossible for sex workers to come forward with their experience of abuse and rape," she says.

The #MeToo movement makes this a perfect time to talk about what being a sex worker really means, the author believes. "Sex workers aren't immediately included in stories of women coming forward about unwanted sexual harassment or abuse in the workplace," she says. "Society doesn't see sex work as work, or sex workers as people who can experience abuse on the job.

"We're not considered legitimate speakers. Our experiences should be taken as seriously."

View this post on Instagram

New brassiere who dis? πŸ’ŽπŸ‘™πŸ’¦ @gigisfrills #bettiepage #pointers #torpedos #teal #youcanfeel #fcups #wuddup

A post shared by Andrea W.πŸ’Œ (@weenerwoman) on Jul 25, 2017 at 7:57am PDT

Werhun says she accepts she is privileged as a white, middle-class woman, and that her experiences may not reflect those of sex workers who are less educated or wealthy, women of colour, or those dealing with mental health issues or abuse.

"All these things make people more vulnerable to the law β€” that wasn't something I ever had to deal with directly," she says. "There are so many angles to sex workers' experiences that I can't really touch because that's not my experience."

Her book, complete with a wide array of photos taken by her friend and videographer Nicole Bazuin, allows her to "transform" into different roles held by sex workers and women, she says.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"We play with representation. It's not strictly glamorised or demonised. The stories and photos show the full humanity of the job."

Werhun says she isn't ashamed of having sex for money. It's only society that projects its shame onto her.

"I wanted to show my human, relatable, funny and at times gut-wrenching experiences. And they're not necessarily exclusive to a sex worker.

"What two consenting adults do on their own time is up to them. We're not hurting anybody and we don't deserve to be hurt."

The young woman is in the same long-term relationship she's been in since she worked in escorting, and says her partner is "supportive".

She simply wants to show people what it's really like to be a sex worker in the modern world.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Modern Whore by Andrea Werhun is available to buy now at modernwhore.com

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Lifestyle

Lifestyle

Bindi Irwin posts 'thank you' video from hospital bed

13 May 02:28 AM
Premium
Lifestyle

The six definitive rules of office lunch etiquette

12 May 11:30 PM
Travel

How to not miss out on booking a popular NZ Great Walk

12 May 10:00 PM

Sponsored: How much is too much?

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Lifestyle

Bindi Irwin posts 'thank you' video from hospital bed

Bindi Irwin posts 'thank you' video from hospital bed

13 May 02:28 AM

Bindi Irwin missed the Steve Irwin Gala as she had to undergo emergency surgery.

Premium
The six definitive rules of office lunch etiquette

The six definitive rules of office lunch etiquette

12 May 11:30 PM
How to not miss out on booking a popular NZ Great Walk

How to not miss out on booking a popular NZ Great Walk

12 May 10:00 PM
Premium
Can metformin actually slow the ageing process?

Can metformin actually slow the ageing process?

12 May 06:00 PM
Sponsored: Cosy up to colour all year
sponsored

Sponsored: Cosy up to colour all year

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • Β© Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP