Sex Week 2012: Interview with Misti Dawn, the Nerdiest Girl in Porn
Written by: Brett Williams, Special to CC2K
Misti Dawn (Taylor) is known as the “Nerdiest Girl In Porn,” but that’s hardly the qualifier I’d use. For one, it hardly applies anymore, as Taylor has retired from the adult entertainment industry. But it also pidgeonholes a woman with a very diverse and exciting career. Misti Dawn Taylor is an entrepreneur and the business is MISTI DAWN TAYLOR. The Southern girl with big dreams has turned her nerdy childhood into a full blown media empire. She works for Machinima, appears on G4, runs her own website and podcast network and rubs elbows with some of the nerdiest people in Hollywood (Simon Pegg, Elijah Wood, Max Landis). CC2K’s Brett Williams sat down with Taylor for our annual Sex Week and discussed video game systems, what’s best about a threesome and what people with tattoos always get asked.
The adult entertainment industry is a very public industry with a fairly negative stigma in so called “polite” society. Now that you have left porn and are transitioning into other media, do you find that your time spent in adult film has been a bigger benefit, or hindrance?
I would say its equal depending on the field. While it has been a problem from time to time, its more often not an issue at all. A lot of my current followers didn’t even realize I did work in the adult industry. They just thought i was a professional gamer, which is true too. It’s just funny that people didn’t Google!
You’ve stated before that one of your reasons for getting involved in porn in the first place was the sense of sexual adventure and exploration it offered. Despite your experiences with the business side of things, do you feel as though you’re a more open and fulfilled person sexually now because of the time you spent in the industry?
I definitely learned a thing or two. I learned the logistics of certain sexual situations and a lot about people and the way sex affects every aspect of one’s life. As for becoming sexually fulfilled, no. I learned what i enjoy about sex is more about who it’s with than what it is. Threesomes are fun, but it’s who that threesome is with with that makes it a fulfilling experience.
Sex tends to carry with it a sort of negative or “dirty” connotation. Do you feel people take sex too seriously and that the lack of dialogue about it, in this country in particular, sets a dangerous precedent?
I think sex is a great thing, but like Spider-Man, with great power comes great responsibility. I don’t think people (both in the industry and out) realize how serious sex really is; not just to your psychical health, but your mental health as well.
How hard is it to date given your fairly visible position as a star in the adult film industry?
There is stress to having people constantly contributing their two cents to your relationships. It can cause major issues. Dating can be difficult for sure, but my career is a great way to weed out someone who is not right for me. Take me as I am, as they say
You’ve said that your plan with porn was to get in, have some fun, make money, then get back out. You seem to have done that successfully. How difficult have you found your transition into more traditional media?
I think the timing worked perfectly. In my heart, I was done with porn and ready to move on, even if I didn’t have a back-up plan. It just didn’t feel right to me anymore. Luckily my blogging and my interest in video games really offered me a career, oddly enough. I signed a directors contract with Machinima, did a short film with Elijah Wood, etc. It just seemed easy to move on.
Some people would call your time in the porn industry something of a cautionary tale. Would you consider it that yourself and given the experiences you’ve had, would you try to steer other young women away from the industry?
Everyone can do what they want. Honestly, how many young girls are going to listen anyway? I didn’t. I think the best thing is to just explain your own experiences and they can take that knowledge and do what they want with it.
You’ve been asked this before, but I’m going to try and get at it from a different angle. Many women view pornography as objectification. I know you feel as though the behind the scenes politics of the business lead to women being taken advantage of, but…what is your honest opinion, from your gut, about the pros/cons of people having sex on screen?
Having sex on screen cleared up a lot of insecurities I had about having sex in front of people, Hell, even having sex with the lights on, so that was a nice change. I do find it difficult to have casual sex or to become involved too quickly with people in my daily life, so porn was like this club I could go to and pretend to be someone else. That was fun.
Given how your time in the industry went, and your fairly public exodus from it, do you regret your decision to make porn?
Not at all. I don’t regret anything in my life. I like who I’ve become as a person. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for everything I’ve done, good or bad.
You’re a very busy girl with your fingers in a lot of different pies. Give us a rundown of all the different things you’re doing right now.
Ha! That’s a funny way to put it. Okay, here’s the rundown:
Director/Partner at Machinima
Voice of the character Nina on Sanity Not Included.
Played opposite of Elijah Wood in Max Landis’s viral sensation, “Death and Return of Superman.”
Host of the gaming party at Vegas’s Insert Coins, where I’m also being officially introduced as the new co-host of “Bagged and Boarded” with Matt Cohen.
And I run my gaming website, and podcast network of the same name, The Naughty Nerd, where we’re launching three new shows!
I stay busy!
You’re a self-proclaimed nerd and a big one at that. I know you’re a gamer, but what other things do you obsess over? I know our readers would love to know what gets Misti Dawn excited.
Honestly? Decorating small spaces! It’s a hobby. I like organizing my friends’ houses and making trips to Ikea. That’s probably my second favorite obsession, and an odd one.
Video Games are clearly the thing that really makes you tick. What was…
A. The first game you really loved? Uninvited for the NES.
B. Your favorite game of all time? Sweet Home, also for the NES.
C. The best system ever? (N64, by the way.) No way! SEGA SATURN!
Where do you come down on the next generation console debate? Are you an XBox or a PS3 girl? Do you think there are merits to both?
I have both and I love them both. Each brings different things to the table.
Your tattoos are one of the things that make you most recognizable. What sparked your interest in tattooing and who has done all your work?
Adam Potts of Acme Ink in Louisville, KY has done all my work. Honestly, I get asked why I have tattoos all the time, and I don’t know…I just like them.
What’s the most annoying question that non-tattooed people ask you? For me, it has to be, “Did it hurt?”
That! For sure! Of course it hurts! It’s a bunch of fucking needles in your skin!
For those out there that are considering a tattoo but have yet to take the plunge, what advice would you give?
Really take time to think about what you want, but even more importantly, RESEARCH YOUR ARTIST!
You’re a Southerner living a fairly public life out on the West Coast. What do you miss most about the South?
The people.
Conversely, what do you like most about the West Coast?
The weather, the scenery, and all the opportunity.
As you branch out into different media, are you content just being in front of the camera or do you eventually want to be creating content yourself, writing your own, I don’t know, comics/movies/web series, etc?
I actually already do a lot behind the camera. I build and design all my own sites, I run social media for other companies, I write for my video shorts, “Matt and Misti Have No Friends.” I’m pretty content with the mix of work I get.
This is Sex Week at CC2K so I’d feel remiss if I didn’t ask you…what’s your best bedroom advice for couples?
Communication, Communication, Communication…and HONESTY.