Katherine Studley Dreams of Chaos
On why sex work is real work and how sex workers should file taxes.
Dreams of Chaos is a series of Q&As with folks who are engaging with chaos in their work. Sometimes that means they love the chaos and use it as an engine for creativity. Sometimes it means they struggle with the chaos and are trying to harness it in whatever way they can. I’m interested in the ways in which we, as people, acknowledge the messiness of living in the world. And I’m excited to share conversations with those are thinking about this as well.
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Katherine Studley is a tax accountant and content creator from Buffalo, NY who works with content creators to shape their own uncommon, independent career paths. Specifically, her work focuses on content creators on OnlyFans, a subscription-based social media platform that has “put X-rated entertainment in the hands of its entertainers,” according to a 2019 New York Times article.
In mid-2020, Studley had a revelation: OnlyFans creators would be the first sex workers to earn taxable income instead of untraceable cash. These were folks who had the power to write off things like outfits, makeup, and dancing poles — not to mention travel and per diem expenses. These were also, however, almost certainly people who wouldn’t be walking into an H&R Block with their 1099s anytime soon.
OnlyFans dancers needed her help, and she was ready for it.
Over the last two years, Studley has gone from working in a dull government office to working with hundreds of clients to safely navigate the tax process as new entrepreneurs. As The Only Consultant®, she creates content to get tax info to those who need it, has created downloadable business and tax prep courses, and offers consultations to those who are still figuring out how to be entrepreneurs. She also founded a tax firm, Prisma Tax Group, to offer tax preparation, bookkeeping, business formation, and all things related to support small businesses.
Studley is passionate about rethinking societal norms, especially when it comes to choosing joy. She’s also excited to uplift and empower those who are doing things differently. This conversation was fascinating — not only because this is a world I don’t know much about, but because Kat’s energy is infectious and powerful. She has a zeal for life that’s inspiring. She’s not interested in choosing a pre-ordained path or accepting things just are the way they are. Or, in her words, “I want to push the envelope of what's socially acceptable [... ] I think it's fun. [It’s] for the greater good.”
How did you find your way into accounting? Were you always a numbers person?
My father is a CPA, so in my house we always had five seasons — winter, spring, summer, fall, and tax season. Taxes were always a part of my life growing up, but what I really wanted was to study marketing. Living in Buffalo, though, a job in marketing wasn’t guaranteed. What was guaranteed was a job in accounting. I never really loved it, I just decided I’d do something cool when school was over.
I got my degree from Niagara University and worked at some regional CPA firms in the area for two years. But once I’d done a real tax season, I confirmed this was definitely not my story. Still, I learned a lot, and I tried to make it as fun as I possibly could. Then, in June of 2019, the guy I was dating at the time got a job in D.C. At that point, I didn’t really know what was next for me, but I knew I never wanted to do accounting again. So, I followed him down to D.C. to start a new life.
I got a job as a barista, all while knowing I wanted to meet as many people as I could. I made business cards that said ‘Katherine Studley: Out to Live,’ and handed them out to everyone, which is how I accidentally got recruited by the CIA.
I was told I would be doing the books for a tech company, but when I got there it was a warehouse filled with unmarked things, hidden in between a diner, a daycare, and a church. Everyone in there had top security clearance except for the three of us on the accounting team. We were there to buy parts and keep the books organized.
That was 2020. I was moonlighting for social media marketing clients while working with the government. And I hated it. I spent a lot of time on social media during that time, trying to figure out how the algorithm works on Tik Tok, when I found out about OnlyFans. I called my friend in Buffalo to see if she knew what was up. And she was like, “Yo, we're making $10k a month.” Immediately, I said, “Hey, you know all kinds of stuff can be a write-off?” And she had no idea. That’s where the idea came from. One morning, I was scrambling eggs, and the idea of The Only Consultant struck me like lightning. I immediately made the Instagram account and then dropped the phone. I was shaking. I knew this was my million dollar idea. So, I quit my CIA job and I've been an entrepreneur ever since.
How do you reach your clients, especially since they work in a field not traditionally associated with filing taxes?
Well, I think it helps that I truly understand the frustration surrounding taxes. I cried through all my accounting classes, so when I say I know it sucks it’s because I mean it. For real. I also have a really good grasp on my client base and target audience because I'm very close in age to them. I'm 29 now; when I started this I was 26. These are peers, I can talk to them.
As far as the sales funnel goes, that really starts on Tik Tok and probably always will. I am gaining momentum from referrals as well, though. It’s very similar to the OnlyFans model — their business is also driven by Tik Tok.
I want to meet everyone exactly where they are. I'm in Telegram group chats, I’m on Tik Tok, I'm going on the Pornhub podcast. That podcast is really outside my comfort zone, but it’s an important statement. I know, it's uncomfortable for people to talk about taxes. And, hey, It’s a little uncomfortable for me to go on Pornhub. But we’re all going to come out of our comfort zones together.
So very cool of you. But how do you convince workers traditionally non-reported industry it’s a good idea to file taxes?
My clients understand very quickly what I'm saying: if you're getting a 1099 you need to file it. This is what makes OnlyFans so different. Usually they’d be selling pics and getting cash or Venmo transfers, and there’s no tax document. In the past, more traditional sex workers wouldn't have gotten a 1099, but now it was being reported.
You know, I did free consultations for a year when I first started out. I just wanted to learn about how the industry works because I had no exposure to sex work before this. I thought I was going to help 20-year-olds taking nudes, but I got every kind of person under the sex-work umbrella. I had a lot of catching up to do.
I turned every conversation into a knowledge-share. I gave them all the information they needed, and I asked them about themselves. “What's up with your niche? Tell me about it.” Or, “What's a suicide girl? What kind of anime are you? What's cosplay? You're a dominatrix, and that’s also called femme-dom? Okay. I didn't know that before. Noted.” I learned all kinds of kinks, and genres, and niches. And I’m always judgment-free and respectful.
Sounds like it's actually a rich world, and a lot different than what we may think about when we think about sex work.
Definitely. There's something for everyone. It’s shouldn’t be a taboo corner of society; there is an undercurrent that lives with us. I have clients who are nurses, teachers, professional consultants, big-four accountants, and on and on. Sex work is part of our world.
We need to get rid of the taboo. Sex work exists, it fills a societal need, it's a true job. I think we could look at how other countries have legitimized sex work. There is a clear path, but we need everyone to get on board. OnlyFans is helping the industry become more mainstream, but there's two sides to it. The new digital sex work is seen as a little more legitimate, but we still don’t consider all the other layers and levels of people doing this work.
How do you ensure everyone on your team is providing a judgment-free zone, and a physically safe space, for your clients?
It’s hard. I feel so protective of my clients.At first, I only hired people I knew — the first girl I hired was a friend, someone I knew as a person. Then, when I had to expand, I hired people from Buffalo because it’s such a small place, and having grown up there I knew all their connections and trusted they had small town grit, like me. That was a good place to start. When it came to my Houston team, I leaned towards creative people — a lot of people here, are music majors — because I feel like they tend to see the world a little differently and be a bit more empathetic.
Whoever it is, though I meet them in person. I need to look them in the eye. You know, we have five core people and I know them all.
We also run background checks on everyone, just to cross our T's and dot our I’s. And then everyone meets with Romina Rosales, who runs The Queens of the Underworld. She talks with everyone about the realities of sex work. We also have policies in place to maintain client safety. Do not Google clients, for example. All client correspondence runs through me, so if you need bank statements I get them from the client. I don't know how long we can continue to sustain this, but I'm trying my very best to have the least amount of people possible contact clients.
That’s very prudent. How do you navigate the inherent dangers of the industry?
So, I work with a non-profit called DeliverFund that works with big banks, airlines, hotel chains, government entities to stop all kinds of human trafficking. Their representatives come in and talk to our staff, and I use them as a resource. They help us recognize the signs of trafficking and navigate what to do if we notice anything. Then I check in with Romina, who can give me insight on the ins and outs of the sex work world. Sometimes DeliverFund will say to call the cops, but Romina says, “Hang on, what's the story with her pimp? Get the full picture.”
Thankfully, I haven't had to take any action. I had an inkling a couple of times, but I ended up being ghosted anyways, at which point there's really nothing I can do. But it's something we're always thinking about. Especially when it comes to OnlyFans, managers, who can be super exploitative. Big time. Sometimes the women will be paying managers 70-80% of what they're making. These guys will find a 19-year-old girl with 20,000 followers and offer to handle everything, all she has to do is send bikini pictures and “tip” them 70%. When she makes $30,000, that’s more money than she’d ever seen — but she really grossed $110. And they're walking away with $80,000 off of naked pictures of her.
That’s where it comes to trusting my intuition, recognizing red flags, and providing these women with resources. A lot of times, I get these calls when it’s too late, and now they're really ashamed and embarrassed. It’s so important to meet people with compassion and understanding.
Wow. What would you do in that kind of situation?
All we can do is to get her out of the contract, change the passwords, and if needed, refer her to an attorney. And then do your taxes. You’ve got to rip it off like a band-aid, expense the $70,000 you sent to someone, and then move forward. I also work with OnlyFans coaches, so it really depends on what the client needs.
Do you see part of what you're doing as shaking shit up in the accounting industry?
When I first started this company, I was looking to outsource the work because I didn’t want to do the taxes, and I couldn't find CPAs to take the work. Everyone thought this was absolutely ridiculous. They're afraid of cash businesses, they don't understand sex work, they cannot think outside the box. Now? I'm definitely shaking things up. People are reaching out looking to take this work — I’ve got a pile of resumes! I may be a CPA (because I never passed the test and I hated accounting) but I am a thought leader in the accounting industry.
These days, things are completely different than they were. I’m careful, though. Some accountants or financial planners try to access my client lists in a predatory way. They want access to the high earning OnlyFans dancers, but they don't respect them.
I find if accountants want to work with me, it’s because of one of three reasons. One option is they’re drawn to the mission and helping my client base. Another is they see this as a really lucrative industry understand it as a smart business goal. And then there are people who are interested in our technology-forward approach.
There’s actually a huge national shortage of accountants right now because Gen Z is refusing to work 65-80 hour mandated tax season weeks. The industry is completely taken by surprise! Boomers and Gen-Xers worked those hours, but Gen Z is like, “It's 5:00 pm. I gotta go.” The industry is not equipped to meet the next generation where they are. I'm doing the exact opposite — we use ClickUp, we make Loom videos, we use Venmo and CashApp for payments. We want to meet the employees where they are, too.
Tell me about your role as an educator.
I take it pretty seriously, especially because there's so much false information out there. The least I can do is give you all the facts up front. This information should be accessible and free. It shouldn't be gate-kept; it should be here for you. If you don't spend even $1 with me, and all you do is read everything on my website, you're straight. At least you have a foundation of what's going on. If you want more, you can pay for the course and get a better understanding, or you can pay for a call with me, or we can do your taxes. Even if you go somewhere else, at least you have my booklet and can give it to your H&R Block person. One of my main missions is to provide judgment free, accessible, and accurate information. We’re never taught this in school, so where are you going to get this information?
So, as you know, this is Chaos Palace. And I’m wondering if you see your work as a way of engaging with the chaos of the universe.
Totally. When I saw your blog, I was like, “Yo, someone gets it.” I have hectic energy, chaotic energy. I think that's why I get along with my clients so well. I want to push the envelope of what's socially acceptable, just because I can. I think it's fun. I think pushing the envelope is for the greater good.
I'm super in tune with my intuition, and that has to do with the energy of the universe. If something doesn't feel right, it's over. Final answer. I'm very quick to pivot, and I think that comes with being in tune with the universe and the chaos of the universe. I also just enjoy putting positivity out there because I can. I want to see where it goes, I guess, and try to use my powers for good. I mean, why not?
I’m having the time of my life, honestly. I sincerely love every day — even the chaos that comes with entrepreneurship. I couldn't do anything else. Because I love it. I live for it. I’m choosing joy. I wanna be constantly excited and inspired, and I am. I love it.