Stuart Schuffman, better known as "Broke-Ass Stuart," is a San Francisco indie cult hero and the "pimp-daddy of budget travel."
Stuart started the popular indie 'Zine, Broke-Ass Stuart's Guide to Living Cheaply in San Francisco, travel guide written from the fresh perspective of a 20-something detailing where to get free eats, drinks and have a good time. Proffering forth the philosophy that "you are Young, Broke and Beautiful" - BAS has become a popular fixture in the San Francisco "scene."
Since then he's won a slew of awards; and, published two - that's right, two - Broke-Ass guide books with Falls Media - one for San Francisco; and, most recently, Broke-Ass Stuart's Guide to Living Cheaply - New York.
He is also a self-proclaimed feminist; which, of course, intreguied the hell out of me. Recently I had a chance to chat with Stuart about his cult-hero status, his indie writing career and his overall philosophy of life.
KK: Was it always your aspiration to become a "cult hero?"
BAS: Hmmm….that’s a good question. I mean, if you had asked me when I was 14 what I wanted to be when I grow up I would’ve answered, "Rock Star." But when I started the Broke-Ass Stuart thing I was like 23 or 24 and a bit beyond that. The whole thing started as a zine, and I don’t really think I was like, "Damn, this shit’s gonna make me kinda famous. I bet chicks totally dig a guy with a zine." I just started doing it for the sake of doing it…and to make some extra money to go to Burning Man.
Can you talk a little about the Zine and how/when that started?
Yeah, people love this one. I always say "I was working as a professional fudge packer" when I had the idea to do the first Broke-Ass Stuart zine. I was just working at candy store in North Beach called Z. Cioccolato, whose specialty is fudge.
Anyways, one day this guy who grew up in my neighborhood in San Diego, came in with his fiancé (now his wife). I hadn’t seen him for at least 10 years, so we got to chatting for a bit. On their way out, his fiancé hands me her card and says, "Give us a shout next time you’re in San Diego." After they left, I looked at it and the card said that she was a travel writer, so I thought to myself, "Hey, I wanna be a travel writer," and I decided at that moment to become one. Shortly afterwards I started working on the first zine.
When/how did you snag a book deal out of that?
Well, let’s see. The first zine came out in the summer of 2004, and I followed it with v.2 in the summer of 2005. Both were pretty successful (in terms of zines that is) and through them I ended up getting to write for Lonely Planet. So I went to Ireland for January and February of ’06, and then spent the next four months writing the Ireland chapter for LP’s Western Europe and Europe on a Shoestring books. Afterwards, I knew I wanted to continue to do the whole BAS thing, but I just didn’t think I could bring myself to doing all the distribution any more.
For fuck’s sake, when I was doing zines, I was in like 25 stores in SF and I did all the distro by filling up my backpack and getting around by walking and retched-ass Muni. So I didn’t wanna do that anymore and decided I wanted a book deal. I actually found one on Craigslist of all places!
What is your best advice for other indie or freelance writers.
Be a tenacious little bastard. You have to work your ass off for everything and no one’s gonna give you shit otherwise. If you don’t hear back from someone, wait a few days and call/email them again. Also, be a good networker. If you’re not good at it, then learn. The single most important thing you have to be able to do is promote yourself. No one will do it for you. I guess if I were to put all that into one sentence it would be, "Be nice to everyone and work your ass off."
What is your mostest favoritest (horrible spelling intended) cheap thing to do?
Wander around. I just love exploring places by foot. Seriously, I’m actually starting to get the itch again where I feel like I need to go check out something new. Even if I weren’t writing books, I’d still do it for fun. It’s FREE and anyone can do it in their own city. Just go to a neighborhood you don’t know that well, and start wandering. I hope that doesn’t sound as ridiculous as I think it does.
Because you know I have to cause controversy: Your slogan is "Young, Broke and Beautiful" -- don't you think that's exclusionary towards people who are either "OLD, Broke and Beautiful" or "Young, Broke and Only Average Looking?"
Hell no! It’s all a state of mind love. Anyone who believes that the quality of one’s life is measured not by the things they own, but by the shit that they do, is Young, Broke, and Beautiful. Yadadamean?
You say you are a feminist, yet you're clearly a dude - explain.
Come on now Kate, you don’t have to wear a hat to know what it looks like. Just because I’m a man doesn’t mean I can’t see what sexism is. I’m a feminist because I believe in the revolutionary idea that men and women should be treated equally. Crazy, I know!
You can follow Stuart on Twitter @brokeassstuart or via his website: Broke-Ass Stuart's Goddamn Website If you're in SF or NYC he is a must add to get the in on what's free, cheap and hot in town! Photo courtesy of Julie Michelle of iliveheresf.blogspot.com.