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Aging Gracefully In The Gothic Subculture Armed With Politeness And Manners

Credit Kevin Kniestedt
Jillian Venters, aka The Lady Of The Manners, with Sound Effect host Gabriel Spitzer.

There are still certain parts of our youth that we identify with and often don’t want to let go of. And the number of subcultures out there that people have come to identify with is expansive. For Jillian Venters, there is little question in her mind as to the subculture she identifies with.

“I’m kind of a romantic goth with Victorian goth tinges. I get more Victorian goth as the weather gets cooler. It is really hard to wear velvet frock coats and top hats during high summer.”

Jillian has been authoring the blog Gothic Charm School for about two decades under the persona The Lady Of The Manners, and also wrote the book Gothic Charm School: An Essential Guide For Goths And Those Who Love Them, and has never wavered in her gothic identity.

On her blog, she gives advice to a lot of younger people in the goth subculture, or “baby bats” as she calls them, but is also fielding a lot of questions from people who are now in their 30’s, 40’s or even older that want to know how to maintain their Gothic identity while, say, organizing play dates for their kids, or working in a corporate environment.

Kevin Kniestedt is a journalist, host and producer who began his career at KNKX in 2003. Over his 17 years with the station, he worked as a full time jazz host, a news host and produced the weekly show Sound Effect. Kevin has conducted or produced hundreds of interviews, has won local and national awards for newscasts and commentary.
Gabriel Spitzer is a former KNKX reporter, producer and host who covered science and health and worked on the show Sound Effect.