Leo Herrera is an artist and writer renowned for his exploration of Queer and immigrant experiences through the lenses of sex, technology, and history. Herrera's writing centers themes of cruising and disease.
About "The Manual"
(Analog) Cruising by Leo Herrera arrived at a moment of growing fatigue with dating apps, capturing a shift toward connection beyond the screen. Blending memoir, self-help, history and field guide, it has sold thousands of copies worldwide through a fully independent model.
After being rejected by traditional publishers, Herrera invested his own savings and, with a small team, built a grassroots campaign rooted in his background in HIV activism. Partnerships with public health organizations, nonprofits, and sex-positive businesses extended the book’s reach, while a parallel online campaign circulated widely across artists, influencers, and adult performers.
The book’s impact spans institutions and subcultures. It was featured in a safe sex campaign by the New York State Department of Health and presented at the Creating Change Conference. It has been incorporated into coursework at California State University, distributed to LGBTQ youth through Impulse Group San Francisco, and circulated through bathhouses and nightlife spaces internationally. Editorial coverage has ranged from The New Yorker to independent and queer publications across Europe and the United States, as well as appearances on Savage Love by Dan Savage.
(Analog) Cruising has resonated as a response to digital isolation, manifesto for a renewed approach to queer connection, now referred to simply as “The Manual.”
