She’s funny that way… ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How did you translate your comedy from the screen or the stage to the page?
Was this a particularly different writing process for you from writing a TV show or a stand-up special?
I built it out from there.
Credit: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images; Mindy Tucker
MICHELLE BUTEAU:The material will tell you where it’s supposed to go.
The more people that know you, the shorter your logline is.
Podcasting really helped me figure out what I wanted to say.
Grand Central Publishing
You both circle themes of not fitting in and bullying.
Why were those a starting place for you both?
BUTEAU:I am an only child.
Simon and Schuster
I’ve been to three different high schools, three different grade schools.
BLOOM:I feel like I had such an in toyourbrain andyourexperience!
You were so good at just putting me right there.
I don’t know how you got through that, but you walk us through that.
Similarly, you both touch on motherhood and your paths to it.
BLOOM:Michelle, you talked about how being a mom should be a class in school.
Why is it not a class?
Why is a parenting class not mandated for everyone?
Because this is the hardest thing ever.
Advertisers aren’t going to do it, the government’s not going to do it.
I wish society would’ve told me growing up that I could be president.
But no, they always told me, “You’ve got to get bikini-body-ready.
You’ve got to lose that weight.
If men don’t find you f—able, you’re not worthy.”
BLOOM:I’m going to raise [my daughter] to be kind and empathetic.
All I can do is impart my own wisdom to her if, God forbid, she is bullied.
The thing of “They’re just jealous,” that never rang true.
They’re not jealous.
You both get really personal in so many ways.
How do you decide what you might put on the page versus what to hold back?
I just don’t want to be an a–hole.
BLOOM:It’s all about hurting other people.
I want to be true to the experiences because I find talking about pain releases the pain.
It’s therapeutic to be vulnerable in certain ways because it feels like spitting the poison out.
BUTEAU:Print is crazy.
It’s like an emotional tattoo.
Even before your books, you’ve both been vocal champions for female desire and pleasure.
But was it more intimidating writing about it than talking about in other contexts?
What do you wish people were more comfortable talking about?
BLOOM:I can’t stop talking about my clit.
I’m really obsessed with it, apparently.
I was embarrassed for 11-year-old me.
BUTEAU:It’s important to own your sexuality to figure out what you like and don’t like.
Let me f— the dicks to see which dick I like.
They want to control us.
They want us to feel bad.
And then they’re the ones that makes us feel good when they think we’re worthy.
I’m not going to apologize for who I am and what I’ve done.
If you want to talk about it, great.
If you don’t, great.
Don’t judge me, because I’m a good person and I pay my taxes on time.
Michelle, your book often discusses and celebrates “heavy titties.”
Why is it important to you to both celebrate and skewer this?
It’s like a short haircut you have to dress around it.
I got unwanted attention from men, and I felt so sad and unworthy and shameful.
I’m a good person.
I want to be happy I like my titties.
They like my titties."
BLOOM:It’s all the patriarchy, and the patriarchy hurts everyone.
I always wanted big tits.
Like when I drew myself as an adult, I drew myself with good cleavage.
I thought it looked beautiful, but definitely because of the male gaze.
The density and heaviness of them.
That’s why I started poking into demystifying sex.
In every song that I write, I want to check that there’s a boner-killer moment.
you’ve got the option to only keep one: dick jokes or poop jokes.
BUTEAU:Oh my God!
BLOOM:Poop jokes.
How has that changed your perspective on the final product?
BLOOM:It feels so weird to be doing publicity for it.
BUTEAU:MyNetflix special dropped [recently].
There’s so much death.
For a hot minute, I’m like, “Do we need to do this?”
But everyone keeps reminding me, people need to laugh at something.
He died a week after my daughter was born.
The thing that got me through it was comedy.
That s— f—ing saved me.
BUTEAU:I feel hateful and grateful at every moment.
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