Nikki Saltz & Sara Starkman – Slutty Book Club

By starrymag | April 4, 2016

By: Michelle Rose Micor

Q) What are some other books we can look forward to hearing on the series, Slutty Book Club?

Nikki Saltz: If it were up to me, the show would be all classic literature, all the time. But then nobody would watch. I think part of the appeal of the show is that we cover books that are part of the canon of classic lit, pop culture books and cookbooks. I’d love to do something by a South African author to pay tribute to my roots, and then, no joke, I would LOVE to do Roseanne Barr’s My Life As A Woman. It’s one of the funniest books I have ever read. And then for classics, it’s really important to me to pay better homage to our women writers, so we’ll definitely have to cove some Jane Austen. And I’m dying to do Oscar Wilde because he’s great, but such a misogynist and I want to take that on. Oh, and Roald Dahl, just because he messed up my childhood and I need to talk about it.

Sara Starkman: Our goal is to cover a broad spectrum of literature from cookbooks to classics…so long as they are somewhat culturally relevant and, most importantly, we can take the piss out of them. Personally, I’m more of a contemporary literature lover. I’m a huge fan of memoirs and humour, but my secret passion is for fiction that takes place in different parts of the world (Memoirs of a Geisha, A Fine Balance or The Kite Runner) and is told from differing perspectives (The Girls, Crazy Rich Asians). So, I think we’ll bring in a few more contemporary novels to appease my hunger. I will say, though, that we’re hoping to incorporate some self-help books because we may or may not have panoply of them on our bookshelves…

Q) What are your backgrounds?

Nikki Saltz:  Career-wise, I started out thinking I would make documentaries and then moved into screenwriting. For a while I was working as a script reader for a bunch of different companies and feeling like I could do at least as crap a job as everyone else. And then I had a brief stint doing stand-up, but I’ve been on a break from that for a while to make horror films. 

Sara Starkman: Culturally, I’m an Ashkenazi Jew. On my laptop, it’s an acrylic pop art painting of Diana Ross by the incredible Toronto artist JessGo. But I suppose you mean in comedy and writing, so the answer is still being an Ashkenazi Jew. But also, I grew up attending Claude Watson School for the Arts for nearly a decade, dancing, miming and somehow abstaining from developing an eating disorder. I veered away from performance for a bit after university and threw myself into writing, thinking I would be a columnist or a copywriter. But it wasn’t until I started a comedy blog a couple of years ago that I realized I wanted to be a comedy writer and performer. Since then, I’ve been doing stand-up, writing scripts, blogging and embarrassing myself in public, repeatedly.

Q) Have you read all the books you review? Which one is your favourite?

Nikki Saltz: Nah, we just read the Wikipedia pages. Yes, of course we read them! Honestly, it’s kind of a dream for me to get to do a show and also have to read books to do it. Of all the books we’ve read so far, hands down my favourite was Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein because I’m super goth.  Also, it’s one of the most haunting, disturbing books I’ve ever read, and obviously I’m really proud that a woman wrote it!
Sara Starkman: Usually, I just look at them until it FEELS like I’ve read them, you know? Gosh, it’s hard to answer seriously sometimes. [laughs] We definitely read all of the books, otherwise there would be no way of thoroughly and cohesively picking them apart and critiquing them. I’m pretty sure Nikki slept with her copy of Frankenstein while I, on the other hand, slept with my copy of 15 Minute Meals. I mean, it’s Jamie Oliver, mate, c’mon!

Q) What’s been the most challenging aspect of creating the series and why?

Nikki Saltz: The most challenging aspect of doing the series for me have been the juice fasts. They’re impossible to do and they give me headaches.

Sara Starkman: Trying not to take things so seriously. That’s a weird answer from a comedian, I know, but I’m very hard on myself and sometimes it’s hard for me to roll with the punches and trust that other people have my best interest at heart. In other words I need therapy, so I’m really hoping the show takes off and then I can afford some.

Q) What attracted you to the idea of filming a web series? Have you worked on a web series before?

Nikki Saltz: I think web series are really cool. I like the idea that you can basically do and say whatever you want and things can happen on low budgets. It’s like the peoples’ media. I don’t believe that only rich people/people who can benefit from nepotism, etc. should be controlling our entertainment. With web series, basically anyone can make them. Like, look at us. Case in point.  I hadn’t done a web series before, but I’m developing a new one that’s really different from Slutty Book Club – kind of a really dark, Buffy-esque project about three sisters who murder their dad. Wooooo comedy!

Sara Starkman: There’s a wonderful freedom of expression that comes with making web series (like blogging). We can be as silly, vulgar and provocative as we like (within reason, of course) and enter into people’s days to make them laugh for just a snippet of time. It also allows us as artists to get really creative without the need for a huge budget. And, perhaps you could guess from my previous answer, this is my first series.

Q) Would you like to have any special guests join the club for certain episodes? 

Nikki Saltz: Roseanne Barr. Roseanne Barr. And Roseanne Barr. But also, I think I can speak for both of us when I say we would love to have Sparky Sweets, PhD, from Thug Notes on the show. He’s so funny and also a babe. I’ve also had this fantasy for ages about having a Justin Bieber Book Club. I feel like he gets into so much trouble and does all that weird stuff with his hair because he just hasn’t met a woman who can open his eyes to the beauty and richness of literature. And I want to be that woman for him.

Sara Starkman: Jamie Oliver, obviously. But, in all honesty, I think it would be really great to get some wonderful female Canadian authors like Margaret Atwood, Miriam Toews, Alice Munro and Emma Donoghue. Although my DREAM would be to have Caitlin Moran make an appearance because I think she is the most brazen, fascinating, hilarious, intelligent feminist author I’ve discovered so far. And I would like to make her a cup of tea and cry in her arms. 

Q) Any upcoming projects?

Nikki Saltz: I have a few things coming down the pipe, mostly to do with my horror company, Ikki Pictures. We make horror that’s written and directed by women and we’re in post on two films that we’re really excited about, and planning something really big and exciting for next year that’s kind of linked to the fake dicks that went on tour with Miley Cyrus this year. That’s all I can say for now.

Sara Starkman: A few irons in the kiln, but nothing to promote just yet. I’m currently in rewrites for a book I’ve written about the men in my life (hold on to your dildos, ladies), doing as many stand-up gigs around town as I can and shopping an animated tween series about depression (don’t worry it’s a comedy…sort of).

Q) If you could describe Slutty Book Club in one word, what would it be?

Nikki Saltz: VeneREAL.

Sara Starkman: Hilariotous!!! New word. Coined it.

Q) Anything else viewers should know about the series?

Nikki Saltz: If you don’t watch and share it, my dog is going to have to take on a larger emotional support role than he is capable of handling.

Sara Starkman: It was made with lots of love, sweat and only one STD scare.

You can catch the first three episodes of Slutty Book Club now on their channel – be sure to subscribe and check out their Twitter so you don’t miss any new episodes and featured content!