What’s your go-to Instagram account? The one that you have to continuously check to get your pop culture fix?
For me, it’s Nori’s Black Book (@norisblackbook). I’ll admit, I’m a newbie to the account, but the acerbic, sarcastic remarks are what get me through the day.
Whenever I think of choosing violence, Nori’s Black Book (NBB) provides a type of “woosa” moment for me.
Written from the perspective of North West (Kardashian), the parody account is the gift that keeps on giving. And about 1.5 million people are in agreement.
While researching the account for a previous story, I came across the US writer behind those smart and snarky comments – Natalie Franklin.
Franklin, originally from Sacramento, was inspired by Suri’s Burn Book, a popular blog at the time that satirised Suri Cruise, Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise’s daughter, to start off with a Tumbr blog.
But things really kicked off for Franklin once the Kardashians and Kanye West got wind of the spoof account.
For those familiar with Nori’s Black Book, it’s not just someone speaking off the cuff as Nori’s voice. A lot of time and thought goes into each post. And they all have their intended effect – to make you laugh.
Naturally, I wanted to find out more about Natalie Franklin. So I sent out an email into the ether, hoping she’d respond. And guess what, she did. And yes, she is as funny in real life.
Below are some excerpts from our Q&A:
How do you manage to come up with all those hot takes for your Nori IG posts?
So, that's a tough question. I just… think of them haha. I think in my daily life I'm always cracking jokes and making fun of my friends and family, so the humour comes kinda naturally. Being a fan of pop culture and pop culture commentary also lends to crafting my posts.
I know you've met Kim, Kourtney and Khloe. Have you personally met North? If yes, is she anything like you'd thought she'd be?
I met Kim and Khloe, but not Kourtney (hopefully, one day if she doesn't hate me). I did get to Facetime with North! She's so cute and such a little boss. She was eating ice cream and really couldn't be bothered with me.
She barely spoke or looked at me. I LOVED IT! I kinda wish she would've hung up on me too. I just love that my "North" and the real North have the same attitude. It's fun to watch.
Is there some of your own personality in Nori’s Black Book?
Yes, my humour, absolutely. It's funny because before some of my friends who didn't know I wrote NBB would send me posts from the account and say, "OMG you would love this" or "This is so funny it sounds just like you". I like to say it's a mix of me, Kim, Kanye and Kris, basically the perfect person (lol).
What is the process when you decide to post to the account? The Kardashians are always in the media. Do you take it from what's currently going on in their lives?
So first off I don't do paparazzi pictures because the copyright laws and things are so annoying. But as far as a process I usually write one, two or three captions for a post and most of the time I can easily pick the best caption and then post. Other times if I like all the captions, I might let a friend read it and let them have the deciding vote.
Describe Natalie Franklin in three words.
Black. Fearless. Leader.
If you were to have a parody account, give an example of something you'd post.
A parody account about myself? I probably would make fun of the way I'm hella single and I'm also the third wheel to my friends and their spouses. Like if my friend has a pregnancy announcement I would post a pic of my friend, her husband, and myself with the sonogram, with the caption: "We're pregnant!"
I read somewhere that you left your job to do Nori's Black Book on a full-time basis. Did you find it daunting at first?
I didn't make the decision right away, it took about a half a year to warm up to the idea of leaving the safety (but also the pure boredom) of my 9–5 life.
I really had to go within to ask myself, "What do you want?" Believing in myself and pursing a passion is taking a huge amount of trust and confidence in myself, but there's something kind of fun and exciting about the unknown. Like a great adventure!
What other super powers do you possess?
I have a really high basketball IQ. I would love to be on a coaching staff, just for like a couple of games to see what it's like or even get to commentate a game on TV. Or sit court-side at an NBA game and yell out directions.
What's next for Natalie Franklin? Plans for another celeb parody account?
The world is mine! I would like to make some TV shows and movies, sell some books, host a show or two. I am really open to any and everything.
Celebrity parody accounts are hard because people want every parody account to sound like North, so for now I am okay with North being my only parody account.