Podcast Episode Summary

Podcast: All Of It

Host: Alison Stewart (WNYC)
Episode: Dylan Mulvaney’s Memoir
Date: December 29, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode of All Of It features an in-depth interview with Dylan Mulvaney—actress, trans advocate, and internet personality. The main focus is Dylan’s newly released memoir, Paper Doll: Notes from a Late Bloomer. Alison Stewart and Dylan explore the impact of Dylan’s “Days of Girlhood” series, discuss her journey through gender transition amidst viral fame, the personal and public challenges she faced, her relationship with her family, and the broader context of her coming out story during a time of political tension for trans rights. The episode weaves together themes of vulnerability, humor, evolution, and joy in the face of adversity.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Listener-Driven Book Roundup

• [00:17] Alison Stewart introduces the show’s format: Instead of the staff’s favorite cultural highlights, they’re spotlighting books that listeners (Instagram followers) were most passionate about in 2025.
• Dylan Mulvaney is the featured opening guest, followed by other authors later in the hour.

Dylan Mulvaney’s Internet Presence & Early Viral Success

• [02:02] Alison recaps Dylan’s online rise: “Beginning in 2022, Dylan began posting publicly about her gender transition... The videos are funny and vulnerable.”

  • Plays clip from early “Days of Girlhood” (Day 4) [02:02]:
    • Dylan: “The hair, the makeup, the clothes, the high heels, it’s a lot to keep up with. And I need to learn early on that those things do not make me a girl. It’s what’s in here that matters.”

• [02:39-03:37] Alison reviews the Bud Light incident, viral backlash, and how “Beer Gate” took a personal toll, but Dylan returns stronger, with 9 million TikTok followers, a new Off Broadway show, and the memoir.

The Pandemic as Catalyst for Self-Discovery

• [03:37] Dylan on the pandemic’s profound personal effect:
  • “I think of it as the most important moment of my life... I really got to ask myself... who am I without these external characters?”
• She explains the privacy the pandemic afforded was key to experimenting with her gender presentation and thinking about identity.

Childhood, Family, and Reclaiming Identity

• [04:31] Alison asks what Dylan learned about herself:
  • Dylan: “I was reminded of what was always there—which was the fact that I am a woman. I came out to my mom as a girl when I was four years old. I had to tuck that away for many years.”
  • Dylan doesn’t resent her conservative Catholic upbringing, expressing gratitude for her journey: “Once I started going down that path... it was the path that I needed to take. It’s the happiest path for me, and it’s one that I’m so grateful that I went down.”

Writing the Memoir: Innocence and Evolution

• [05:47] Dylan reflects on writing the book in her mid-20s and revisiting those feelings at 28:
  • “A major theme of the book is earnestness and innocence in adults... What serves the greater story is we are constantly evolving—there is no finish line. Isn’t that a beautiful thing?”
• [06:36] Asked what she’d tell her younger self, Dylan emphasizes protecting oneself:
  • “Know who to listen to and when. Don’t read the comments... The parts of you that people are criticizing... are the best parts of yourself. That’s your hyper femininity, your innocence, your camp, your quirks, and my softness.”
  • [Notable Quote, 06:36]
    • “What feels like in 2025 is a world that kind of thrives off pessimism, but I think I would say [to my younger self], protect your softness.”

Revisiting “Day One of Being a Girl” & The Role of Humor

• [07:53] Plays first video from “Days of Girlhood”:
  • Dylan: “Day one of being a girl and I have already cried three times... I ordered dresses online I couldn’t afford... How’d I do, ladies? Good girl power.”
• [08:21] Dylan explains she had done significant private work before making that public video, and chose to embrace humor:
  • “I wanted to find the funny in coming out because usually they’re very intense sort of... you know, crying videos. And yet I was like, I wonder if I can make people laugh, because this is something that some people find uncomfortable.”
• [10:21]
  • “What I ultimately am looking for still is a connection to other women.”

Viral Fame, Community, and the Weight of Representation

• [10:36-11:50] Dylan discusses the rapid growth of her audience:
  • “I had a million followers in less than a month from posting that first video.”
  • The following felt intimate, “like 10 million best friends in my bedroom.” Dylan used her account almost as a diary: “They were my cheerleaders.”
• [11:52] Alison notes Dylan’s early tendency to apologize for mistakes.
  • Dylan explains this hyper-apologetic habit stemmed from nervousness and from not yet understanding the full landscape of trans discourse:
    • “As a comedian, you usually take the luxury of not having to explain every joke. But as a trans person, you don’t always have that luxury.”
  • “What I didn’t know about at the time was TERFs... I wasn’t well versed enough in trans terminology to even know that was going to be a part of the reaction.”

Family Relationships: Grief, Acceptance, and Representation

• [13:13] Dylan describes including her mother in the memoir:
  • “She had to grieve her son and she gained a daughter.”
  • She intentionally presented their dynamic authentically—ups and downs, long journey to acceptance—believing that real stories help others:
    • “It’s more productive for me to share our ups and downs... versus just putting a bow on the family situation.”
  • “This version of life, which is the real version... is ultimately going to hopefully help a lot of other families or folks that don’t know how to accept their trans kids or their co-workers.” [13:17]

Fame, Safety, and Community in 2025

• [14:23] Dylan on her shifting view of fame:

  • “I don’t think of myself as famous still... I will always be grateful because I think right now, as a trans person, we need to take all the allyship we can get... But I don’t feel safe to put out what I did online anymore in the way that I was.”

• [15:20] Memoir’s Release Amidst a Hostile Administration

  • “I didn’t know what administration would be here when I selected this date. ...as frustrating as it is... this book is a piece of trans joy during a time when it feels hard to find it.”
  • “If I’m finding joy, if I’m finding love... if I can put a book out right now, that means that what they’re saying about me isn’t true.” [16:21]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• [02:02] Dylan: “Even with your facial hair, you’re a girl. And even though I’m having it removed, women can have facial hair and women can have body hair. And that’s a beautiful thing.”
• [04:35] Dylan: “I was reminded of what was always there — which was the fact that I am a woman. I came out to my mom as a girl when I was four years old.”
• [06:36] Dylan: “What feels like in 2025 is a world that kind of thrives off pessimism, but I think I would say [to my younger self], protect your softness.”
• [10:21] Dylan: “What I ultimately am looking for still is a connection to other women.”
• [13:17] Dylan: “She had to grieve her son and she gained a daughter... I think this version of life, which is the real version... is ultimately going to hopefully help a lot of other families or folks that don’t know how to accept their trans kids or their co-workers.”
• [15:28] Dylan: “This book is a piece of trans joy during a time when it feels hard to find it.”

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [02:02]: Clip from early “Days of Girlhood” video ("Day 4 of being a girl")
• [03:37]: How the pandemic enabled Dylan’s self-discovery
• [06:36]: Advice to younger self
• [07:53]: Playback and discussion of “Day One of Being a Girl” video
• [10:36]: Reflections on Internet fame and TikTok’s impact
• [13:13]: Discussion of her relationship with her mother
• [14:23]: Shifting attitudes towards fame and safety as a trans person
• [15:20]: Reflections on releasing the memoir during a hostile administration

Summary Tone & Intent

The conversation is earnest, transparent, and often humorous. Dylan’s vulnerability is matched by her incisive wit and reflections on both the joys and pains of coming out and being a public trans figure. Alison Stewart maintains a warm and supportive presence, guiding the interview with empathy and curiosity, and giving Dylan the space to elaborate on everything from the deepest family conversations to the bittersweetness of achieving and managing online stardom amid a polarized America.

This episode offers listeners an intimate glimpse into Dylan Mulvaney’s world—a nuanced journey through transition, family, joy, humor, public scrutiny, and hope for the future. For those seeking to understand the lived reality of a prominent trans woman in 2025, and anyone interested in memoir, creative expression, or the evolution of digital community, this is essential listening.