A Special “Just Us” Episode with the Fab Four TONIGHT!Weekly News from Friends & Fiction—February 18, 2026
Tune in at 7pm ET for TONIGHT’s episode! Join us Wednesday, February 18th at 7pm Eastern on the F&F Facebook page and YouTube channel as the full F&F family — Mary Kay Andrews, Kristin Harmel, Kristy Woodson Harvey & Patti Callahan Henry — gathers with Managing Director Meg Walker for a special “just us” episode.
Consider this a throwback to the earlier days of Friends & Fiction when we wouldn’t always welcome an author guest every week and our hosts would occasionally just gather to have an off-the-cuff chat about what they’re reading and loving, what trends they’re seeing in the industry, and what’s happening in their busy author lives. On a week when the show would have been “dark” for a monthly break in the action, the Fab Four decided to record one of these fun chats instead of airing an old guest interview from our vault. We hope you’ll tune in and enjoy the old-school camaraderie that’s really the heart and soul of Friends & Fiction! Watch the video broadcast as it airs on Wed 2/18 at 7pm ET on the F&F Facebook group page & YouTube channel. Catch the audio version on our podcast Fri 2/20. Remember you can support our show, its hosts, our guests, and indie bookstores nationwide by shopping in our F&F Shop on Bookshop.org! Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for bonus Q&A’s with our guest authors which include a writing tip, book recommendation, and information about their works-in-progress, plus other great material not covered on the show! Latest News from the Fab Four!
MARY KAY ANDREWS had a weekend of family fun, starting with watching her grandson play his first high school JV baseball game—at the same high school attended by his mom and uncle—playing at the same position (catcher) as his Uncle Andy and his grandfather. And they won! Valentine’s Day dinner date with Mr. MKA at their favorite restaurant on Saturday night, and Sunday helping granddaughter Molly host a Galentine’s Day tea party with her besties. This week she’s excited to travel to NYC for meetings with her publishing team to discuss ALL the plans for ROAD TRIP. Also on tap? Attending a taping of The Late Show with Colbert, and a Broadway show, maybe a museum visit, and who knows, possibly a little thrift shopping? KRISTIN HARMEL spent a lazy long weekend (including the school holiday for Presidents’ Day) celebrating Valentine’s Day and going to Epcot all three days(!) to support her 10-year-old, Noah, in his quest for Disney Lorcana cards. (Kristin and her family have Disney annual passes and live 25 minutes or so from Disney World, so it’s not unusual for them to pop into the parks for a few hours here or there.) On Tuesday, she spoke at the Sanibel (FL) Public Library’s Author Series, which was wonderful (and what a lovely chance to spend a bit of time by the water!), and she used the drive (four hours each way) to listen to the audiobook of The Correspondent… She’s getting excited about March’s Friends & Fiction chat with The Correspondent author Virginia Evans and Theo of Golden author Allen Levi! She also celebrated the 20-year anniversary of the publication of her very first book (which came out Feb. 16, 2006) this week! KRISTY WOODSON HARVEY is just so very excited about all the big things coming up! She will be announcing the tour for SUMMER STATE OF MIND any minute, so make sure you’re subscribed to her email list to get all the dates first! AND, she has a big announcement coming the week of February 23, so stay tuned! She had a great Valentine’s Day weekend with her family, and is thrilled that her son’s basketball team are officially conference champions. Woo hoo! The playoffs are next week, so cross your fingers… PATTI CALLAHAN HENRY had a beautiful Valentine’s/35th Anniversary Weekend! She spent it doing something she’s never done, which was so fun – she rode along (very slowly and carefully) on a horse through thousands of acres of South Alabama land and learned of the history and the land’s hidden stories from a UK-based (you know she loved that) cartographer! A CARTOGRAPHER – like she fell into one of her own books. Now she is back to finishing one book and brainstorming the next with her ideas all abuzz. Oh, don’t forget her paperback tour is coming up ASAP!!! Come see her with some incredible in-conversation partners. Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for an ongoing series of roundtable discussions and personal essays by the Fab Four about their careers, writing processes, and all things book and publishing related! Upcoming Events
Catch Patti on tour for the paperback release of The Story She Left Behind beginning March 2nd in Atlanta! See all of her upcoming events HERE. Kristy will be touring in May for her forthcoming book, Summer State of Mind. Stay tuned to her events page HERE. MKA will be touring in June for her forthcoming book, Road Trip. Stay tuned to her events page HERE. Kristin will be touring in July/August for her forthcoming book, Meet Me in Paris. Stay tuned to her events page HERE. Want to know what our F&F Live events are all about? Watch this video compilation!  In Case You Missed It
On our most recent new episode of The Friends & Fiction Show, Kristy Woodson Harvey & Kristin Harmel welcomed preeminent journalist and royal biographer Omid Scobie and his National Book Award-winning co-author Robin Benway to discuss their much-anticipated novel, Royal Spin, in which they draw from their real world expertise to create an irresistibly entertaining story about a young American woman who takes a job at Buckingham Palace—where she finds herself tangled in a royal mess she might not be able to spin her way out of. You can WATCH that episode on Facebook or YouTube, or LISTEN to it on our podcast. Coming Up on The Friends & Fiction Show
All shows can be watched on Facebook & YouTube each Wednesday evening at 7pm ET, and listened to on our podcast each Friday, all year long.Already aired: Brad Meltzer, The Viper Already aired: Jayne Ann Krentz, The Shop on Hidden Lane Already aired: Jesse Q. Sutanto, Read Between the Lies Already aired: Paula McLain, Skylark Already aired: Janie Chang, The Fourth Princess & Kate Quinn, The Astral Library Already aired: Omid Scobie & Robin Benway, Royal Spin Terah Shelton Harris, Where the Wildflowers Grow Joshilyn Jackson, Missing Sister Lucy Score, Mistakes Were Made Virginia Evans, The Correspondent & Allen Levi, Theo of Golden F&F 2026 Subscription Box with Oxford ExchangeThe 2026 FRIENDS AND FICTION Subscription Box is available for purchase now, exclusively from our friends at Oxford Exchange.
This subscription includes three separate shipments: Get your subscription NOW from Oxford Exchange! F&F Merch Store
We have a Friends & Fiction merch store with t-shirts, sweatshirts, coffee mugs and a book bag on Bonfire. We also have other items like wine tumblers, reading journals, and our original white v-neck logo tees available through Oxford Exchange. Tees in Fun, Bright Colors!We’ve added two fun colors (hot pink & turquoise!) to our Bonfire merch store in our signature Name List apparel line! F&F Official Book Club & 2025 Reading Challenge
Join Brenda Gardner & Lisa Harrison for monthly book club picks and live online author chats on the Facebook page for the F&F Official Book Club with Brenda & Lisa, where they’ve amassed nearly 40,000 of their own members. You can also follow the Book Club on Instagram and subscribe to their YouTube channel where you can catch past discussions, including their most recent chat with Rebecca Armitage about her debut novel, the December Reese's Book Club Pick, The Heir Apparent. Mark your calendars for February 23rd for their next author guest, Vanessa Riley, when they’ll discuss her new novel, Fire Sword and Sea. The Book Club is also hosting the 2026 F&F Reading Challenge. Join them for a different category prompt each month to read outside your comfort zone. The February prompt is to read a BIPOC Goodreads nominee or award winner and for March it’s to read a book from an indie or small press. Stay in Touch!Subscribe to our PODCAST. Upgrade to our PAID Subscription for bonus content from our hosts and guests.
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