Friends & Fiction is a community of more than 200,000 readers, hosted by New York Times bestselling authors Mary Kay Andrews, Kristin Harmel, Kristy Woodson Harvey and Patti Callahan Henry. Each Wednesday, Mary Kay, Kristin, Kristy and Patti welcome fellow authors to a live weekly web show, where they discuss the story behind some of the world’s most popular books. If you love books and you’re curious about the writing world, you’re in the right place.
In March 2020, all four authors—along with founding co-host Mary Alice Monroe, who left the show in 2021—had their upcoming book tours abruptly canceled because of the pandemic shutdown. They met on a Zoom happy hour with glasses of rosé in hand to talk about how they could best reach readers and support independent bookstores while stuck at home, and the idea for Friends & Fiction was born.
On April 15, 2020, they hosted their first weekly web show, broadcast via Facebook Live. What started as a casual happy hour soon took off beyond their wildest expectations, with weekly Wednesday night live shows regularly reaching in excess of 10,000 viewers. Their weekly guests are a who’s who of the book world and include Louise Penny, Elin Hilderbrand, Lisa Scottoline, Philippa Gregory, Karin Slaughter, Jamie Ford, Jason Mott, Jennifer Weiner, Laura Dave, Amor Towles, Kwame Alexander, Emily Henry, Taylor Jenkins Reid, and many, many more.
In addition to their weekly web show, the four authors of Friends & Fiction also run a Facebook group with more than 200,000 members. They co-host the weekly Friends & Fiction Writers’ Block Podcast with librarian Ron Block; they send a weekly newsletter with lots of behind-the-scenes tidbits; they have a merchandise line; and they do in-person “Friends & Fiction LIVE” events at theaters around the country. There’s even a spinoff book club, the Friends & Fiction Official Book Club with Brenda & Lisa, hosted by Friends & Fiction members Brenda Gardner and Lisa Harrison.
In addition to hosting Friends & Fiction, Mary Kay, Kristin, Kristy, and Patti all have thriving publishing careers of their own, with numerous New York Times bestsellers under their belts. All four authors released new novels in 2023. Patti’s The Secret Book of Flora Lea, Kristin’s The Paris Daughter and Kristy’s The Summer of Songbirds were all instant New York Times bestsellers. Mary Kay’s Bright Lights, Big Christmas debuts on September 26 and is one of the most buzzed-about books of the holiday season.
Since the inception of Friends & Fiction, Patti, Kristy, Kristin, and Mary Kay have been proud to partner with many companies they love, including Butterball, Storypoint Wines, Caroline’s Cakes, Charleston Coffee Roasters, Mama Geraldine’s, and Page 1 Books.
The authors of Friends & Fiction are especially pleased to partner with Bookshop.org in support of our beloved independent booksellers all over the country. The folks at Bookshop.org believe—as we do at F&F—that local bookstores are essential community hubs which foster culture, curiosity, and a love of reading. We’re all committed to helping indies thrive. Bookshop.org is a one-stop online shop where book lovers can complete an easy one-click book purchase all while being certain that their money is supporting indie bookstores! Bookshop.org has raised more than $27 million for independent bookstores since their inception. Join us in shopping small and shopping local from the comforts of home at Bookshop.org, where every purchase you make in our Friends & Fiction shop supports our show and our guests.
For media requests, partnership inquiries, event requests, guest suggestions or comments, please contact the Friends & Fiction team here or email meg@tandemliterary.com.
Friends & Fiction has been featured in Publishers Weekly and The New York Times. You can watch the Friends & Fiction authors talk about the group on Tampa Bay’s FOX 13.
