Wade Rouse is a #1 internationally bestselling author of 21 books, including his latest novel and first under his own name, That’s What Friends Are For (2026)—a "Golden Girls"-inspired tale already hailed as a most anticipated book by the New York Post. Previously writing under the pen name Viola Shipman to honor his grandmother, Wade’s work has been translated into nearly 30 languages, optioned for film, and featured on NBC’s Today Show, Good Morning America, and in The Washington Post. A finalist for the Goodreads Choice Award in Humor and a former People reporter, Wade holds a master’s in journalism from Northwestern University. When he isn't mentoring aspiring writers or hosting his popular "Wine & Words with Wade" series, he divides his time between Saugatuck, Michigan, and Palm Springs, California. (Bio adapted from Wade's website.)
Synopsis:
Theodore Copeland has created a fabulous life in the desert oasis of Palm Springs, where he shares a fabulous pink mid-century home with three fabulous friends: Barry, a former actor still clinging to his youth, his hair, and the memory of the dream role that killed his career; Ron, an uprooted Christian from the Midwest with a big heart but no one to give it to; Sid, who, after coming out late in life, has never found love. Teddy is the caustic, unspoken leader of “The Golden Gays”—the foursome’s monthly drag tribute to The Golden Girls. Despite their foibles and bickering, they have turned their golden years into a golden era.
Theodore Copeland has created a fabulous life in the desert oasis of Palm Springs, where he shares a fabulous pink mid-century home with three fabulous friends: Barry, a former actor still clinging to his youth, his hair, and the memory of the dream role that killed his career; Ron, an uprooted Christian from the Midwest with a big heart but no one to give it to; Sid, who, after coming out late in life, has never found love. Teddy is the caustic, unspoken leader of “The Golden Gays”—the foursome’s monthly drag tribute to The Golden Girls. Despite their foibles and bickering, they have turned their golden years into a golden era.
But the harmony of their desert enclave becomes a carousel of emotional baggage when Teddy’s estranged sister, Trudy, shows up on their doorstep, her dramatic teenage granddaughter in tow. While Teddy keeps Trudy at arm’s length, she manages to wheedle her way into the lives of the Golden Gays, until the real reason for her visit is revealed and the secrets they’ve all been keeping from each other unravel faster than a hastily stitched hemline.
A novel that gives thanks to “old” friends, That's What Friends Are For proves that while family may be the tie that binds, it’s the chosen family that truly keeps us together. (Courtesy of Amazon.)
"By turns hilarious, tender, and devastating, Rouse’s novel explores what it means to be the sandwich generation of gays today — caught between those who paved the way for equality, those who are too young to credit them, and a world that seems increasingly hostile."
— Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author
— Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author
"Wade Rouse has written the most unabashedly joyful novel you'll read this year, a rip-roaringly funny ode to found family, Palm Springs, drag, and Bea Arthur. But beneath all the wigs and the California sunshine, That’s What Friends are For is also a poignant study of survival--of what it means to persevere in a world hell-bent on bringing you down, and a celebration of the friends who always have our backs."
— Grant Ginder, author of The People We Hate at the Wedding
Which Golden Girl are you most similar to in personality?
I love this question as so many of us loved The Golden Girls and felt drawn to a certain character, just like we did when we watched Sex and the City or Friends. I am a total Dorothy (who surrounds herself with a lot of Roses, Blanches and Sophias). Like Bea Arthur in the show, I’ve used humor my whole life as a way to make friends and also keep people at a safe distance. And I can give someone a wicked side eye. Humor can unite, bring people in, allow you to make friends; and yet it can also protect you from getting hurt. Dorothy and I have that in common, and yet our wit, sarcasm and good-natured needling are also our deeply personal ways to show love.
I love this question as so many of us loved The Golden Girls and felt drawn to a certain character, just like we did when we watched Sex and the City or Friends. I am a total Dorothy (who surrounds herself with a lot of Roses, Blanches and Sophias). Like Bea Arthur in the show, I’ve used humor my whole life as a way to make friends and also keep people at a safe distance. And I can give someone a wicked side eye. Humor can unite, bring people in, allow you to make friends; and yet it can also protect you from getting hurt. Dorothy and I have that in common, and yet our wit, sarcasm and good-natured needling are also our deeply personal ways to show love.
P.S.: My husband Gary is a total Rose (who used to be a total Blanche): Sweet, a caretaker, delightfully daffy yet incredibly wise, and he is always irritatingly, wonderfully positive, the perfect balance to my Dorothy.
Tell us one of your favorite Golden Girl quotes.
This is a tough one as there are so many, and I use a lot of GG quotes in the novel. My favorite is one that I use at a key moment in the novel that sums up both Teddy (who is similar to Dorothy) and me: “The bottom line is, in life sometimes good things happen, sometimes bad things happen. But, honey, if you don’t take a chance, nothing happens.”
Backup favorites would be: “Oh, honey, crying is for plain women. Pretty women go shopping.” And: “Do you know how many problems we have solved over a cheesecake at this kitchen table?” Oh, and one more! “Blanche: Dirk's nearly five years younger than I am. Dorothy: In what, Blanche, dog years?”
Which episode(s) of The Golden Girls is/are your favorite(s)?
“Isn’t It Romantic?”, an episode I bring to life in That’s What Friends Are For. It’s about Jean, a gay friend of Dorothy’s who comes to visit following the death of her partner. Jean develops feelings for Rose (Dorothy hasn’t told the women her friend i gay). The episode was very progressive for its treatment of a gay character; neither Jean nor her sexuality were at any points the butt of any jokes in the episode; instead she’s treated with respect. It also features a deeply moving conversation between Dorothy and her mother, Sophia, that I bring to life in the novel and reference in my letter to readers:
Dorothy: “How would you react if you were told one of your kids were gay?”
Sophia: “Your brother Phil is gay? I knew it! When he was a kid we couldn’t keep him away from those Gladiator movies.”
Dorothy: “Ma, Phil is not gay.”
Sophia: “You mean you’re gay? What, your friend Jean is having some sort of membership drive?”
Dorothy: “Ma, I am not gay. I just wanted to get your reaction.”
Sophia: “I’ll tell you the truth Dorothy, if one of my kids were gay, I wouldn’t love him one bit less. I would wish them all the happiness in the world.”
That episode, in some small way, paved understanding not only for me but also for the acceptance of gay people when we needed it the most. In fact, my mother referenced that episode of The Golden Girls after I came out.
If you could go back in time and cast yourself as a character on The Golden Girls, who would you be? (I'm talking about a new character here.)
Coco. (And, yes, I know he’s not completely new.) One of the main reasons I wrote this novel was my fascination with the character of Coco in The Golden Girls. Never heard of him? You’re not alone. In the original episode of The Golden Girls, there was a lead character named Coco, who was the women’s openly gay housekeeper and cook. He was removed from the show to make room for Sophia, who got an incredible response from early viewers. Sophia got the fulltime role, and Coco got cut. Some involved with the show blamed the kitchen: It was too small to have five people constantly featured in it, but I ask in the novel: Were audiences ready for a character like Coco?
So I fictionalize the life of this actor and bring him to life as Barry, who had the role of a lifetime ripped away from him and share the struggle of a man trying to get that fame back his entire career. What must it have been like to be an out, gay actor in a time when Hollywood was still so closeted? What was it like to break the gay ceiling in Hollywood in the 1980s and then be broken by having it all taken away? I’ve never been prouder of bringing a character to life on the page and also bringing recognition back to a forgotten character.
Who is your favorite regular supporting character on the show?
As a Southern boy at heart (I grew up in the Ozarks), I quite liked “Big Daddy,” Blanche’s father. He was charming and could spin a yarn with the best of my kin.
What is your favorite Golden Girls item that you own?
Where do I start? I love my GG Christmas tree ornaments, my GG caftan (which we will be wearing at many stops on my book tour), GG dolls (which are great companions to our Barbie collection), but I’m really in love with my latest GG item: Planters that honor each of the GG characters with a picture and one of their famous quotes. My publicist got me these after visiting Palm Springs for the first time. It was the perfect gift to celebrate the launch of That’s What Friends Are For and for our home in Palm Springs, where the novel is set. PS: I have a line of book-themed merchandise and gifts, including clothing (you customize the size and color) mugs, totes, coasters and buttons that celebrate the novel as well as all things Golden Girls, mid-century modern and Palm Springs fabulousness. Check it out here.
Who is your favorite regular supporting character on the show?
As a Southern boy at heart (I grew up in the Ozarks), I quite liked “Big Daddy,” Blanche’s father. He was charming and could spin a yarn with the best of my kin.
What is your favorite Golden Girls item that you own?
Where do I start? I love my GG Christmas tree ornaments, my GG caftan (which we will be wearing at many stops on my book tour), GG dolls (which are great companions to our Barbie collection), but I’m really in love with my latest GG item: Planters that honor each of the GG characters with a picture and one of their famous quotes. My publicist got me these after visiting Palm Springs for the first time. It was the perfect gift to celebrate the launch of That’s What Friends Are For and for our home in Palm Springs, where the novel is set. PS: I have a line of book-themed merchandise and gifts, including clothing (you customize the size and color) mugs, totes, coasters and buttons that celebrate the novel as well as all things Golden Girls, mid-century modern and Palm Springs fabulousness. Check it out here.
Thanks to Wade for chatting with us and to HarperCollins for sharing his book with our readers.
How to win: Use KingSumo to enter the giveaway. If you have trouble using KingSumo on our blog, enter the giveaway here. If you are still having issues, please contact us.
Giveaway ends March 8th at midnight EST.
Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us.
Listen to this book on Speechify!
