Never turn down the opportunity to work on the high school newspaper; as one never knows when it will lead to a writing partnership based in Hollywood, working with the big names of Tinsel Town. Such is the fate of Liz Craft and Sarah Fain, of the Happier in Hollywood podcast fame. They must have blown away the critics when they both wrote for Pembroke Hill’s newspaper back in the late 1980s, or at least they enjoyed it and learned that friendships and being work partners can actually be a thing.
Liz attended Columbia University and worked as an editor of young adult books. Sarah went to Williams College, then joined Teach for America, where she taught high school English and Creative Writing. Fast forward from college graduation to a return trip to Kansas City, where they shared a beer or three, and the next thing they knew, the duo had decided to pack up and move to California. With naive enthusiasm, Liz and Sarah moved into a small beach house and began a career together as writers/producers/creators for some of the most impressive entertainment projects in the Golden State. And, all of this happened just because… they thought it could.
For a short list in the early 2000s, the pair were executive producers and writers for The Fix with Marcia Clark as co-producer, putting 10 episodes on ABC; they wrote eight episodes of Angel; they wrote and produced parts of The Shield; and the pair were showrunners for Dollhouse on 20th Century Fox for two seasons. What is a showrunner, we’d like to know? Well, even though it sounds like the coffee fetcher, it is most certainly not! A showrunner is the top-level executive producer of a television series. The position outranks other creative and management personnel, including episode directors. The pair have also written two young adult novels together, Bass Ackwards and Belly Up and the sequel, Footfree and Fancyloose. Both of these follow four teenagers as they pursue – wait for it – writing, acting, and falling in love, while postponing college.
And then there was a podcast. Liz is the sister of Gretchen Rubin, of the incredibly popular The Happiness Project. When Gretchen’s podcast, Happier With Gretchen Rubin started in 2015, she asked Liz and Sarah to co-host. Realizing they could do their own spin-off podcast, Happier in Hollywood was born. It is, as they say, “…about how to survive the war of attrition that is life in Los Angeles.” They have “…survived and thrived in Tinseltown’s male-dominated entertainment industry, guided by blind optimism and a Midwestern work ethic. Along the way, they’ve learned a lot about kicking ass, kissing ass, and office yoga.” With 459 episodes under their belts, they are indeed kicking around a successful product, consumed by thousands of people hungry for legit conversations about Hollywood mixed in with classic humor from growing up in flyover country.
The podcast has several different aspects, all of which are eagerly awaited by the fans. They do script writing workshops live on the podcast, with interactive discussions. There are guests to be interviewed on a variety of topics, and there are funny stories to share, such as the most recent comparison of having Netflix turn down one of their projects and comparing the experience to Schrodinger’s Cat. As long as the lid was closed on the box, who knew if the cat (project) was alive. But now that it is dead (the project), they are ultimately relieved. It’s a Hollywood thing to stress about a project for years, and then be happy when it’s been rejected – but also very relatable. They also talk about the lemon chicken recipe that failed.
What’s the secret to the long, happy friends and coworker relationship? They find the podcast to be, “Work therapy that helps us process and prioritize our professional lives. Material for the podcast presents itself in daily work. We attribute our consistency in producing the podcast every week to holding each other accountable and having the commitment required for doing the work.” When asked about their advice to other writers, their advice was, “Join a writers’ group with ambitious and focused people who mean business!” They have always treated their writing and networking as if they were full-time jobs, ensuring commitment to the process.
Liz and Sarah are proud of the universal applicability of the podcast beyond the entertainment industry. They like to focus on happiness and handling dynamics of the workplace, and a key goal is for listeners to feel like they are hanging out with friends. And, in order to hang out with friends, parts of the podcast and the Substack presence are opportunities to actually work with the pair. On Wednesdays, they offer BTS (Behind The Scenes) where people can watch Liz and Sarah work on their current novel; and on Fridays, they host The Killer Bee Work Hour, where audience members can hang out on Zoom and work.
Again, built for accountability – the idea is to bring your own project, work at the same time as other people, and share some time and space with like-minded people. The Killer Bee is also the “mascot” for their theme of 2026. The theme is intentionally meant to represent the idea of hard work, perseverance, and consistency. It also belies the fact that while these two are charming, interesting, and fun to be around, they are primarily running careers of motivated, smart, clever women. Do not make the mistake of thinking that the Hollywood-specific experience needs to be relatable in order to enjoy the podcast. Liz and Sarah are masters of translating their own experiences in their unique situation into nuggets of advice and thought-provoking material for anyone in any industry. They write, hustle, rework, network, communicate, and share relentlessly. The masterpiece they have created is as much about building an authentic life adventure as it is about the trappings of living in an entertainment mecca. Thanks to Liz and Sarah, Kansas City will always be remembered for – at least – producing the ladies who produce the concept that hard work, happiness, and humor are not mutually exclusive. For more information, visit happierinhollywood.com.
Featured in the March 21, 2026 issue of The Independent
By: Anne Potter Russ
