Candace Bushnell Reveals How New York City Shaped Her Authenticity and Teases Shanghai Nights Event

Nobody does a night on the town quite like Candace Bushnell.

The Sex and the City creator is gearing up for a busy fall in New York, where she'll be hosting the highly anticipated Shanghai Nights bash at the Shanghai at Hutong on Thursday, September 7.

Plus, she has her one woman show — True Tales of Sex, Success, and Sex and the City — at the Green Room 42 from October 11 through October 15.

Ahead of her packed autumn, Bushnell sits down exclusively with OK! to chat about how she found her true authenticity, how the stories she's written have deeply inspired women, Kim Cattrall's big And Just Like That return and her upcoming bash at the lavish midtown establishment.

"It never even occurred to me to be apologetic about who I was," the Carrie Diaries creator explains about staying true to herself. "That's really the whole reason to come to New York City. If I was going to try to alter my personality, I would've stayed in Connecticut, gotten married, and had a much more conventional life. But coming to New York was really about expressing yourself and being who you were."

Bushnell's life in Manhattan proved rewarding not only to her, but the millions of women who have connected deeply with her writing. "When I was a kid, being a feminist, I felt like I really had to do something in the world. I didn't know what it would be, but really feeling like I had to have some kind of feminist message out there. It ended up being Sex and the City," she says.

"It influenced so many young women's lives and made them feel independent and look at the world in a different way," the Lipstick Jungle writer adds. "I don't think one could really ask for anything more. I always, you know, envisioned something like that, but I didn't know what it would be."

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Now, the story of the characters she created lives on in the hit Max streaming series, which recently welcomed back the beloved Samantha Jones for a small cameo. "I haven't seen it, but I think it got a great response. I love Kim. She's fantastic," Bushnell gushes of the actress' return. "I do hope a little bit that she would consider being on the third season, but I have no idea what she'll do."

A viewing of And Just Like That may have to wait a bit longer, as Bushnell is gearing up for hosting duties at the Shanghai Nights event at Shanghai at Hutong. "I love it there," she spills of the eatery. "The food is fantastic. It's actually a place where I bring my dates!"