Creator also a fan of show

Kimberley McGee

Friday, July 13, 2001 | 9:31 a.m.

"This is the thing I love about 'Sex and the City' ... "

That phrase could be uttered by many fans of the hit HBO show starring Sarah Jessica Parker. But coming from Candace Bushnell, creator of the show, it causes one to pause. She is just as enamored of the flawed characters on the show, which was based on her New York Observer column of the same name.

"There is a sort of underlying sadness and depression there (in the characters)," Bushnell said. "They (the writers) are not afraid to show the reality of people's lives."

Neither is Bushnell.

Her characters have captivated the nation, especially single women in their 30s who want more from life than marriage and babies although they want that, too.

And they want to read about it as well.

Sex sells, surely, but so does the angst and humor that Bushnell weaves through her stories.

Her latest book, "4 Blondes" ($12, Grove Press), delves into the lonely lives of four glamorous women in their 30s who are struggling with marriage, their lack of morals and men lots of men.

On Monday Bushnell will read an excerpt from her book and autograph copies at the Barnes & Noble bookstore on North Rainbow Boulevard.

Bushnell's flair for capturing the mating practices of the "in crowd" in her column, Sex and the City, launched her career. She rose from writing free-lance articles about failed relationships and facials in women's magazines, to semi-celebrity status with a two-book deal with Grove Press and a movie deal with Universal Pictures.

People relate to Bushnell's characters, she said, because they struggle through real-life situations, albeit with trendy Prada handbags and Jimmy Choo shoes.

Critics have said her characters are too over-the-top. Others have compared her significance as an author to Edith Wharton, who wrote such classics about early 20th century society as "House of Mirth."

That's flattering, Bushnell said, but she is writing about people she sees in her upscale New York neighborhood. It's reality, it's escapism and it's a comment on the public's obsession with the beautiful people, she said. Bushnell simply captures what she gleans from the lives she observes.

"I think that anybody who is a thinking, feeling person certainly understands that life is complex," Bushnell said. "There are moments of joy and there are moments of sadness and depression. And just emptiness."

The thirtysomething single-woman genre is hot. The movie "Bridget Jones's Diary," based on the book by Helen Fielding, was a hit film this spring and has made more than $70 million at the box office.

Books such as "The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing" by Melissa Bank and shows such as Fox's "Ally McBeal" (which airs Mondays on Channel 5) are cashing in on the trend.

It's a reflection of the modern woman's lifestyle. Women are enjoying their freedom from the trappings of marriage and children in their 20s and focusing on fun and reflection. But when they begin to creep into their 30s, their perspective on being single changes.

"When you're in your 20s it's not really being single, it's more a rite of passage," Bushnell said. "Then women hit their 30s and think, 'God, is this what it is all about?' "

The aging model Janey from the first novella in "4 Blondes," learns to live with confidence away from the rich men that have supported -- and belittled -- her.

"Janey is really beautiful but she's terribly unhappy," Bushnell said. "It goes against the myth in our culture that if you are beautiful you are automatically happy. I think people are a bit more complicated than that."

Her characters may flounder in despair and high heels, but at age 41 Bushnell is finding her way as a successful author.

A second book will be released next summer. Bushnell plans to expand on Janey's character from "4 Blondes."

"I read that story again and it starts off that she's really horrible and arrogant," Bushnell said. "Then she learns her lesson."

But one lesson learned does not make an entire life, or another book. There is still more growth for Janey to endure, as for Bushnell.

"In the book the characters get in trouble because they look for shortcuts, and there are no shortcuts in life," Bushnell said. "You just have to learn and grow up and take care of yourself and be depressed sometimes and be alone sometimes and learn about relationships and what you have to give."