It is a prequel to the HBO television series Sex and the City and based on the 2010 book of the same name by Candace Bushnell.

The first season focuses on Carrie Bradshaw (AnnaSophia Robb) during her junior year of high school in 1984 as she explores life in New York City while interning at a law firm office, and also secretly working at a magazine company, while the second season focuses more on her expanding life in the city as well as the lives of her friends and boyfriend.

The project was helmed by executive producers Josh Schwartz, Stephanie Savage, Len Goldstein and Candace Bushnell.

Findlay stars in the project as Carrie's oldest friend Maggie Landers, the police chief's daughter.

[15] On March 4, 2012, Deadline announced that Freema Agyeman had been cast in the pilot as Larissa, a hip, cutting-edge editor and party girl who works at Interview magazine and is Carrie's mentor.

[16] On the same day, Brendan Dooling, who originally auditioned for the role of Sebastian,[17] joined the cast as Walt, Carrie's gay friend.

The site's consensus reads: "AnnaSophia Robb is charming as the lead in The Carrie Diaries, even if this Sex and the City spinoff sometimes suffers from overwrought narration and so-so writing.

[27] Gail Pennington of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch said "The CW's attempt to capture the magic of Sex and the City in a prequel, set in 1984, could have gone very wrong.

Rotten Tomatoes gave it a score of 100%, based on 7 reviews,[31] and praised the introduction of Lindsey Gort as iconic Sex and the City character Samantha Jones.

The show moved to Fridays for its second season and it premiered on October 25, having been paired with America's Next Top Model.