Cyra McFadden (December 2, 1937 – April 20, 2024)^[1][2] was an acclaimed American author, who lived on a houseboat in Sausalito, California.^[3]

McFadden's 1977 novel The Serial: A Year in the Life of Marin County satirized the trendy lifestyles of the affluent residents of Marin County, California, just north of San Francisco.^[4] The book was made into a 1980 movie called Serial, starring Tuesday Weld and Martin Mull.

In 1986, McFadden wrote a memoir entitled Rain or Shine: A Family Memoir, in which she described her childhood growing up as the daughter of James C. "Cy" Taillon, a well-known rodeo announcer. The book was a finalist for the Pulitzer that year. After being out of print for several years, Rain or Shine was reprinted in 1998.

McFadden wrote a biweekly column for the San Francisco Examiner for six years, mostly in the 1980s, and was also a features writer for that daily newspaper.^[5]

She was born in Great Falls, Montana, and spent much of her childhood traveling with her parents on the rodeo circuit and living in Missoula, Montana.