Maryann Ridini Spencer Biography

A Passion for Writing & Inspirational Content Creation

Maryann pens award-winning Christian fiction and non-fiction. She writes and produces acclaimed film and TV projects that inspire, educate, and uplift, exploring themes of faith, family, hope, healing, forgiveness, enduring friendships, and life’s mysteries.

Maryann began as a producer and writer for CNN, then became Director of Publicity at Miss Universe, Inc., and later, Senior VP at Stephen J. Cannell Productions. Drawing on this experience, she founded Ridini Entertainment Corporation, where, as president, she develops and promotes content that entertains, inspires, educates, and uplifts.

Maryann is a member of the Writers Guild of America West and the Producers Guild of America. Her projects span movies and television series for Showtime, SyFy, TMC, USA Networks, CBS-TV, Time Warner Cable, and international theaters. She is best known for co-producing and writing the teleplay for The Lost Valentine, which she adapted from the James Michael Pratt novel. Starring Betty White and Jennifer Love Hewitt, the film, produced by Ridini Entertainment Corporation in association with AEI, Paulist Productions, and Hallmark Hall of Fame for CBS-TV, drew more than 15 million viewers and led CBS-TV to the night’s top ratings. It earned the Faith and Freedom Movieguide Award and was included in Hallmark’s Gold Crown DVD Collector’s Edition, also available on Hallmark streaming channels.

Maryann is the creator, writer, producer, and host of the Telly Award-winning series Simply Delicious Living® with Maryann. She has produced related cookbooks, podcasts, and an online magazine. The show airs on PBS station KVCR in Southern California, DirecTV, and DishTV, and reaches global audiences through YouTube and her blog. For details on her TV, film, and podcast projects, click here.

Maryann was named Author of the Year by the 2025 International Impact Book Awards for Christian Fiction. She is the award-winning, bestselling author of the Kate Grace novels: Lady in the Window, The Paradise Table, Secrets of Grace Manor, and Under the Tropical Skies. She wrote Lavender Hill Cove, the first novel in the Lavender Hill Cove series, which won three awards in 2024: the International Impact Book Award for Christian Fiction, the Book Excellence Award for Christian Fiction, and the Maincrest Media Book Award for Women’s Fiction. Her latest in the Lavender Hill Cove series, Once Upon a Cove Christmas, is a 2025 Christlit Book Award winner, a 2025 International Impact Book Awards winner, and a 2025 American Legacy Book Award winner, all in Christian Fiction. Her latest nonfiction book, The Mary Garden, ranked #3 in Christian Poetry on Amazon Kindle. She is also the author of the Simply Delicious Living with Maryann—Entrées cookbook (Santa Rosa Press, 2019).

On Saturday, October 4, 2025, Author, Screenwriter, and Producer Maryann Ridini Spencer won “Author of the Year” in the category of Christian Fiction at the 2025 International Impact Book Awards Black Tie Gala, which took place at 7:00 pm at the Lowe’s Hollywood Hotel, 1755 Highland Avenue in Los Angeles, CA. Over 400 people attended the event, which celebrates the world’s most impactful authors. Maryann’s novel, Once Upon a Cove Christmas, the second book in the Lavender Hill Cove novel series, was recently honored as a 2025 International Impact Book Award winner in the Christian Fiction category earlier this year. The novel tells a heartwarming story about the ‘true meaning of Christmas’ and why Christ came to the world, and how we can all learn compassion and understanding following His example. This past weekend’s event was to choose an “Author of the Year” in each category represented from around the world. More.