Ms. McCabe is the author of “Making, Keeping, and Losing Friends.” When people find that they are having a hard time making new friends, they often blame their own awkwardness — some failure on their ...

In recent years, people have been increasingly looking for new ways to form platonic connections, as loneliness and social isolation have become more prevalent. In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General went ...

Dear Readers: On Sept. 10, “Loner But Not Alone” asked for advice about making connections. She was a retired self-described loner who realized that most of her social connections had been through ...