For most of my life, I dreamed of living by the sea. My ultimate goal has always been to wake up every morning to the sound of ocean waves gently caressing the sparkling sands of south Jersey beaches. To throw open French doors and usher in soft sea breezes while hearing the whimsical call of the gulls. In this fantasy, I sit on a deck overlooking the sea, drinking my coffee, while Bradley Cooper or Brad Pitt rubs my shoulders (or other…okay, keep it clean), preparing me for a tough day of writing. It could be either one, I’m not picky. To prove my point, it could just be some random guy who looks like The Brads. After dreaming up swoony romance plots, I’d then get to work on my laptop, still overlooking the ocean while warm sun and cool sea breezes tease my skin.

But—record scratch—I live in land-locked PeeAye, with barely enough funds to scrape by to spend a few weeks during summer at the shore, thanks to the ridiculously overpriced rental market of late. I’m also married to a guy who, while cute on his own accord, looks nothing like The Brads. But he’s funny, and he’s still here after 25+ years of ‘riage, so I guess I’ll keep him.

Years ago while walking along ocean’s edge, head hung low like Charlie Brown’s over the realization I’d never become a shore house owner, I thought to myself: how can I get closer to this heaven on earth without having to worry about shuttering windows for hurricanes or cleaning out flooded first floors, thanks to the ever-encroaching bay?
And it came to me:

The Shore Blog.

For over a decade now, I’ve authored The Shore Blog, a travel website dedicated to the eight coastal communities of Cape May County: Ocean City, Strathmere, Sea Isle City, Avalon, Stone Harbor, The Wildwoods and Cape May. In that time, I’ve turned myself into somewhat of a Jersey Cape expert, if I must say so myself, after having discovered and written about basically everything having to do with this region, from why they call visitors “Shoobies” to the types of seashells you’ll find on the beaches. I’ve done extensive research to learn more about the region’s history and the many things to see and do. I include all the special events and occasional stories about the region, amassing a much larger following than I ever imagined. If you’re a visitor to this part of the Jersey Cape, you should really check this blog out.

Still, the blog wasn’t enough to make me feel connected. I needed more.

I know…I’ll find some beach read romcoms set this beautiful seaside area, so I can not only sit on the beach and read all about the fictional characters who live and play along these shores, I’ll also take some books home to read during winter’s frosty months to remind me of the places I love so much.

Except…I couldn’t find any romcoms set in this area. Most of the books I found as I scoured local indie bookstores featured settings like Nantucket and the Carolinas. All well and good, but those books are more a study in This Isn’t Us. They don’t featured the shoobies who sit in endless hours of traffic on the AC Expressway, trying to flock to the southern Jersey shore from Philly and its surrounding areas. Heck, we’re even a totally different breed “down the shore” than what you see up-shore on the northern Jersey beaches, made famous by the reality TV show “Jersey Shore” and the like. No. Here, we bleed Eagles green, we chant as we pass other fans walking along the boardwalk. Don’t even think about sporting Dallas Cowboys merch in these parts! We take breaks from the beach to run to the Wawa for wooder and hoagies (pronounced: “hohhw-gees”). We are our own brand of beach breed, and we deserve books written about our towns, dammit.

One day I had the tune “The Way to Cape May” playing in my head. If you haven’t heard it, look it up (I’ve included it on my book’s Spotify playlists.) It’s a Jersey song made famous by Philly’s Al Alberts who performed the ditty originally written by Maurice “Bud” Nuggent as he drove his family down the coast to Cape May to keep them entertained. The song is about a couple who meets in Ocean City and falls in love on their way to Cape May. I began thinking…hmmm…how cool would it be to write a collection of love stories, with each one taking place in each of the eight coastal towns? And then while watching the movie Love Actually one day, I thought how cool it would be to interweave my characters into an ensemble plot? Thus, the book “The Way to Cape May” was born.

I’d finally answered my original question: how can I be closer to this seaside haven when I’m not here? I found it. For me, The Way to Cape May is…to simply write about it.