Marybeth, where did you get the idea for this book?
This book came from being a regular visitor to Sunset Beach, North Carolina, and being aware of the debate within the community about the pros and cons of a new bridge. I wanted to write about that debate and someone who gets sucked into it but is not really part of it. I also thought that the symbolism of the bridge would be so great to delve into.
Why have several of your books been set in Sunset Beach?
I just love it there. I say it’s where my heart lives. While I’m not a resident, I am like Emily in that I fell in love with the place on a trip years ago. I still dream of owning a home there someday so I can spend more time there. In the meantime, I venture there in my mind each time I set a book there—a mental vacation I take full advantage of!
Was there really a fight over replacing the bridge in Sunset Beach?
It was more a debate than a fight, but for the sake of the story I dramatized it a bit. People within the community definitely had views on whether or not the bridge should be replaced. There was, for the record, never a fire that couldn’t be put out by fire trucks, but it could’ve happened. Some residents I interviewed were actually the ones who gave me the idea of a fire that happened at high tide so the fire trucks couldn’t reach the island to put it out. That was always a danger and safety concern when the old bridge was in operation. I just made it happen in this story.
Where did the character of Kyle Baker/Brady Rutledge come from?
He came from my love of old John Hughes movies. Every girl who saw Sixteen Candles was affected by the perfection that was Jake Ryan. And yet the actor who played him opted for an anonymous life away from Hollywood after making just a few films. When I read that about him I thought, What would it be like for a girl who had idealized him as a teen to run across him years later in this completely different setting where he’s just trying to be a normal guy? And, thus, the character of Brady/Kyle was born in answer to that question. To put Emily in that rather surreal place was great fun for me and—I hope—for readers.
While Sunset Beach is a real setting, your books are fiction. Do you ever take liberties with the place?
Funny you should ask! I’m pretty meticulous about staying true to place and pointing to real landmarks that visitors can actually go and find should they want to. This is the first book that I took some creative license with the setting though. In the story, Emily and Ryan, and then Emily alone, visit a house that is falling into the ocean. That house is actually one beach over, at Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. But as I wrote this story I just couldn’t shake the image of Ryan and Emily visiting this house, and how symbolic it was. There they are starting their marriage even as they’re standing beside this collapsing house. Ultimately it is this house that is a touchstone for Emily and a place where she comes to understand her own journey. I had to leave the house in the story and alter the setting a bit. I hope the citizens of Sunset Beach and Ocean Isle will forgive me for playing with their geography. You can see the actual house—you just have to go one beach over to find it!
What happened to the old bridge? Is it really preserved for visitors?
The Old Bridge Preservation Society has created a park-like atmosphere near where the old bridge used to sit. You can walk on the bridge and go inside the tender house. They offer many special events and volunteers are there to share history and details about the bridge. For more information, visit www.oldbridgepreservationsociety.org.
What’s next for you?
I’ve got a few more Sunset Beach ideas I’d love to write. Plus a lot more women’s fiction up my sleeve. I hope to just keep telling stories!