A novelist and longtime Hamptons resident explains the eternal appeal of the South Fork.

I rented a small house on the beach, just down the street from Truman Capotes.

My friend Bret Easton Ellis rented the house next door.

Pair of photos from Cryder Beach, one showing a butterfly on a bush and one showing beach dunes

From left: Taking flight at Cryder Beach, in Southampton; seagrass-fringed dunes at Cryder Beach.Credit:Justin Kaneps

Joseph Heller and Richard Price lived a few miles away in East Hampton.

Old-timers complain about the new construction, about the traffic, about the new people.

Old-timers complain about the new construction, about the traffic, about the new people.

The gated entrance to a home in the Hamptons

Hydrangeas adorn the entrance of a private home on Gin Lane, in Southampton.Justin Kaneps

Pair of photos from LUNCH in Amagansett, one showing a lobster roll and one showing people sitting on a restaurant terrace

From left: The lobster roll at Lunch, in Amagansett; the patio at Lunch.Justin Kaneps