I’ve lived in Williamstown for eleven years — first in a Ferguson Street rental that sloped sideways, now in a 1920s weatherboard with two kids (Tilly is 5, Hugo is 2) and a mortgage that requires a sense of humour. I work three days a week in council communications and the other two writing about the small, finicky logistics of family weekends in bayside Melbourne, which is the only place I have ever wanted to live.
What I write about. The boring, useful stuff: which playgrounds have working toilets, which cafes will reheat a kid’s risotto without a face, which stretches of Williamstown beach are actually quiet at 10am on a Saturday. Family loops — playground to pier to a coffee that doesn’t take 22 minutes. Day trips for visiting grandparents (warning: I have tried Brighton, and I have notes). The “kid-friendly” cafe genre, audited honestly — there’s a difference between a cafe that tolerates children and one that genuinely likes them.
How I work. Two kids, all visits. I show up unannounced. I pay. If a cafe owner recognises me from school pickup, I disclose it in the piece. I never write about a venue I’ve visited only once — three minimum, on different days. The phrase “must-visit hidden gem” appears nowhere in anything I file. I cite tide times to the Bureau of Meteorology and parking signage to the actual sign on the day.
Where you’ll find me. The Strand, between Gem Pier and the Punt — most Saturdays at 9.45am, after swimming lessons. The Williamstown Botanic Gardens playground when Hugo can’t be trusted in a cafe. The 472 bus when the car battery is flat (which, in this household, is half the time).
Conflicts of interest. I work in communications for a metropolitan Melbourne council. I do not write about my employing council’s projects, programmes, or venues, and I disclose the council by name in any piece that touches a neighbouring local government area.
Sample headlines I’d write:
- “Williamstown with a four-year-old: the playground-to-pier loop that actually works”
- “Family-friendly cafes in the inner west that don’t pretend kids don’t exist”
- “Where to take grandparents in bayside Melbourne (warning: we tried Brighton)”
Articles by Bea Sullivan-Jones are based on first-hand visits paid in full. She accepts no sponsored content, gifted activities, or comped meals.