Interview with Eva Lesko Natiello
Published 2016-07-13.
Where did the idea for THE MEMORY BOX come from?
The impetus for THE MEMORY BOX came from an article featured in The New York
Times titled “In Searching We Trust” which pronounced “‘vanity searches’ (like the ones done
on Google) the ‘hottest new power game.’” It mentioned that a 17-year-old boy who was living
in Los Angeles, Googled himself and discovered he was on a missing persons list in Canada. He
had no idea until he Googled himself, that he was a victim of parental abduction. The fact that
someone could find out something so personal about himself from a Google search was a
fascinating concept to me and became the basis for the psychological thriller, THE MEMORY BOX.
What do your fans mean to you?
As a self-published author, for me, my fans are the true gatekeepers of the publishing world. They are the pulse. And I'm incredibly grateful for each and every one. I'm so happy every time a fan reaches out and gets in touch with me through my website or through Goodreads. I'm especially thankful to anyone who takes the time to write a review or to spread the word on their social media, Facebook or Twitter. I love the conversations I read that my fans are having about THE MEMORY BOX! It's very exciting to me!
What are you working on next?
I am working on another psychological thriller. That's all I can say at the moment!
When you're not writing, how do you spend your time?
I love food! So I am often checking out new recipes and cooking with my family. I hate to exercise but it's a necessary evil since I love food! I am a painter though I have little time to paint these days since I am writing and blogging regularly. I’m an obstinate and oft times regretful do-it-yourselfer -- I love to fix things (and in the act of fixing things I sometimes exacerbate the problem...). I make up songs all the time as a way to dialogue with my kids. They find it infrequently entertaining ;). I love to travel and go to the beach.
What do you read for pleasure?
Even though I write psychological thrillers, I am a bit of a scaredy cat so I don't read many thrillers. I prefer to read historical fiction. I love being swept away in another time period.
Describe your desk
Over the last few years I've changed my desk several times. They keep getting larger and larger. I think that will help me with my "big" ideas... Right now I am sitting at 6 ft. x 3 ft. "desk" (it's actually a dining table!).
When did you first start writing?
I must admit I never wanted to be a novelist. At different times of my life I wanted to be
an astronaut, an actress, a singer, in the film industry, a travel or sitcom writer, a cupcake judge
and, according to a third-grade personal essay I wrote, a baseball player. I am not one of those
people who claim that from a very young age they knew they wanted to write a book. I started to
write THE MEMORY BOX as a way to channel my creativity and myself into something. It was
very soon after I had taken a sabbatical from my career as a communications executive in the
cosmetics industry and I moved with my family from NYC to the NJ suburbs. I was experiencing
the culture shock of a new career and a new town in which I knew no one. The suburbs as a stay-at-home
mom, was very new to me. Writing THE MEMORY BOX was my way of staying
creative, strategic and communicative, even if it was with a book!
What is your writing process? Do you outline?
Hmmm, that's a good question! I don't write an outline until I'm well into the story. When I started to write The Memory Box, I knew the beginning and the end. I was always certain of those two things. And those two things never changed. I did utilize an outline very late in the game, when I had to keep track of the sequence of things. When you write suspense and there are plot twists, it’s important to stay organized with timing especially. I actually drew up many versions of calendars for September 2006 and October 2006, the two months during which most of the book takes place. I also have many sketches of the floor plan of the main character's house. It’s very important to note that if a character walks down a hall from the den and made a right into the kitchen in Chapter 3, that she doesn’t walk down the hall from the den and make a left into the
kitchen in Chapter 7. Most readers are very visual. Even if they don’t realize it, they see the book unfold as if it were a movie. They would pick up on a wrong turn in a heart beat,
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