What was the inspiration behind The Memory Thief?

When I was a teenager, my mom was diagnosed with a heart condition, which led to an unexpected open-heart surgery. Before she was rushed into the operating room, my mom’s heart had stopped six times. The doctors warned my family that due to the trauma she’d experienced, there was a possibility that my mom wouldn’t remember us, when or even if she woke up.

I was sitting at her bedside when she first began to stir after her surgery, and as I touched her hand, she wrapped hers around mine and squeezed it three times, our signal for I love you. It was a moment I’ll never forget! In that tiny gesture, she’d spoken the words she couldn’t yet say. And I knew, much like Etta, that my mom was coming back to me.

On my mom’s road to healing, there were many tears, setbacks, and hardships, but she never lost hope. It was during these times of waiting, uncertainty, and in the joy of my mom waking up that the seeds of this story were first planted, and her unfailing courage became the true inspiration for The Memory Thief.

What impact did writing this story have on you?

Writing The Memory Thief has had a huge impact on me. I first began writing after completing treatments for Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a form of lymphatic cancer. It was a very difficult time in my life, and writing fiction helped me express myself in ways that I’d never done before. It also helped me process through some of my most difficult memories.

Throughout drafting The Memory Thief, I realized there were still some emotions about being faced with the possibility of losing my mom that I’d yet to express out loud. Writing this book proved to be a source of healing, and a wonderful platform for exploring truth in my own life through a backdrop of fiction.

This story is very dear to my heart, and reflecting back on the process of writing this book is what made the moment of holding it in my hands so amazing.

How are you reflected in The Memory Thief?

Because this story is based on my own journey with my mother, many of Etta’s worries, doubts, and fears are things I also experienced when faced with the possibility of losing my mom. The questions that Etta asks about how to deal with a situation like this are questions that I often pondered myself.

So when I first began writing, I thought, “What if I wasn’t the only one who faced this fear? What if there was an entire society that feared their loved ones no longer remembering them?” Pondering this led me to want to explore a world where memories reign over everything. Then writing Etta’s emotional journey also helped me process through a lot of my own memories, as well.

That’s one reason that I love not only writing but reading fantasy novels. Even though these characters live in worlds that are vastly different than our own, what they love, hate, and fear can often be so relatable. That sticks with me long after I read the last page, and I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to share this journey with readers.