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If you’ve ever sat at your desk, mid-afternoon, dreaming of a life that looks a little less like spreadsheets and a little more like a Hollywood film set, you’re in good company. Natasha Lester, now one of Australia’s most-read historical fiction writers, was once exactly where you are. She swapped her corporate career for a sea change and a fountain pen, culminating in her latest novel, the gripping and scandalous tale of The Chateau on Sunset.
The beginning of Natasha’s writing career.
Before she was topping bestseller lists, Natasha was climbing the corporate ladder in Melbourne as a marketing manager for a world-leading beauty brand. But between the high-pressure campaigns and her overflowing lipstick drawer, she dreamt of a different life. “I was working super hard for this thing that wasn’t my passion, but that I still kind of loved,” she told us. Then her husband got a role in Perth, where corporate jobs at the time were sparse, and Natasha saw a window of opportunity. She began a Master of Creative Arts, and it was through this that she wrote her first novel. “I was the oldest person in the room at university, and I was only like 30,” she recounted. “I thought… what if I finally did something about this writing dream that I’ve carried around?”
Becoming a bestselling author.
When Natasha started publishing in America, it was clear her writing could be a full-time career. While she’s known for historical fiction, her new novel The Chateau on Sunset, marks a pivot into a more modern style. It’s a change she’s so invigorated by, that she intends to continue it in her next book. 
Image: Hachette. “I’ve always loved historical fiction, but I’m also drawn to the more modern kind — the Taylor Jenkins Reid-esque books,” Natasha said. “And I feel like all of those books have very similar things in common; they’re big, sweeping stories that are focused on women.”
The Chateau on Sunset is old Hollywood grit and glamour.
Natasha’s new novel takes us inside the walls of the infamous Hollywood hotel, the Chateau Marmont. If those walls could talk, they wouldn’t just whisper; they’d scream with stories of celebrity scandal and buried secrets. “I love the fun of that,” Natasha said, recounting legendary anecdotes she uncovered during her research, like Bette Davis nearly burning her room down with an errant cigarette, or a young Grace Kelly “asking for the room numbers of hot guys”. But the book doesn’t shy away from the darker side of Tinseltown. “It’s such a contrast between the fun, glamorous Hollywood stories and also the darker, seedier stories, which you can see are an absolute precursor to what we found out in the #MeToo era,” she explained. “There’s an attractive, fun storyline, but there’s a lot more going on under the surface.”
For her research, Natasha checked in at the Chateau Marmont (it famously doesn’t allow photos inside). “We knew that it was going to be a crazy few days there,” she said. “I thought — because I’m not a celebrity — that they might look down on me and treat me differently, but they were so lovely.” 
Personalised stationary at Chateau Marmont. Image: Supplied. Knowing the darker moments the hotel housed over the years, Natasha had come to resent it. But after staying there, she felt differently. “I was like, ‘No, it’s not the Marmont’s fault, it’s the fault of the culture of Hollywood’,” she told us. “I guess it made me rewrite the hotel as a character, because that’s how I thought about it when I was staying there.”
One of the most surprising things? That the furniture was all reclaimed from estates that crumbled during the Great Depression. “It’s a jumbled mix of gorgeous antique Art Deco pieces — you can feel the history literally bleeding out of the walls.”
A modern retelling of Jane Eyre.
Natasha drew much of her inspiration from classic literature. “It’s a bit like what Emerald Fennell said about Wuthering Heights,” she said. “She’s made a movie that captures how she felt about the book as a teenager.” When I read Jane Eyre as a teenager — in fact, I was only like 10… the overwhelming impression was of these very passionate people who got swept away with each other. It was all very, very vivid.” In Jane Eyre, Jane longs to see the world before encountering her love interest, Mr Rochester. Revisiting the novel, Natasha wanted more for the protagonist than just love. “I feel like Jane kind of missed out on what she truly wanted in many ways,” Natasha said. “I feel like there’s an alternative ending, a different story that would be more satisfying… The Chateau on Sunset is, how could we give Jane Eyre the ending she truly deserves?”
Her aim with the book? To give women back their voices and their agency. “I think it’s very easy in this time we are living in now to feel powerless,” she explained. “One of the things I’m trying to bring out in this book is that we all have dreams… but sometimes we forget that, you know, just dreaming isn’t enough, and we need to make those dreams come true.” “We’ve got to take some action. At its heart, The Chateau on Sunset is about reclaiming power.”
But of course, this all happens in a historical setting, 1950s to 1970s Hollywood. When asked why this period, Natasha admitted it was the lure of both the sparkle and darkness of this era for women. “It’s so beautiful and glamorous on the surface. Think of Marilyn Monroe. She died tragically, and all anyone remembers is that she was this sexy blonde bombshell, which has changed how her legacy is seen,” she explained.
A new chapter in her writing.
Natasha is an award-winning writer, but this book marks a new process for her. “This one is more vividly imagined,” she said. “Previously, in historical fiction, I’ve drawn on real people and real events. I still do in this book, but my publisher said to me, ‘change their names and run with it’.” “The minute you give a real person a different name, it suddenly opens up a lot of extra imagination and creativity. This one is my imagination running at full speed.”
Whether you’re a lifelong fan of Natasha’s or you’re looking for your next obsession in the vein of Taylor Jenkins Reid, this book offers the ultimate escapist experience. “There’s nothing better than just losing yourself in the world of a story, and particularly a story where you finish with a kind of heartfelt sigh and a smile on your face at the same time,” Natasha said.
Order your copy of The Chateau on Sunset. 
Featured image: Natasha Lester/Hachette.
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