A Skaneateles family has watched an idea grow into a bestseller, and this weekend they will watch that idea interpreted as a movie.

Lifetime Network will premiere “The Memory Keeper's Daughter” at 9 p.m. Saturday, April 12.

The book is based on Skaneateles native Kim Edwards' book of the same title. The story follows a doctor who gave away one of his twins when they were born because she had Down's syndrome. The narrative shows the impact of that decision on the family.

The family told close friends when Kim sold the rights to make the movie and the word spread. Since Lifetime has begun to advertise the film, people have approach Kim's parents, Shirley and John Edwards, eager to watch the movie.

From the amount of people who approached the Skaneateles couple, many people around the town, and indeed the nation, likely will flip on the channel.

The Edwards plan to watch the debut with Kim at her Kentucky home.

They are baby-sitting Kim's two daughters, 10 and 13, while she travels to London with her husband to receive the Golden Penguin Award, Shirley said.

And it's just as well. The couple doesn't have cable television.

John is from Skaneateles originally, and Shirley, who has lived there for more than a half century, retired from teaching kindergarten at Waterman Elementary

Shirley said she's eager to see how the network interpreted the story.

She likened the experience to when her four children participated in a big event.

“I was always anxious before the kids perform. ... You hope they do well,” she said.

Crews filmed the movie in November and December in Nova Scotia, Canada. Kim and her brother John went to Halifax to visit the set.

The movie stars Dermot Mulroney, Gretchen Mol and Emily Watson.

Lifetime officials wanted to make a film from the book because they believed it connected with the channel's audience, said of Arturo Interian, vice president original movies for Lifetime.

“We certainly took note of the phenomenal reviews the book received, as well as its remarkable staying power on the New York Times Bestseller list, but ultimately what made it right for Lifetime was its central themes of family secrets, how destructive they can be, as well as the redemptive power of love,” Interian stated in an e-mail. “Kim Edwards' novel really examines those emotionally charged issues in a sophisticated and moving way.”

The seed planted in Kim's mind took three years to sprout into what readers grabbed off the shelves.

But it wasn't until she moved to Southeast Asia with her husband to work as a teacher that she really started writing intently.

“I don't think she had any idea,” Shirley said as to whether they knew the book would make the best seller's list. “She felt good about writing and enjoyed it.”

In fact, her main concern was being true to the families she spoke with to learn about raising a child with Down's syndrome. They read the first draft and gave it their seals of approval.

The publishing house bought “Memory Keeper's Daughter” in one day after Kim submitted the book, Shirley said.

Kim, a 1976 Skaneateles High School graduate, always thought she wanted to be a writer.

She went on to attend what is now Cayuga Community College, then Colgate University. She earned her master's degree from the University of Iowa, and graduated from the Iowa Writer's Workshop.

Watching the writing process for three years from afar is a lot different than watching people act out scenes from the book, Shirley said.

“I have to confess, it's a little hard ... to separate the book from the person I know it's supposed to be,” she said.

“It's hard to detach.”